Drinks Experiences on board?

[The Doctor's Lady]

Anyone who has participated in any of the Drinks Experiences on board, care to comment which ones and what you thought? They range in price from $35 to $93 per person, and we're trying to decide which ones we are most likely to enjoy and learn something interesting from. There's one for Mixology, one for World Wines, one for martinis, Jack Daniel's, MacCallan's, comparative wine crystal, Wine Pairing, etc etc.

[kathynorth]

We've done the World Wines event twice and enjoyed it. I believe we had 8 stations on our last cruise, each with a white and a red wine from different countries. They man the stations with a crew member from the country of the wine. The event is approx 1 hr duration and you go from station to station tasting each of the wines. The pour size is the same as you get at a typical wine tasting, but you can go back to the same station as many times as you like. Toward the end the crew start giving heavier pours to finish off the bottles. They usually have a large fruit and cheese platter to help cleanse the pallet. 

 

On a different cruise I did the event where you create your own wine. I thought this would be an individual creation, but it turned out we were put into groups of 4 and had to collaborate on what we did or didn't like. IMO our wine tasted terrible and I ended up pouring the sample we were allowed to bring back to the cabin out in the sink. 

 

We also did the Reidel wine tasting, where you get a set of Reidel wine glasses as part of this event. Although this was more expensive, we enjoyed this event. At that time I didn't realize just how much the shape of a wine glass can impact the taste of the wine. It was very interesting to understand how sight, smell and taste all interface to create a nice wine experience. I was so impressed that I told everyone what I learned during that session. The result was that several members of my family gifted me Reidel wine glasses the following holiday season. Now my cabinet is filled with specialty glassware, some for wine, some for beer.

Edited January 5, 2023 by kathynorth

[DaKahuna]

I have done the World Wine, Mixology, and the McCallan's. 

 

I agree with @kathynorth comments on the World Wine tasting.  Very informative and an opportunity to try new wines that otherwise I would not have tasted. 

 

I had a lot of fun at the Mixology Class I attended.  The head bartender for that was the same individual that conducted the McCallan tasting.    The Mixology class had us made our on four drinks, one shaken, one stirred, one mixed, and one muddled.   Depending on your taste in alcohol you may or may not like it.  I enjoyed it. 

 

The McCallan tasting consisted of a sampling of four different varieties of MaCallan's single malt while the bartended explained the process of making the whiskey and going over the tasting notes for each. 

 

[kathynorth]

@DaKahuna , do you remember the names of the drinks you made during the Mixology class? Were participants given a taste of the drinks being made or did you receive half/full servings? 

Edited January 6, 2023 by kathynorth

[DaKahuna]

Just now, kathynorth said:

@DaKahuna , do you remember the names of the drinks you made during the Mixology class? Were participants given a taste of the drinks being made or did you receive half/full servings? 

 

 Sadly I do not with one exception.  That was the spicy rum old fashioned.  I remember that one as I had been drinking them in the Ensemble Lounge most of the cruise and the waiter/bartender there was the one that conducted the class.  

The Mixology class each of us duplicated the full drink made by the bartender and could drink it if we wanted.   

 

The McCallan tasting was a dram of each for each of us. 

 

[boxkite]

I second the World Wines tasting. Eight stations setup, each with a different type of wine or country of origin. I enjoyed the dessert wines table as I normally do not order dessert wines, but will do so during our next cruise.

 

They have plenty of buckets to empty your wine glass of those wines you might not care for.

[DaKahuna]

14 minutes ago, boxkite said:

 

They have plenty of buckets to empty your wine glass of those wines you might not care for.

 

 That's where my dessert wines ended up.  Found them too sweet for my taste.   

 Did not drink a lot of the whites either, my wife was trying those  I favor reds and pretty much stuck with what I like unless the sommelier talked me into something else. 

 

[The Doctor's Lady]

I'm wondering about signing up Hubster and I both for the courses involving wine since I can have a little. But on the courses involving hard liquor would I be allowed to tag along to the event without paying if I wasn't drinking? I'm diabetic and really shouldn't have hard liquor. Also are the events set at specific times or do you just show up at the bar or some of each? 

Edited January 6, 2023 by The Doctor's Lady
Misspelling

[DaKahuna]

57 minutes ago, The Doctor's Lady said:

I'm wondering about signing up Hubster and I both for the courses involving wine since I can have a little. But on the courses involving hard liquor would I be allowed to tag along to the event without paying if I wasn't drinking? I'm diabetic and really shouldn't have hard liquor. Also are the events set at specific times or do you just show up at the bar or some of each? 

 

 Yes.  For the MaCallans my wife was present but did not participate. 

