You're not basic. Neither should your wine knowledge be! The History of Wine is the first class in Bay Grape's Wine Basics series, launching at The Ruby this Spring. While learning history is often a snooze-fest, this class will keep you wide awake as we taste four wines that highlight major changes in the way humans have enjoyed wine over the past 8,000 years. A few topics we'll cover: Why is wine the most interesting beverage in the world? What genius culture started this whole wine thing? What do you mean people didn't used to drink it to get drunk? And are you serious that people today spend $20,000 on a single bottle?
PLEASE NOTE: You will taste four wines in this class. For Ruby members, there is a wine fee of $35, payable at the start of class. For nonmembers, this fee is included in the cost of your ticket.
About Bay Grape
Bay Grape is a wine shop focused on community. In addition to wine, we also offer beer, specialty sodas and a small retail selection of local, artisanal foodstuffs. We also host winemaker-led tastings and casual, relaxed wine classes. And we specialize in custom orders for offices and events!
We strive to be a cornerstone of our community: a physical gathering spot dedicated to building and preserving relationships with and between our guests. On that note, you can purchase bottles to take to go, or you can open any bottle in the shop, learn a bit about it and enjoy it with friends or neighbors for just $5 corkage on top of retail price. Our snacks can also be opened and enjoyed picnic-style at our communal table or counter area.
Bay Grape is owned and operated by Josiah Baldivino and Stevie Stacionis: a young, passionate, husband-and-wife team with substantial wine knowledge, 20 years of combined wine business experience—and, most importantly, a sense of humor and humility. Our team includes five Certified or Advanced Sommeliers accredited through the Court of Master Sommeliers... we know our stuff and are confident in helping you pick a great bottle, but we leave our attitude at the door and hope our guests feel happy and at home in our space. Our shop has been featured in The New York Times, Food & Wine and Bon Appétit magazines, and we were named Best Wine Shop in the Bay in 2017 by San Francisco Magazine; in addition, Stevie and Josiah were named Wine Enthusiast's Top 40 Under 40 Tastemakers!
We believe in the power of sharing good beverages and food—and in their capacity to create opportunities for members of our community to share experiences, stories, skills and laughter. Come say hi!
About Stevie Stacionis
Stevie spent seven years working in the front of the house at restaurants in Minneapolis, Los Angeles and New York City in order to pay her way through the University of Southern California. After graduating magna cum laude with her Bachelor’s degree in Communication and a minor in Psychology and Law, Stevie traded her apron for a laptop and a career in food, wine and travel writing.
In addition to her editorial background, she worked in wine retail and copywriting, managing communication, media, marketing and brand management for New York City retail stores Alphabet City Wine Co., Crush Wine & Spirits, NYC’s premier wine bar/classroom/event space Corkbuzz Wine Studio and the professional non-profit organization the Guild of Sommeliers. Stevie is a Certified Sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers and directed A Drink with Friends TV.
Likes: White Burgundy, ginormous bowls of pasta, running around Lake Merritt, sleeping in, colorful tennis shoes
Dislikes: being cold, octopus and squid, scary movies, itchy tags on t-shirts