The Course
Stepping out of your wine comfort zone can be exciting but also intimidating. We've never had more diversity at our fingertips when it comes to wine. But such diversity can sometimes feel daunting.
Whether it's understanding why your sparkling wine is cloudy in a trendy wine bar, to recognising the newest PiWi variety wine released at your local bottle shop - arming yourself with a little knowledge can allow you to be confident in your wine adventures.
This is the perfect course for anyone who wants to explore a path less tasted, with topics such as natural wines, pet nats and orange wines as well as what I believe are the 'next big things' from Italy and Greece.
The sip-size, easy to follow videos alongside downloadable cheat sheets cover the seven most important topics in alternative wine right now. And by the end of this course you'll be equipped to tackle the trendiest of wine lists, feel confident with some unusual but utterly rewarding varieties and maybe even uncover your next new favourite wine.
An absolute must for anyone with an adventurous palate and a curiosity to learn about these lesser known drops.
How it Works
In your time, with your wines, your way
The courses all feature a mix of videos and PDFs bringing each of the topics to life. There’s no exams, no deadlines and no expiry date, so you can rewatch the content as many times as you would like.
The videos can be streamed via the website or the Teachable app meaning you can watch them on wherever you are and on any device.
Wine isn’t included in the course (on purpose), but a recommended ‘shopping list’ is. The lists come from an assortment of retailers and for a range of price points. That way, not only will you be learning about wine, you will also be exploring new bottles from your preferred shop, and maybe even finding your new favourite. And, in fact, you don’t even need to open a bottle at all if you’re just looking to learn the theory.
So whether you’re looking for a fun, bottle-filled evening activity with your other half, or to up-skill each morning on your commute, you can make the courses work for you!
What Will I Cover?
More About Anna
I’m Anna Spooner. I’m a Stage 2 Master of Wine student, holder of the WSET Diploma and certified WSET educator. I have over 10 years of experience in the drinks business working in wine tasting, journalism, communications and education.
I’ve been a wine educator at various levels, first at West London Wine School where I taught both casual and WSET classes and, most recently, The Wine Society, where I hosted tastings from beginner to very experienced and premium levels. I created the online wine tasting programme at The Wine Society where I won them the Decanter Virtual Wine Experience Award in both 2021 and 2022.
I knows that wine exams are not for everyone. After years of requests by people who want to learn but don't fancy lengthy textbooks or big exams I created Anna Spooner Wine.
I have hosted private tastings ranging from small intimate groups of friends at home to fine wine private members club events; from casual team building events for companies such as Facebook to more formal client relationship events for asset management companies.
In marketing and communication I’ve worked in-house for big wine brands and retailers. I have also written for magazines and newspapers such as The Financial Times Weekend Magazine, GQ and The Evening Standard as well as my own recently launched Substack. In 2022 I was runner up of the Jancis Robinson Writing Competition and I was also runner up for the IWSC Emerging Talent in Wine Communication in both 2022 and 2023.
I currently live in the Southern Rhône where I conduct local wine tours alongside my online wine education platform, private events and writing to reach a global audience.
