LaFite Wine Tasting Experience On Board

[wiiCruz2]

Anyone ever done the on board LaFite Wine Tasting Experience? Generally on an at sea day, looks like it lasts about 2 hours ; the tasting features four distinctive wines from the cellars of Château Lafite Rothschild: Réserve Spéciale Blanc, a full-bodied Sauvignon Blanc with aromas of grapefruit and lime; Réserve Spéciale Bordeaux Rouge, a powerful red with a uniquely spicy finish; Réserve Spéciale Médoc with it spicy, black currant flavors; and Réserve Spéciale Pauillac, an aromatic and elegant red - at $23 pp.

 

I'm not a wine snob, but I could enjoy learning a bit about the processes and product and sampling a few sips.

 

Would be interesting to hear from others who have previously partaken.

[Clarea]

Anyone ever done the on board LaFite Wine Tasting Experience? Generally on an at sea day, looks like it lasts about 2 hours ; the tasting features four distinctive wines from the cellars of Château Lafite Rothschild: Réserve Spéciale Blanc, a full-bodied Sauvignon Blanc with aromas of grapefruit and lime; Réserve Spéciale Bordeaux Rouge, a powerful red with a uniquely spicy finish; Réserve Spéciale Médoc with it spicy, black currant flavors; and Réserve Spéciale Pauillac, an aromatic and elegant red - at $23 pp.

 

I'm not a wine snob, but I could enjoy learning a bit about the processes and product and sampling a few sips.

 

Would be interesting to hear from others who have previously partaken.

It's an enjoyable time to spend learning about wine. However, we thought it was a bit pricey and only liked one of the wines.

[bobinfl]

My wife and I did this last week on the FOS. We found it to be informative and worthwhile. You may, or may not like the wines served, but they do serve to illustrate the aspects of the wine being discussed.

[luvscruising2007]

We did this on our Explorer cruise and enjoyed it very much.

The red wines were all a combination of Merlot and Cabernet.

I learned that I preferred the wines with a higher percentage of Merlot.

They also served 4 different cheeses and explained the pairing of the cheese

to the wine. We were given a folder of information to take with us at the end

of the tasting.

We are not wine experts, just drink what we like. So, for us it was a nice experience.

[copnlpn2]

I've done the Lafitte wine tasting twice and also enjoyed it. I'm not much of a drinker but I'm enjoying learning about the different types of wines.

 

The first part of the tasting, you sample wines and list your favorites, then you rate the same wines after pairing them with food that compliment that particular wine. I was surpised that one wine in particular was my least favorite until I drank it with apricots and cheese...then it became my favorite of those I tried!

 

I know it's not that important, but the gold-embossed folder of info I received was very elegant and contained lots of reading material about wines, wineries and wine-making, etc.

[margeecruiser]

Hi -- We have gone to the Lafite wine tasting and would not go again. We did not like the wines very much and thought the whole thing was over priced. We have done the wine flights in Ventages 3 times and love them. You can learn more by doing the flights and having the winetender(is that a word?) explain each wine in the flight.

 

Margee

[born2travel]

I have booked this tasting for our Feb 24th Allure cruise. I generally enjoy whites more, and look forward to doing at least one wine flight. Definitely not a wine snob, I consume far more homemade wine than commercially produced! It sounds like fun, and I am just looking for a chance to enjoy a shared experience of this kind (while travelling with my teetotalling husband!)

[princesstori]

We did it on the Indy in Dec. (It was the first time they had offered it on the ship according to the host). It was great, sampled several wines along with cheese/fruit/nut pairings. The pours were quite a bit larger than what we thought they would be and we were offered refills of anything we liked. Had lots of wine for the price and were able to sample wines we normally wouldn't. One bottle from the tasting ran $80 in the dinning room. I imagine the pour size and refills would vary. Our host seemed to really enjoy finishing off the bottles. ;)

[wiiCruz2]

Thanks everyone. Your experiences and comments are most helpful. At $23 pp, it sounds fun and worthwhile. We embark in a week and I can hardly wait!

[silvermcs]

I attended this on Allure over Thanksgiving. Showed up at the last minute and they did not charge me. It was good and worth doing once.

[wallis7219]

We did it on Christmas Eve on Freedom 2012

 

Ours only lasted about an hour and we felt that we were not given enough information.

We where supposed to get a booklet with information about the wines etc, but they had left them in a locker!

They said they would send them to our cabins! Suffice to say they did not arrive.

 

We would not do this again!:rolleyes:

[Musigurl]

Can I book this ahead of time? How?

[Clarea]

Can I book this ahead of time? How?

I believe it can only be booked onboard.

[bobinfl]

Can I book this ahead of time? How?

 

Go to the pre-cruise planner for your cruise and select food and drink reservations, specialty restaurants and dining experiences. If it ts available on your ship, it will be among the selections presented.

[Niquein99]

I believe it can only be booked onboard.

 

I'm going on Allure in April and I was able to pre-book this online. However, I'm not sure about pre-booking on other class of ships.

 

I appreciate all the info on this; sounds like a nice experience to look forward to.

[Heidils]

We enjoyed it. Not any sort of value, and the wine was, eh? But it was a fun thing to do.

 

Put it this way, the art shows are fun (champagne) but you really have to fall in love a piece of art on a ship.

 

It's like going to the gas station for a cup of coffee, you either love it or you have taste.

[luvscruising2007]

We pre-booked for our Explorer cruise.

[Clarea]

We pre-booked for our Explorer cruise.

Thanks for the correction.

[born2travel]

OP - Maybe I can convince you to come back to the thread and share your own experience once you are home. I hope that it proves to be a good time for you. Swirl, sip, and enjoy!

 

I enjoy enjoy how these forums give us a chance to not just get information, but remind us how perceptions vary, not to mention the actual service. I admit, I would be very disappointed to not get the promised literature.

[wiiCruz2]

OP here, thanks again to all who have shared experiences and comments about the wine tasting.

 

I will be sailing on a Radiance Class ship at the end of next week :D - my first cruise.

 

I was able to learn about and pre-book the wine tasting through the Pre-Cruise Planner (Goto Planner, view "Specialty Restaurants & Dining Experiences", then select "All Specialty Dining Options", if available, it should pop up there).

 

I will certainly return here to post my experience and thoughts upon my return.

[born2travel]

Just a week away....that's great. You will become an addict like the rest of us. I have never sailed on Radiance class but I think they actually sound like the most beautiful design within the RCI fleet.

[Musigurl]

Found it! Thanks for the info. I checked, and it's only listed once -- at the same time that we've booked Hairspray.

 

Maybe they'll offer a second session?

 

Go to the pre-cruise planner for your cruise and select food and drink reservations, specialty restaurants and dining experiences. If it ts available on your ship, it will be among the selections presented.