 

 For the Mixology class, another person attending was giving his wife, who was not participating, a tase of each of the drinks he made. 

 

 I am a Type II diabetic and I have been under the impression that hard liquor is no worse than wine for you.  The sugar content in hard liquor is actually quite low. 

 

[LB_NJ]

3 hours ago, boxkite said:

I second the World Wines tasting. Eight stations setup, each with a different type of wine or country of origin. I enjoyed the dessert wines table as I normally do not order dessert wines, but will do so during our next cruise.

 

They have plenty of buckets to empty your wine glass of those wines you might not care for.

I was thinking of booking this pre-cruise to save a few dollars however, they don't have a day/time of the event in cruise planner.

[Canuker]

Any tutored beer tastings?

[zestyzorra]

I've done the food and wine pairing and the champagne tasting.  The food and wine one was my favorite.  We tried 5 different wines with about 15 different bites of food, from the usual cheese and chocolate to surprising ingredients like raw and cooked tomatoes and grilled chicken breasts.  It was rather surprising how some foods worked with the wines. I never cared much for fortified wine until I had it with blue cheese.

 

The champagne tasting was also nice but we couldn't really hear or understand the somm. The group of us all got along and had fun chatting, so that was the best part, to me.

 

I'm doing the world of wines tasting on my cruise later this month, so I appreciate everyone's comments about that. Sounds like fun 😀

[Linda W.]

11 hours ago, kathynorth said:

We've done the World Wines event twice and enjoyed it. I believe we had 8 stations on our last cruise, each with a white and a red wine from different countries. They man the stations with a crew member from the country of the wine. The event is approx 1 hr duration and you go from station to station tasting each of the wines. The pour size is the same as you get at a typical wine tasting, but you can go back to the same station as many times as you like. Toward the end the crew start giving heavier pours to finish off the bottles. They usually have a large fruit and cheese platter to help cleanse the pallet. 

 

On a different cruise I did the event where you create your own wine. I thought this would be an individual creation, but it turned out we were put into groups of 4 and had to collaborate on what we did or didn't like. IMO our wine tasted terrible and I ended up pouring the sample we were allowed to bring back to the cabin out in the sink. 

 

We also did the Reidel wine tasting, where you get a set of Reidel wine glasses as part of this event. Although this was more expensive, we enjoyed this event. At that time I didn't realize just how much the shape of a wine glass can impact the taste of the wine. It was very interesting to understand how sight, smell and taste all interface to create a nice wine experience. I was so impressed that I told everyone what I learned during that session. The result was that several members of my family gifted me Reidel wine glasses the following holiday season. Now my cabinet is filled with specialty glassware, some for wine, some for beer.

Do you recall about what time of day the World Wine events are held?  Mid-day vs later afternoon?  I wish they posted something about when they have them.  I would think they would be on sea days but not sure.  Thanks for the help!  This sounds like something I would enjoy!

[thebutlerdidit]

2 hours ago, Linda W. said:

Do you recall about what time of day the World Wine events are held?  Mid-day vs later afternoon?  I wish they posted something about when they have them.  I would think they would be on sea days but not sure.  Thanks for the help!  This sounds like something I would enjoy!

One suggestion is to use the app to check out the daily schedules on current sailings. That’s how I found that the Mixology 101 class was being held at 3 pm on sea days on the Equinox. 
 

my next cruise is on the Millennium, and the current sailing has the Workd Wine event on a sea day at 2 p.m. in Cellar Masters. 

Edited January 6, 2023 by thebutlerdidit

[DaKahuna]

 

 Our World Wine tour, Mixology, and MaCallan's Tasting have all been in the afternoons on sea days.  

[kathynorth]

@Linda -W, I don’t recall the exact time for World Wine Tour, just that it was between lunch and dinner. 

[Bo1953]

17 hours ago, The Doctor's Lady said:

Anyone who has participated in any of the Drinks Experiences on board, care to comment which ones and what you thought? They range in price from $35 to $93 per person, and we're trying to decide which ones we are most likely to enjoy and learn something interesting from. There's one for Mixology, one for World Wines, one for martinis, Jack Daniel's, MacCallan's, comparative wine crystal, Wine Pairing, etc etc.

It all depends on what you would enjoy...

 

Do you like tasting new/different wines?

 

Are you interested in mixing your own wines?

 

Are you into finding the 'right' glassware for drinking wine and showing off your knowledge to friends and family about the same and doing the test with them, as well?

 

What is your budget, if you can handle it, take a few of the experiences while aboard, if any interests you and enjoy!!!

