By: Ben Battafarano OMAHA, Neb. — “Drink, learn, repeat”. That’s the motto of Spirit World Wine, located in Aksarben Village. Besides selling spirits, the organization offers an education program to beginning and experienced drinkers alike.
Much of class time is spent teaching how spirits are made, from plant to bottle. But they also discuss topics like global alcohol markets and what spirits can be imported into the U.S.
Regular student Erin Bode has been coming to classes for about a year. She said that knowing more about what she’s drinking adds a lot to the experience.
“The soil type, whether the area gets a lot of rain or gets no rain,” she said. “The thing to take away from all the classes is that the grape that suffers the most makes the best wines.”
Classes rotate through different types of alcohol, from wine and beer to brandy, bourbon, and sake. One of the organization’s monthly courses is an explorer series on wine, with each class highlighting a different region of the wine world. A class in mid-September highlighted Pinotage, a blend of Pinot Noir and Cinsaut, which is native to South Africa.
A complicated issue that classes tackle is the approval of alcohol for sale. The United States has very strict rules on what qualifies as a certain type of spirit. Take bourbon. According to the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, bourbon must not have more than 80 percent alcohol and be based on “not less than 51 percent corn”.
Spirit World’s general manager, Alzuri, is a sommelier, and is celebrating his tenth anniversary with the company. He said that Omaha is an especially friendly city for people who want to learn more about their drinks.
“When I was learning wine, people just hoarded their knowledge,” Alzuri said.
Alzuri says that while many experts on the coasts keep their knowledge to themselves, Spirit World’s mission is to share.
