The story of realising a dream, of outpourings and passing on everything gained along the way. All my experiences now come together in my Wine-Smart course.
My name is Niek Beute and I am a sommelier, wine poet and one of the few who has worked as a sommelier in Paris' three-star restaurants. You will probably think 'he will have been brought up on wine'. Well, not really; my childhood did not take place in Blaricum or on the PC Hooftstraat. The Overijsselian town of Kampen is where I grew up. The only wine I ever drank there was the mass wine in church. And although the Roman Catholic Church is responsible for much of our European wine culture, the mass wine did not reflect that. I always perceived this wine as a sour sip of ditch water.
How it all started...
Precisely because I did not grow up in fancy restaurants, I was fascinated by them from an early age. For instance, we went on holiday to Hungary with the family. The host of a local small restaurant was SO courteous, caring and serving. It moved me and made a deep impression on me. On the way back to the hotel, as a four-year-old boy, I said, 'Mum, I want to be a restaurant boss too later.' With this, my future was sealed. I would attend hotel school and go into the hospitality industry. Every birthday from then on, I was screwed; I had to walk around endlessly with a bowl of liverwurst and cubes of cheese to take care of the family.
It really started in France
It wasn't until my first full-time job, after my internships at De Librije and restaurant Vermeer, at restaurant Vossius that I really got interested in wine. This seemed so grand, comprehensive and complex that I had no idea where to start. It was in 2003, the most insanely hot year in France, that I got to report to restaurant Georges Blanc *** (from the legendary chef of the same name from southern Burgundy). And although I was not a sommelier at the time, I hung out a lot with the restaurant's sommeliers. I was especially frequent in the wine cellar, the second largest in France. Here no less than one hundred and thirty thousand bottles lay waiting for the moment when they could shine alongside a special dish. It was here where the fire of my passion for wine was ignited. Visiting wineries and wine fairs every weekend. I was drilled day in and day out, but I loved it. The more the sommeliers expected of me, the more eager I became. Tasting after tasting, with each new insight I got a 'aha-erlebnis' and I could start all over again and looked at each glass from a renewed perspective.
The pinnacle of sommellerie is Paris, where I eventually got to work as a sommelier at the grand Guy Savoy *** restaurant. I got to open the most beautiful bottles of my life here, and that under the toughest conditions and highest stress. The most intense and impressive time of my life.
Vinonics
Eight years later, I started Vinoniek. With this, I want to expand my reach and make my passion and inspiration accessible to everyone. This is not only for those who have access to top gastronomy; after all, for the experienced wine drinker, there is already a lot of guidance available. For the enthusiast with less experience, however, there is hardly any.
My recurring surprise at the lack of self-confidence among wine lovers made me decide to do something about it. I used the first lockdown to develop and write my own course, something I had been working on for so long. A course about applicable knowledge, self-assurance and self-confidence in wine.
My vision
It had to be an environment where you come into contact with the many flavours the wine world has to offer, where tasting is about paying attention to taste and learning to put it into words, and where we look for each wine's possible function and uses. With the first course group, I saw the fun, boldness, language and self-assurance continue to blossom each day of class. Wine-Smart does not require prior training in wine, but is definitely a complement for those who have already acquired knowledge.
What to expect from the Wine-Smart course?
- 5 teaching evenings of wine and wine enjoyment
- Contemporary written teaching materials with applicable knowledge and stories
- We taste over 40 wines, to introduce you to all wine styles
- All about purchasing and wine pairings
- Lots of tips and tricks
- All about handling wine, including storage and serving
- Reading labels and wine lists
Do you dare to dive into the deep end with me? Then I will immerse you in my world of wine.
Special Winelife Magazine promotion:
Register now for the Wine-Smart course and get a beautiful Vinoniek Winelife package as a gift. The package includes two tasting glasses, the Vinoniek wine opener and a Vinoniek gift voucher worth €25. Click here To sign up.
With Vinoniek and with the Wine-Smart course, I hope to be a springboard for all wine lovers. Do you dare to dive into the deep end with me? Then I will immerse you in my world of wine.
Cheers and greetings Vinoniek
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