Wine and Cheese Classes at Talula’s Table

It’s Monday, it’s happy hour and today’s special is… cheese. Talula’s Table is now offering a series of cheese “happy hours” on Monday evenings. Held in the shop from 6:30 to 8:00 PM, the classes typically place a regional or thematic focus on all things cheese. I’ve been working for the last couple of weeks with Aimee Olexy, resident cheesemonger at Talula’s, to pair wines with her panoply of farmstead fromages. Sessions thus far have covered introductions to the cheeses of Spain and France. Next week’s course, on June 4, will shift to a sociological topic: cheese and wine made by women. The wines I’ve selected for the evening are:

• Pfalz Scheurebe trocken, Weingut Weegmüller 2005:
  Stefi Weegmüller is one of the premier growers in the Pfalz. She turns out some of the cleanest and most characterful wines of the southern Rhine.
  
  
• Dolcetto di Dogliani “Sorí dij But,” Anna Maria Abbona 2005:
  Anna Maria Abbona has been farming 8 hectares of vineyard, planted mostly to the Dogliani specialty Dolcetto, since 1989. Her wines are focused, aromatic and beautifully food friendly – everything that the best Dolcetti should be.
  
  
• Côtes du Rhône “Bout d’Zan,” Mas de Libian 2005:
  In 1995, Hélène Thibon took over the farm that had been in her family since the late 17th century. She farms organically on the western banks of the Rhône, producing bold, fruit-focused wines based primarily on the local specialty, Grenache.

Sessions begin with a brief mingling period, followed by an hour or so of interactive discussion which will cover the basics of cheese making, general information relative to the theme of the evening, the finer points of cheese and wine pairing, and detailed information about each selection. As hard as Aimee and I work on making the pairings harmonize, she also delights in taking advantage of the available options to create an intentional mismatch. It can be just as eye opening – and perhaps even more educational – than the perfect match.

Classes are priced at $25 per person and are open to twelve attendees. For more information or to make a reservation for a class, contact Talula’s Table directly at (610) 444-8255. And stay tuned here for more information about the upcoming schedule of events.