Lyon Wine Tasting: Small-Group Blind Tasting with a Sommelier

Taste five wines from four French regions without leaving Lyon, in a restored 19th-century silk workers' loft in Croix-Rousse. Your host is a certified sommelier who teaches the way friends talk: no jargon, no snobbery, plenty of laughing. The tasting opens with a glass of Crémant de Bourgogne and runs as a blind comparison, so you learn to taste the differences between Beaujolais, Burgundy, and the Northern Rhône, plus a wildcard from Savoie or the Jura, the alpine vineyards just up the road. Between wines, work through a board of artisan cheese and charcuterie from Lyon's best producers. With a maximum of 10 guests around the table, every question gets answered. Dietary needs, including gluten-free, are happily accommodated with 24 hours' notice. Expecting, or not drinking? Come anyway, the board is generous and the company is good. Just tell us in advance.