The Course Editor, Nicholas Chlebnikowski, also compiled the Advanced Course. Other contributers include: Dr Bryce Rankine who is responsible for the Intermediate Course, and Patrick Iland & Peter Gago who have written the Australian Wine Course. Content Maintenence: Oggy Krasts & Jayden Hoyne. Internet Strategist: Andrei Chlebnikowski. Graphic Design & Video Editing: Yuri Chlebnikowski. All contents Copyright 2001, VintageSchool.com 
 
 

The Concept   Each day I am approached by people who wish to learn more about wine - and not just what wine to drink with tonights 'meal', but an eagerness to discover wine from a historical and scientific point of view as well.    In response to this need, the team at Vintage School have been working for several years to put this internet wine school together. Vintage School offers wine lovers an educational course at various levels which they can undertake at their own pace.    Some of the material used in Vintage School is available in printed form, whilst other material such as the Advanced Wine Course will be published on the internet for the first time. The rationale behind using the internet as the medium for publication is that the course can easily be updated as new scientific material to do with smell and taste is discovered.

The Courses   FREE BASIC WINE COURSE    This section deals with the Historic context of wine as well as providing some very basic information about wine styles, grapes, etc. This section is intended for newcomers to wine, although, having said that there is considerable in depth confirmation that can be obtained. Many of the 'Essays' have previously been published on the Vintage Direct website - www.nicks.com.au and we are grateful for permission to reproduce these essays here.    Visitors are welcome to visit this section any time.

INTERMEDIATE WINE COURSE    This course has been prepared from notes presented by Dr Bryce Rankin, and deals in great depth on the subject of wine tasting and wine making.    Some more advanced wine essays are included in this section, and will be added over time.    The cost of this course is $20.    This is the price of a book, and like a book, you have permanent access to this section. There are no monthly charges or additional hidden fees. The idea is that you treat this section very much like you would treat a book in your own library. Return to it as often as you like. Upon enrolment, you will be given a password. Please keep this in a safe place and do not abuse the system by passing the password around - we know that for some this may be a big ask, but let us put it another way, if you would like to receive continual upgrade at no charge, then we ask you to play by the rules.    These same conditions apply to the Australian Wine Course and the Advanced Course.

AUSTRALIAN WINE COURSE    This course will be of great International interest amongst wine lovers wishing to learn more about Australian wines. Patrick Iland and Peter Gago are two of Australia's foremost wine educators. With enrolment to this course comes a hard copy of the course which you will find useful for reading in bed or on the bus. One of the problems about the internet is that you can not take it to bed - well not just yet!    The cost of the course is $150 and includes mailing costs of the hard copy of the course anywhere in the world. Again, as with other courses at Vintage School, once you have enrolled you are free to return to the site as often as you like.

ADVANCED WINE COURSE    The Advanced Wine Course is the most comprehensive review of what is happening in the science of smell and taste, and in particular - the impact of the new research on the understanding of wine and food.    The cost of the course is $300, and as with other Vintage School courses gives you unlimited access to the site. As new information becomes available, the course will be upgraded.    The advanced course took 4 years of research to put together and cover all aspects of wine and food, as well as presenting for the first time a classification system of smell and taste.

Additional Benefits CHAT FACILITY / DISCUSSION GROUP    Vintage School has a live chat facility for wine lovers around the world to enjoy. We ask that some basic rules be observed, and these are all very obvious:  * Be polite, and courteous to your chat partners  * Do not engage in any illegal activities in the chat room  * Do not abuse chat partners if you disapprove of their opinions, we are all on a new learning curve  * Do not put forward any immoral ideas or suggestions and do not present any racist comments   Be controversial by all means, but lets aim to achieve something very worth while.

BUYING WINE and SPECIAL OFFERS    Vintage School will from time to time endeavor to put together special wine tasting packs for shipment to its members. Shipments can be made internationally and will be available through Vintage Direct www.nicks.com.au.    Special offers will be available to all members of Vintage School.

I trust that you enjoy the beginnings of a very exciting journey into wine and food.    Cheers    Nick Chlebnikowski