Talk to me about the Cabernet wine blending experience...

[Michelle!]

Hi there, I am a platinum RCL cruiser and I am very interested in this wine 'blending' - what is it? Is it done in a similiar fashion to the wine tasting events, or is it more exclusive?

 

Thanks

[Lois R]

Good Morning:) I received an invitation to the Wine Blending on my

recent SUMMIT sailing. It was very interesting and fun as well.

It was held in Normandie (The Specialty Restaurant) and the Head

Sommelier hosted it, along with one other Sommelier. Both men were from Bulgaria

and they definitely know their wines!

It was about 45 minutes/1 hour. There were 6 types of wines and

the full explanations of each. Then you were given an empty wine glass,

mixing which wines you preferred to make your own.

It was invitation only I believe.

 

I enjoyed it very much:)

[cuppy]

Do you have to be a certain level to be invited to this?

 

My hubby & I are taking our first Celebrity cruise over Christmas and I know he would love to attend something like this. He is a wine collector and he goes to all the wine tastings when we are traveling. Sometimes they have had things of interest for him, other times it is just the basics (or what he considers basics). But he enjoys hearing other peoples thoughts about the different wines.

 

I was wondering if I asked my TA if she could note on our reservation with Celebrity that he would be interested in attending this. My TA knows us well and had made a note our our Hawaii reservation and he received a special invite for the wine tasting on that cruise plus she had purchased a bottle ahead of time for him. We give her a lot of business :cool:

[cruiseyguy]

I believe Celebrity limits attendance to these wine blendings/tastings to make them a "perk" for suite and high-level Captain's Club passengers. However, I do think "open" wine tastings are offered on some sailings, sometimes for a fee and other times not. We had one such tasting on Infinity's South America sailing earlier this year (it was sponsored by a local winery and was free).

[dmk]

I am not usually a negative sounding person. But I found the experience boring. I would encourage everyone to go. However, I wouldn't go again.

[Texed]

I went. My blend tasted like MD 20/20. :)

[CINDON]

I really enjoyed the blending session. The thing that makes it unique is that when you are finished, you have the only glass of wine like yours in the whole world. I took my full glass with me and sipped it for the next hour. It was wonderful.

[Lois R]

Hi,:) I didn't think it was boring at all. I guess that is what makes

us all different. And I had never been, so it was something new for

me as well. Our Sommeliers were knowledgbale and alot of fun.

We had quite a few people with many questions. I enjoyed the whole

experience.

 

There is a "wine tasting" and that is usually 9.00 (I think) and it is

open to all pax. I think this Cabernet Blending was for Select and Elite

pax only.

[Brucemcdou]

Hi - I agree with Lois and CruiseyGuy, the wine blending (unlike the wine tasting) seems to be limited to Elite and Select Captains' Club members and Suite pax. Being held in the Specialty Restaurant and hosted by the very knowledgeable sommeliers who work there makes it a much nicer experience than the usual wine tasting, which in my experience is held in the Rendevous Lounge and hosted by the regular dining room sommeliers. For us it's really just an excuse to socialize with people we've met on the cruise and chat with the Specialty restaurant staff outside of the hectic dinner times.

 

I don't disagree with DMK that it can be a little "boring" because they're trying to demonstrate how to distinguish and then blend "pure" varietals into a blend that we're used to drinking, using Cabernet Sauvignon as the example. Living near the wine country like I do, I've been to several similar blending demonstrations and Celebrity's is pretty good. It's just not the usual swish and spit wine tasting which most people use as an excuse to drink.

 

I think it's sponsored by Kendall Jackson, and they use their wine as the sample to aim for, so it's a form of product placement for them.

 

The only downside is that it's been scheduled in the morning the last couple of times we've gone, and much as I love to drink wine (;)) I'm not really up for it at 11:00 a.m.! I skipped it the last cruise we were on for that reason. The High Tea they hold in the Specialty Restaurant for Select and Elite and Suite guests is in the afternoon is also a very nice experience.

[drfun48]

I really enjoyed the blending session. The thing that makes it unique is that when you are finished, you have the only glass of wine like yours in the whole world. I took my full glass with me and sipped it for the next hour. It was wonderful.

I took a different approach.I just started downing all the blends after mixing a few and to my delight the wine stewards just kept refilling my glasses-This as opposed to the wine tastings where it's only a taste of each.If it was a little boring,it became less so after the sixth glass.

[Michelle!]

This sounds like something I will enjoy a great deal. As a platinum C&A member - I get Elite credit on Celebrity. Hopefully, I will get an invite.

 

Thank you for all your feedback.

[adegner]

You also might try to ask your sommilier to get you in. If you tell him how much you enjoy Cabernet's and how you had heard how fun the wine blending was, then I'm sure you can get them to invite you. I have done it twice. Both times it was before they did it for the Elite members. At the time they charged about $17. What I like about it is the small group and the personal attention that you get from the sommeliers. I also enjoy sipping the "pure" stuff - to see how they decide what to blend together. If you are a wine fanatic, this will probably be a little "simple" for you, but the fun of speaking with the group would (to me) make it a pleasant experience. It is always so nice to meet people with the same interests.

 

I also enjoy the food and wine "pairing". This is so much fun because you get to try new types of wine with a particular sampling of just the right kind of food. (A bit a chicken or a cheese or fish). I usually stay with the reds but this gave me a chance to try others. It is amazing how a certain type of cheese or chocolate can really make the wine taste better.

[uktog]

I loved the experience - after all, if I did not like the blend, it was no one else fault but mine! It was good fun doing it with DH and comparing his blend to mine etc. It is only for Select/Elite passengers and you have to RSVP as it does get oversubscribed on some sailings. They do not include suite passengers unless they fall into the correct Captains Club status

[AFT_LOVER]

Infinity had Nightrain Express at our cabernet mixing.............. plenty were poluted fast!

 

 

I went. My blend tasted like MD 20/20. :)

[hajekfam]

This sounds like something I will enjoy a great deal. As a platinum C&A member - I get Elite credit on Celebrity. Hopefully, I will get an invite.

 

Thank you for all your feedback.

If you are platinum C&A, you are only Select in Celebrity's captains Club. Select is the membership level for 6-10 cruises. You have to have diamond level membership to be elite for Celebrity.

[RSGS315]

I agree with dmk, as I found it boring as well. I tried to get into the spirit, but then realized what the problem was. I don't care that much for red wine. I'm a huge fan of dry white wines, as I grew up in the wine country in Europe.

If you enjoy drinking red wine, you'll LOVE it!!

Ginnie

[MISSYLOU]

We loved the wine blending. Learned a few things but mostly had fun. We found the best blend to be when we mixed all of them together. :D :D Just go with other folks who want to have a good time.

[RodPat]

We loved the wine blending. It was nice mostly because it was a small group and the wine for the most part was pretty good. I would love to do it again and look forward to it on my next trip in March. Pat

[Michelle!]

If you are platinum C&A, you are only Select in Celebrity's captains Club. Select is the membership level for 6-10 cruises. You have to have diamond level membership to be elite for Celebrity.

 

 

You're right, thank you for correcting me! I am very naughty for making this error - but according to the celebrity website, I am still elligible. :D