F.I.C.B. encourages it member wine brotherhoods to take new initiatives to promote expertise in wine growing and tasting within their membership. The publication of our “Guide on organizing competitions for the blind recognition of grape varietals and appellations” has triggered new developments and inspired new ideas on how to diversify a wine brotherhood’s activities and thus consolidate and widen their membership.

We report here on the programme launched by the Oregon Wine Brotherhood in 2023. It is based on three “OWB Wine Master classes” given by eminent professionals, open to all the members of the Brotherhood and dealing respectively with:

Part 1: Winetasting including all aspects of wine tasting, from the choice of glasses, decanter or not wine tasting components (color, aroma, tasting), use of the 5 senses and a review of the grapes and wine regions of the world.

Part 2: Wine history, covering the history of the Oregon wine industry (geology, climate, terrain and terroir tasting).

Part 3: Wine making, from vine to bottle including planting of grapes, vineyard maturity, decision to pick, harvest, dump-destem-crush, fermentation, barrel and storage and bottling.

The programme is managed by Supreme Knight Ken Hick.

The first series of Master classes took place in 2023 and were taught by Vicente Pina (Part 1), Scott Burns and Greg Jones ( Part 2), Denis Burger (recipient of the F.I.C.B. Diploma of Honour in 2022) and John Pataccoli (Part 3).

The participants having attended the three parts of the programme will receive a special pin, to wear with their O.W.B. brotherhood attire, as well as a Diploma.

The presentation of the first 9 diplomas by the Grand Commander of O.W.B. will be one of the highlights of the 2024 Assemblage on June 1.