Registration Advisory: Please read through the complete program description before registering. This series includes wine tasting kits as part of its registration price that must be picked up in Washington, DC.
Note: These programs can be purchased separately. Registration for this series will end by 9 a.m. ET on Friday, April 18, 2025.
Spend three fascinating evenings expanding your knowledge of wine as you travel the world with sommelier Erik Segelbaum in a series of delectable wine-tasting adventures. Each immersive program includes a curated personal tasting kit to enhance the experience.
April 18 The Caucasus Caucus: The Wines of Georgia
This small country on the eastern edge of the Black Sea is the crossroads of Europe and Asia and is recognized as one of the birthplaces of wine, with evidence dating back 8,000 years. Georgia is known for its amber wines and its traditional winemaking methods using qvevri (large clay vessels), but it also produces wines in the European, or international style, more familiar to today's consumers. The country embraces its more than 500 native grapes, which provide a new range of flavors for wine lovers to discover. Wine is an integral part of Georgia, inseparable from the cuisine, culture, hospitality and connection with family and friends. This immersive deep dive explores the full rainbow of Georgian viticulture from white to amber-orange to red and maybe even a few surprises. This is a can't miss for any lover of wine and history.
May 16 Give 'Em the Boot: Wines from the Foot of Italy
Italian wines are favored among wine novices and pros alike. The southern regions of Italy produce some of the most exquisite warm-climate wines that channel the essence of the Mediterranean. With hundreds of native grapes and plentiful international varieties, there's something for everyone. From Puglia (the heel), Basilicata (the instep), Calabria (the toe), and Sicily (“kicked” by the boot), this sampling of delicious wines invites you to step up and learn to drink like an Italian sommelier.
June 13 Rhône Rangers: Rhône Varieties from Around the World
There's a reason that the native grape varieties of the Rhône Valley are propagated throughout the world. These highly coveted grapes produce some of the most sought-after wines imaginable. Nearly every wine producing country or region grows Rhône varieties and often with tremendous results. These warm-climate hardy grapes are becoming ever more important as climate change is causing winemakers to rethink the wines they can make and the varieties they grow. This in-depth exploration of some of the most prolific Rhône varieties from countries near and far is sure to surprise and delight. There might even be a blind tasting component where you'll learn how to identify whether a wine is grown in the Rhône or from parts unknown.
3 sessions
Note: View a list of programs with Erik Segelbaum.
Wine Tasting Kit Information
- The cost includes curated personal tasting kits with enough wine for one person to sample the full lineup of wines.
- Additional participants must register individually to receive their own tasting kits, which is an essential component of the series.
- Each session will have separate kits available during two scheduled pick-up times the day before the program and the day of the program, 12–5 p.m., at the Shilling Canning Company (360 Water Street SE, Washington, DC; Metro: Navy Yard-Ballpark station, Green line).
- NOTE: Patrons will receive additional wine tasting kit pick-up information by email prior to the program.
- Due to state and federal laws, Smithsonian Associates cannot ship wine kits. However, SOMLYAY may be able to provide kits to participants outside the Washington, D.C., area (who must cover shipping costs). Please contact erik@thesomlyay.com for more information.
About Erik Segelbaum
Erik Segelbaum is a Wine Enthusiast 40 Under 40 Tastemaker for 2020 and Food & Wine magazine’s 2019 Sommelier of the Year. He holds the designation of Advanced Sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers, one of fewer than 600 specialists in the world who hold this level of certification. Segelbaum is the former corporate wine and beverage director for Starr Restaurants, a wine journalist and educator, and chief vinnovation officer of SOMLYAY hospitality and private events consultancy.
General Information
