WineTasting.org, Washington

The brainchild of enophile and host of his own PBS show about the joys of wine, Mark Phillips of WineTasting.org gently demystifies wine drinking, effectively eliminating snobbery from the process. With a humorous, conversational approach, Phillips lays low the notion that wine is a rarified, inaccessible pleasure, helping tasters identify the components of each pour to better appreciate and seek out the perfect wines for their particular tastes. In his regular tastings—classy hootenannies, often with live jazz and more than 250 varieties of wine—he brings together bottles from all over the world, creating more harmony among grape products than a California Raisins reunion concert. The events reward exploration with information about the varietals filling attendees in on each wine’s background, including where the grapes grow and what cuisine pairings work best with libations.