Flavour Training Courses for Visitor Experience Teams
Our tailored Flavour Training Courses for Visitor Experience Teams are designed to empower your customer-facing staff with the sensory knowledge and storytelling skills that elevate guest interactions.
In visitor centres and tasting rooms, your team is more than a group of guides; they’re brand ambassadors who bring your products to life, creating memorable experiences that build loyalty and leave lasting impressions.
Our Flavour Training Courses stand out because they go beyond the basics of tasting and sensory analysis. While many training programs focus primarily on aroma identification and palate development, our approach delves into the underlying psychology and cognitive science of flavour perception. We translate the latest research in sensory science, neurology, and psychology into practical tools that visitor experience teams can immediately apply to their guest interactions.
Our courses are hands-on, interactive, and tailored to the specific needs of your team. We explore how sensory cues like aroma, taste, and mouthfeel are processed and how they can be used to evoke emotions, create connections, and enhance storytelling. By helping your team understand how different sensory elements influence perception, they’ll be able to adapt their approach to match the preferences and experiences of each guest, creating truly personalised encounters.
We believe that powerful guest experiences start with a well-rounded sensory education. With over 30 years of expertise in the drinks and hospitality industry, we know what it takes to engage and captivate an audience. Our courses are designed not only to inform but to inspire, giving your team the skills and confidence to turn each tasting into a memorable journey that sets your brand apart.
Course Benefits
Team confidence: Give your team the confidence and expertise to deliver immersive, sensory-rich experiences. Through our training, your team will gain a clear understanding of flavour and sensory science. Learn how factors such as aroma, taste, and texture come together to shape the guest experience..
Enhance Guest Experiences: Visitor experience teams play a crucial role in shaping how guests perceive your brand. A memorable tasting goes beyond identifying flavours; it invites guests into a story and a journey that connects them emotionally with your products. By helping your team understand the sensory elements that impact flavour perception our courses allow them to create experiences that resonate on a deeper level. This depth of engagement transforms passive tastings into multi-sensory journeys, leaving guests with a lasting impression that aligns them closely with your brand’s values.
Brand loyalty: A highly trained visitor experience team not only enriches customer interactions but also contributes to stronger brand loyalty and greater customer retention. By equipping your staff with specialised sensory knowledge, you empower them to convey your brand’s quality, heritage, and innovation in ways that leave guests feeling informed and engaged. These positive experiences translate directly into brand advocacy, leading to increased word-of-mouth recommendations, repeat visits, and even direct sales.
Talent retention: Empowering talent through sensory education not only improves product quality and innovation but also strengthens internal teams. A skilled workforce can enhance cross-functional collaboration, ultimately benefiting the brand's ability to deliver on its promises. In addition, well trained teams feel appreciated and valued, helping to retain the talent that are central to the success of your business.
Our Visitor Experience Teams Training Options
We offer three Visitor Experience Teams training options to meet the unique needs of your team and your business. Choose from a half-day course, a one-day course, or an extensive two-day course.
Other bespoke options are available upon request. Simply get in touch.
Flavour Foundations
Duration excl. breaks - half day (3 hours)
Price - £195 per person plus travel
Minimum 4 participants
Delivered in-person at your team’s location
In this half-day course, we break down the essentials of how flavour works. Explore the fascinating connection between your five senses and the brain to understand how they shape what we ‘taste’. You’ll gain insight into how gustation, olfaction, and mouthfeel influence the perception of wine.
Perfect for teams looking to build a strong foundation in flavour science, this course will help your team master the basics. Ideal for anyone looking to elevate their flavour know-how with visitor centre teams or customer-facing roles.
Course structure
Introduction & Overview
The Big Question: What is Flavour?
Taste: Exploring the Six Senses
Smell: From Molecules to Neurons
Mouthfeel: The Hero of Flavour
Putting it into practice
Flavour Unlocked
Duration excl. breaks - one day (6 hours)
Price - £295 per person plus travel
Minimum 4 participants
Delivered in-person at your team’s location
This full-day course delves into the details of flavour, going beyond the senses to explore all internal and external factors. Learn how emotions, memory, and cognitive biases influence the way we experience wine. Through interactive sessions, you’ll discover how environmental factors, expectations, and personal preferences shape flavour perception.
Designed to deepen your team’s expertise, this course equips you with tools to enhance customer interactions and create unforgettable tasting experiences. Whether you’re at the frontline of customer experiences, or hosting bespoke client experiences, this knowledge will elevate how you present your brand to your guests.
Course structure
Morning:
The Big Question: What is Flavour?
Taste: Exploring the Six Senses
Smell: From Molecules to Neurons
Mouthfeel: The Hero of Flavour
Why Colour Matters
Subconscious sounds
Touch: The Tactile Appeal
External Factors: Environment
Internal Factors: Genetics to Fatigue
Psychological Factors and Bias
Afternoon:
The Science of Assessments
Customer and Consumer Tastings
The Vocabulary Dilemma
Training the Brain
Minimising Bias: Staying Objective
Creating the Ultimate Tasting
Empowering Your Guests
Key Takeaways & Open Discussion
Sensory Mastery
Duration excl. breaks - two days (12 hours)
Price - £500 per person plus travel
Minimum 4 participants
Delivered in-person at your team’s location
This intensive two-day course takes a comprehensive look at the science and psychology of flavour. Discover the intricate workings of neurotransmitters, taste receptors, and the brain regions responsible for processing flavour. Explore the powerful connection between taste, emotion, and memory, and learn how factors like microbiota, satiation, and even genetics shape our flavour experiences.
This advanced course offers deep insights into how flavour is perceived and interpreted, providing experienced teams with the expertise to elevate customer experiences and take client hosting to the next level.
Course structure
Day one:
Flavour Dissected
Olfaction: Molecules to Neurons
Thresholds and Blind Spots
Taste: Receptors and Nerves
Decoding Mouthfeel
Pleasure, Pain, and Dopamine
Liking vs Wanting
Tricks of the Eyes
Music: The Sound of Flavour
Clothing, Emotions, and Mindset
The Influence of Our Microbiome
Nature vs Nurture
Day two:
Identification and Discrimination
Industrial Sensory Analysis
The Objective Conundrum
Hedonistic Assessments
Flavour Vocabulary
Oxytocin and Sharing
Conducting Tastings
Sample Order and Glassware
Applying the Learning
Key Takeaways & Open Discussion