 

Cheers and bon voyage

[carolinagirlsince1993]

We have enjoyed several, our favorite being the Reidel wine glasses with the joker and how the shape of the glass really does influence taste.

We had so much fun doing mixology.

I enjoyed the champagne tasting on Equinox, got to enjoy a glass of $500 champagne, which will never happen again in my lifetime.

[LB_NJ]

4 hours ago, kathynorth said:

@Linda -W, I don’t recall the exact time for World Wine Tour, just that it was between lunch and dinner. 

On a sea day?

 

5 hours ago, thebutlerdidit said:

One suggestion is to use the app to check out the daily schedules on current sailings. That’s how I found that the Mixology 101 class was being held at 3 pm on sea days on the Equinox. 
 

my next cruise is on the Millennium, and the current sailing has the Workd Wine event on a sea day at 2 p.m. in Cellar Masters. 

How do check a sailing you are not on?

[kathynorth]

Yes, the World Wine Tour was held on a sea day both times we attended. You can see other cruises on the app by doing the following:

 

(1)open the app. (2) There are 3 icons at the top of the screen (ship, calendar and cruises, click on the 3rd icon for cruises. Whatever cruises you are booked on should pop up. (3) To see other cruises click on the tab located just below the title for your cruise that says "Select a different cruise" (blue print). Click that tab. (4) Another page that says Your Upcoming Cruises should pop up. In the middle of that page there is a tab that says "Browse our ships". Click that tab. (5) Click the tab for the ship you want to look at. (6) This next page will show you all the cruise dates for that specific ship. Click the date you want and you'll be able to look at the schedules, menus, etc for that ship and date. 

 

To get back to your sailing click the 3rd icon at the top of the screen, click select a different cruise, click on your upcoming cruise and you'll be back where you started.

[kathynorth]

11 hours ago, Canuker said:

Any tutored beer tastings?

 

We once took a Beer Tasting specialty cruise, hosted by Sam Adams. This was booked through a big box store TA. It was a great time with numerous related events. Lots of fun at a great price. We've also taken several wine tasting specialty cruises and 1 mixology cruise through the same big box store TA. I haven't seen a Celebrity hosted beer tasting event, but think this would be an interesting addition to their Drink Experiences menu.

[LB_NJ]

37 minutes ago, kathynorth said:

Yes, the World Wine Tour was held on a sea day both times we attended. You can see other cruises on the app by doing the following:

 

(1)open the app. (2) There are 3 icons at the top of the screen (ship, calendar and cruises, click on the 3rd icon for cruises. Whatever cruises you are booked on should pop up. (3) To see other cruises click on the tab located just below the title for your cruise that says "Select a different cruise" (blue print). Click that tab. (4) Another page that says Your Upcoming Cruises should pop up. In the middle of that page there is a tab that says "Browse our ships". Click that tab. (5) Click the tab for the ship you want to look at. (6) This next page will show you all the cruise dates for that specific ship. Click the date you want and you'll be able to look at the schedules, menus, etc for that ship and date. 

 

To get back to your sailing click the 3rd icon at the top of the screen, click select a different cruise, click on your upcoming cruise and you'll be back where you started.

Thank you.  Never knew you could do this. Helped a lot.

[Shiba_Lover]

We've done several which are all described here in detail.  Enjoyed World Wine the most.

 

Just a note - while you can book ahead of time - they may or may not actually hold these once onboard.  We have previously booked them ahead of time - then found out they were cancelled due to lack of people signing up once we were onboard.  So just be aware it could happen.  If this does happen - they will ask if you want to move to something else or get a a refund.  If you have signed up for something more expensive (like Riedel) and they ask if you want to move to food and wine - they refund the difference if you agree to move.

[LB_NJ]

28 minutes ago, ehall said:

We've done several which are all described here in detail.  Enjoyed World Wine the most.

 

Just a note - while you can book ahead of time - they may or may not actually hold these once onboard.  We have previously booked them ahead of time - then found out they were cancelled due to lack of people signing up once we were onboard.  So just be aware it could happen.  If this does happen - they will ask if you want to move to something else or get a a refund.  If you have signed up for something more expensive (like Riedel) and they ask if you want to move to food and wine - they refund the difference if you agree to move.

Does the opposite happen, they fill up before you board?

[Shiba_Lover]

On 1/6/2023 at 1:34 PM, LB_NJ said:

Does the opposite happen, they fill up before you board?

I'm not sure they "sell out" in advance, but they manage the location based on number of participants.  For example Tuscan if less people vs a portion of MDR if more people.  That's how it was explained by the sommelier.  Then of course it may be sold out on board once they set the number of anticipated people based on pre boarding sign ups.