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, January 24, 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.
January 24 A Tour of America’s West Coast Wine Regions
Many consider the West Coast to be the epicenter of fine wine. Indeed Washington, Oregon, and California produce some of the world’s most highly coveted wines. This in-depth exploration includes tastings of some of the best wines from the upper Pacific Northwest to lower California and all points in between. Segelbaum guides a tasting of essential sommelier favorites that will have you drinking like a professional wine guru.
February 21 Wines of Campania: Where Fire Meets Water on Italy’s Amalfi Coast
There are few more beautiful wine regions than Campania, a gorgeous stretch of volcanic coastline that includes Capri and the Amalfi and Positano coasts. Home to the now-extinct Mount Vesuvius stratovolcano, the mineral-rich soils of this magical region coupled with proximity to the Mediterranean are the most significant factors influencing the distinctive terroir. While Campania might very well be on your radar for Naples, the home of pizza, giant lemon trees, and some of the world’s most popular yachting and vacation destinations, its true magic is in its incredible wines. From fresh, bright and mineral whites like Falanghina, Greco, and Fiano to the intense and brooding reds like Aglianico and Piedirosso, there’s something for everyone in Campania.
March 21 A Global Celebration of Women in Wine
It is scientifically proven that women have better senses of taste and smell than men. Through years of evolution as hunter-gatherer societies, minute differences in smell or taste often identified the distinctions among food, medicine, and poison. It should come as no surprise that some of the most delicious and coveted wines in the world are made by women. In celebration of Women’s History Month, this session explores a delicious selection of wines made or managed by some of the most important women in the industry. This global tasting is sure to surprise and delight as we raise a glass to the women who are changing the wine world for the better.
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
