The Myth of the Wine Walk

For a long time, the World Showcase Wine Walk was a myth for me. I’d heard tell of a “pay-20-bucks-and-get-six-glasses-of-wine” type of thing, but I searched the web and found no specifics about this fantastic option in Epcot’s World Showcase.

Then, out of nowhere, the Wine Walk was mentioned in the 2009 Epcot Food and Wine Festival Guide. Finally, I had clarity!

So on my recent trip, I stopped into Italy’s Enoteca Castello shop and asked all about the Wine Walk. And while I wasn’t able to do the walk this trip, I’m really looking forward to getting it on the list for next time.

(If anyone out there has had the opportunity to do the Wine Walk, drop me an email or a comment and let me know what you thought! I’d love to hear reviews, both pro and con.)

Wine Walk Specs and Details
In the meantime, here are the details: $20 = 6 wine samples and a beautiful walk around World Showcase!

To begin, head to one of these three shops: the Weinkeller in Germany (the shop with all the wine)

Enoteca Castello in Italy (that’s the shop with all the wine — the masks are in the back)

or Aux Vins de France in France (there’s a lot of wine in there, too).

Request a Wine Walk Passport at any of these locations. From there, you simply flash your passport in each of the three countries and enjoy your samples! Like other Epcot passports, cast members in each pavilion will give you a stamp for each sample.

The Wines
The wines you get to try are the following:
Germany

• Valekenberg Madonna Spatlese: Since my Food and Wine Festival R.A Pruem wine seminar earlier this year, Spatlese is the word I look for to find a wine I’ll like. Spatlese = sweet and smooth, in my opinion (all it really refers to is the grapes being picked during a late harvest, making the sweetness and flavor a bit more intense). According to Disney, this particular wine will pair well with crustaceans like crab, shrimp, and lobster.
• Valekengerg Madonna Leibframilch, Castello: The passport bills this wine as having a “lush, seductive bouquet” backed by mild acidity. It pairs well with stronger flavored fish and meat dishes, and works well when sipped alone as a pre-dinner drink.

Italy

• Banfi San Angelo Pinot Grigio, Tuscany IGT: This wine will go well with light dishes, and probably will be best as a pre-dinner drink. The clean, fresh taste is touted as being perfect for an aperitif.
• Castello Banfi Rosa Regale, Piedmont DOCG: For those of you who have no idea what DOCG means (like me), it stands for “Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita,” which basically means it’s been quality-control tested by the Italian government. Translation: it’s high-quality. This is a sparkling wine, and word is that this is the wine to eat with chocolate!

France

• Georges Duboeuf Pouilly Fuisse, Macon: A Chardonnay from Burgandy, Disney says try it with cheese…yum.
• Fuisse and Chateau Tour de Segur Bordeaux, Lussac St. Emilion: This rich red is described as “structured” (word-lovers like me just gotta love these words — who would ever think to describe a liquid as “structured?”). The predominant grape is Merlot, and the main aroma is of dark fruits. Do this one with red meat.

The Passport

Here are a couple of photos of the actual passport, so you know what you’re looking for:

Finally, as far as I know, the Wine Walk has always been offered year-round. Its mention in this year’s Food and Wine Festival Guide makes me wonder if it’s been reduced to just an Autumnal experience. Fingers crossed they’ll keep it year-round so that everyone can enjoy this wonderful, and relatively inexpensive, way to sample some of the great wines from the World Showcase!

Salute, Sante, and Prosit!