Pencil This In: Geja's 41st Annual Pro/Am Wine Tasting Contest

By John Lenart in Food on Oct 31, 2014 5:30PM

Photo credit: Geja's

If you've seen the movie Somm you've seen Master Sommelier candidates tasting wine blind. They swirl, sniff, taste, then tell you what the wine is and where it's from as if through some sort of magical ability. We wrote a how-to guide a while back that you can read here. Now is your chance to put your nose, palate and wine knowledge to the test. Geja's Cafe (340 W. Armitage) presents the country's longest running blind wine tasting competition this Sunday, Nov. 2 at 1 p.m.

The 41st annual Geja's Pro/Am wine tasting competition lets participants test their noses and palates in trying to identify four white and four red wines. The wines are placed in carafes around the restaurant labeled only with a letter. Participants are challenged to taste and identify the grape, country of origin, region, sub-region, vintage and even the producer (good luck with that one!) of each wine.

There are two divisions, professionals and amateurs. Amateurs are defined as having not worked in the wine industry during the previous three years. The highest scoring competitor in each division is awarded with an engraved crystal decanter.

To enter, competitors must be 21 years of age and pay a $25 entry fee. For more info click here or call 773-281-9101. Please note, the website states that the entry fee is $20, but we have confirmed that the correct fee is $25.

If you have an event for inclusion in "Pencil This In," please contact Tankboy (for A&E-related listings), Melissa McEwen (for tastings, dinners and food and drink-related events) or tips[at]chicagoist[dot]com.