Niles Beckworth is back!

Invigorated from a prolonged vacation, Niles is re-energizing the Washington Wine Academy CORK Club. Niles is exited to offer a new and expanding range of services and discounts to reward our loyal members! Niles is your guide to:

The Washington DC Area WineShops - Drink Local - Buy Local!

Restaurants and Wine Bars – WWA Events and More!

Wine Century Passport - Expand your wine tasting experience!
Click here for Passport related events and news

Reduced Admission to Select WWA Events!

CORK Club Perks – Ask Niles! WWA Discounts! Newsletter!

Ready to go? Buy Here:

$25.00 - 2009 WWA Individual CORK Club Membership

The above 2009 membership will expire on December 31, 2009.

The Washington Wine Academy and the CORK Club have partnered with independent wine shops to sustain the health of the local wine retail community so that wine lovers will always have a wide choice in wine and access to personal service.

Wine Shop Discounts - Many DC area shops will offer 10 - 15% off for case discounts - be sure to ask for their best deal! The following Wine Shops in the Washington DC Area are friends of the Washington Wine Academy and will give quantity discounts:

Washington, DC - Participating Wine Shops:

Ace Beverage

3301 New Mexico Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20016

Cairo Wine & Liquor

1618 17TH St., NW Washington, DC 20009

Calvert Woodley

4339 Connecticut Ave., NW Washington, DC 20008

Chevy Chase Fine Wine & Spirits

5544 Connecticut Ave., NW, Washington, DC

Circle Liquors

5501 Connecticut Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20008

MacArthur Beverages

4877 MacArthur Blvd., NW, Washington, DC 20007

Morris Miller Wines & Spirits

7804 Alaska Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20012

Paul's Liquors - Special supporter of WWA events!

5205 Wisconsin Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20015

Schneider's of Capitol Hill - Largest selection of old and rare wines in the country.

300 Massachusetts Ave., Washington, DC 20002

Virginia - Participating Wine Shops:

Unwined - Join their 6 bottle club and receive savings each time you buy 6 bottles.

3690-J King St., Alexandria, VA 22302

Rick's Wine & Gourmet - Free in-store wine tastings on Friday nights and Saturday afternoons

3117 Duke Street, Alexandria, VA 22314

Jaleo Spanish Wine Shop - Largest Spanish wine selection in the area.

Located on the second floor of Jaleo Restaurant Crystal City, 2250 A Crystal Drive, Arlington, VA 22202

Opera House Gourmet

9126 Center Street, Old Town Manassas, VA 20110

 

IlVino Wine Shop - Specializes in Italian wines.

11891 Grand Commons Avenue, Fairfax, VA 22030
Phone - 703-815-1850

Virginia - Participating Restaurants:

Jaleo Crystal City

Special Deal - No restaurant corkage fee for wines purchased in Jaleo wine shop upstairs!

2250 A Crystal Drive, Crystal Drive, Arlington, VA 22202
Phone - 703-413-8181

Restaurant Discounts - New! Once the word got out of the great perks the Washington Wine Academy is offering our CORK Club members...area restaurants wanted to know if they could be included in the program as well. Sure!

If you know of a restaurant that wishes to offer some sort of discount off of a purchase at their establishment - please have them send e-mail to:

NilesBeckworth@WashingtonWineAcademy.org

Wine Century Passport

New Feature! All CORK Club members will receive a 2008 Wine Century Passport. This is a fun and challenging way for you to broaden your wine tasting experience

Recently, the Washington Post highlighted the Wine Century Club as a fun but challenging pursuit for wine lovers.  The Wine Century Club was founded for all adventurous wine drinkers who have tasted one hundred grape varieties. There is a tremendous variety of grapes and wines now available, many of them unique.  Experiencing this variety is not only a great way to expand your own palate, but also to help preserve the availability of these grapes and wines in the market.

Anyone can register at www.WineCentury.com to become a member.  However, reaching 100 grape varieties is not easy - thus far, only a little over 300 people have registered.  Two are faculty at the Washington Wine Academy: Kelly Magyarics and Tom Finigan.

Niles wants to help you to join them!  All CORK Club members receive a Wine Century Passport.  Take the passport with you in 2008 when you visit any of the local independent wine shops in the DC area. When you taste or purchase a new wine with a new grape - mark it off in your passport on your way to 100 !!!.  Virginia and Maryland wineries are a great place to find new grapes as well.  Niles plans to add an incentive program in the future, so that members reaching their Wine Century will also earn something tangible, such as gift certificates at local restaurants!!

Keep alert to the Weekly Vine newsletters and the CORK Club website with updates, related events and tasting schedules at the wine shops.  We have plans to feature a tastings dedicated with a focus on the more obscure grape varietals - all geared to helping you reach the 100 grape variety threshold.

Once you reach your Wine Century you will truly have something to boast about with your wine lover friends!

 Let us end with a quote from Washington Wine Academy's Tom Finigan*:

 "Working on your Wine Century is a great way to break out of your normal patterns of wine drinking.

 Part of the enjoyment of wine is experiencing something different and what better way than to sample 100 different grapes from various countries around the world.  Just working on your Wine Century will introduce you to countries or regions you may not have encountered before.  The Washington Wine Academy is a great resource to utilize on your journey as it is committed to bringing new worlds of wine to people in the Washington D.C. Metro Area."

*Tom Finigan, CSW, is an Instructor for the WSET. Intermediate Certificate & Advanced Certificates in Wines and Spirits for the Washington Wine Academy, a member of the Wine Century Club and a freelance writer on wine.

CORK Club - Perks:

WWA Public & Special Events - Invites to special, limited attendance wine events with wine makers, special guests and other unique wine events not open to our general WWA list. Discounts to select Public WWA events as noted on site when possible.

Volunteer Opportunities - Cork Club members get first chance to volunteer for events (public, private and wine certification courses for discounted rate or no cost to attend) in exchange for helping at the event.

Private Event Planning: From black-tie butlers to garden-party service and catering, we can help take the stress out of planning your events.

CORK Club E-Mail Updates: We plan on sending a newsletter tidbits with all sorts of fun info in our Weekly Vine newletter. Watch your email box for an email from Niles. He may look like a cartoon but he has a way with the computer!

2009 CORK Club Memberships Fees:

Membership is based on an annual basis from January 1st to December 31st. You will receive a personalized Washington Wine Academy CORK Club card with your name and member number. Purchases made in late Fall 2008 will receive a 2009 membership and your membership starts when you receive your card.

CORK Club 2009 Membership:

$25.00 - 12 months

Membership is typically on an annual basis from January 1st to December 31st.

Ready to go? Buy Here:


$25.00 - 2009 WWA Individual CORK Club Membership

CORK Club Annual Membership expires December 31, 2009.

You will typically receive a personalized Washington Wine Academy CORK Club card with your name and member number.

Expect delivery of the card in the mail within two weeks or so after the order, including additional information regarding the CORK Club membership.

Need a quick gift? CORK Club memberships fit everyone!

Buy Here:

$25.00 - 2009 WWA Individual CORK Club Membership - Gift Certificate

Note: If the above is a Gift Certificate purchase of a CORK Club Membership...you MUST include recipient home address and full name and indicate the recipient name(s) in a separate e-mail to:

.JimBarker@WashingtonWineAcademy.org