Wine Tasting at Veeno

I think it’s so true what they say about wine, you really do start to appreciate it the older you get. Where I once used to favour sickly sweet rose wine, I now love a glass or two of a smooth red with my meal. So when an opportunity landed in my inbox to spend an evening wine tasting, Mat & I couldn’t say ‘yes’ quick enough!

Veeno are quite new to the Manchester food & drink scene, located close to the town hall in Albert’s Square, but they also have wine cafes in Leeds and York too.

You can try their special wine tasting session, complete with 6 glasses of wine from their family’s Italian vineyard, complete with a board of Italian appetisers, or simply pop in for a glass or two of wine from their extensive menu.

 

The Appetisers

What is a good wine without some great food to accompany it? With the wine tasting session, you’re also offered a huge platter of Italian appetisers, or y’know… nibbles. We ate before we came out, but this was actually quite filling and we probably could have come with empty stomachs.

With each glass of wine, there’s an appetiser that complements it perfectly, which is all explained in their handy guide. For example, one of the reds is paired with salami, and it basically gives a whole different flavour to your wine. A taste of salami followed by a mouthful of the red meant that the wine was so much smoother to drink.

I’ve never really taken food and wine pairings into consideration before, but this made it really obvious to me that we should definitely think about it more often.

Also, it’s worth noting that their olive oil is made by the family that produces their wine, making it a really authentic Italian tasting session. It’s perfect with a few slices of crusty bread.

 

The Wine

Their ‘Classic Wine Tasting’ offers two glasses of white wine, three glasses of red wine, followed by a shot of sweet fortified wine for £19.90 per person. Along with the appetisers above and a piece of ‘Grandma’s recipe’ Tiramisu to finish. Each wine is explained and presented to you by your waiter/waitress, along with the recommended appetiser to eat with it, but if you ever need to check again, it’s all included in a handy guide on your table.

As red wine lovers, we were really happy with the red to white ratio, but also very surprised at how much we enjoyed the white wines on offer. The first was a really light and refreshing white, which is called their “House White Dry” on the menu. They all have little nicknames like that so it saves you some of the embarrassment of trying to pronounce the label or the grape name!

We pretty much loved all of the reds, but a particular favourite was “Our Classic”, which paired well with the parma ham slices. I could have eaten an entire platter of parma ham with that wine, it was absolutely delicious.

 

The Dessert

The extra little treat at the end, when you’re probably feeling quite a bit more chatty than usual *ahem*, is their signature homemade tiramisu. I normally shun tiramisu if I see it on a dessert menu, but this was truly the highlight of the entire evening for me. It had hints of brandy (I assume) and espresso, without any overpowering flavours coming through, and the sponge was light and fluffy.

You also receive a shot of sweet wine, which is fortified similar to port or sherry, so quite a strong finish, as you can imagine! We had a lovely evening and definitely wouldn’t hesitate to come back again soon to share a bottle of red and some delicious Italian nibbles.

 

Veeno have wine cafes in Manchester, Leeds and York. You can see their full menu here.

 

Although our wine tasting was provided complimentary of Veeno, all vino-lusting thoughts and opinions are my very own.