What do we do (and don’t we do)?

We are writers and broadcasters specialising in wine and food. We also host wine events and run a wine club. We are both Masters of Wine.

We don’t make or sell wine but we do recommend wines and, for example, select cases for our Wine Club that subscribers can then buy at an exclusive discounted rate from certain retailers.

In essence, our primary aim is to help people drink better wine and be entertained at the same time.

What are our professional ethics?

Please see our Ethics page.

How do we rate and evaluate wine?

Tasting and assessing wine is our bread and butter work. We taste thousands of wines every year, both sighted and blind (ie where we don’t know what the exact wine is). Those of most interest appear on this site, generally with a tasting note (ie our description or evocation of the wine) and a score out of 10 points, plus ideally some context of how, where and when we tasted.

It’s a simple scoring system, designed to act as a rough guide to how we rate the wine at one point in time. It’s by no means definitive – wines change, people change and contexts change over time – but it is rigorous and the fruit of (generally two) experienced palates.

Anything from 0-3 is pretty boring. 5 is decent – fit for purpose – but not thrilling. 6-7 is good; anything from 7.5 upwards is pretty special. 8-9 is delicious; 9-10 is mind-blowing. We don’t shy away from the maximum score on principle (as some others do, perplexingly) but equally it doesn’t happen very often.

If we give a score in brackets – ie (8)/10 it’s because the wine is young but this is how we view its potential. Other brackets indicate slight indecision – ie 7.5-(8)/10 is less positive than 7.5-8/10. But we try to keep such hair-splitting to a minimum. Finally, a ‘+’ indicates great value.

What’s the difference between the Wine Club and Wine School?

At our Wine School we host wine tastings and events.

Our Wine Club was inspired by people who’d come to our wine school but wanted more direct help when it came to choosing decent wines from reputable retailers at great prices.

What’s the Wine Club all about?

It’s about drinking better wine.

One of the most common questions we are asked is to recommend the best wines at the best prices. So we thought, why not set up a club where people could order great wine at great prices as well as being part of a vibrant community of like-minded folk..?

You can read more by clicking on the following link about our Wine Club.

What happened to the Winchester Wine School?

In late 2011, we re-launched what was the Winchester Wine School as Susie & Peter’s Wine School.

At the same time, we changed our website address from www.winchesterwineschool.com to www.susieandpeter.com and incorporated our new Wine Club to the site.

Nothing has changed about the school other than its name. We hope you like it!

How do I book a wine tasting?

Either contact us directly by email, telephone or mail (you can find the details via the Contact page).

Or send us a booking form via this page.

Is it like being back at school?

Not at all! Unless your school was particularly enlightened…

We run wine courses with a difference. We do give you pencils and paper, but only really to take away and impress your friends with.

We place the emphasis on learning by fun experimentation. We do all kinds of taste exploration and come at wine from an original and quirky angle. We believe that the best way to learn about wine is not to be taught it, but instead to develop an interest in experiencing this most delicious of worlds for yourself. Taste is personal.

As the Delphic oracle had it: self-knowledge is the key to enlightenment.

What happens if I cancel my Wine School booking at the last minute?

Sadly we can’t refund your money if you cancel with less than two weeks’ notice before a tasting.

This is because we have to pay for everything (wines, room hire and other costs) in advance.

If you cancel with more than two weeks’ (14 days) notice, we’ll be happy to refund 50% of your payment; if you cancel with more than 31 days’ notice, we will refund your full payment.