North London Wine School launched

Jimmy Smith, founder of the West London Wine School, is to head north of the Thames with the launch of the North London Wine School next month.

Jimmy Smith

The idea for the school came about due to a growing demand for consumer wine courses and specialist wine tastings across the capital.

The school will be housed in the Kilburn Library in West Hampstead, built in 1901, and will host its first tasting on 23 January.

Stamford born Smith launched the West London Wine School five years ago. In addition to running tastings at the school, Smith offers staff training to clients such as Marks & Spencer, The Connaught hotel and the Camino restaurant group.

“The past five years have been excellent, with growth every year from day one. It’s been a challenge, as demand has been so high, but we’ve grown to meet it,” said Smith.

“We believed it was time for a new adventure, and the new school is in a superb area. Classes are going to be fun and informative and we’re looking forward to delivering the same high standards in our North London school,” he added.

The school has been approved by the Wine and Spirit Education Trust to teach its level 1-3 awards.

At the West London Wine School, Smith has pioneered fine wine tastings, with recent offerings including a Huet vertical dating back to 1934 and a Château Mouton-Rothschild tasting featuring wines dating back to 1985.

Both of Smith’s schools are part of the Local Wine School initiative – a UK-wide network of over 20 independent wine schools. Founder and owner Chris Powell set up the first school in Newcastle in 2000.