IT is time for the Jeremy Clarkson school of wine. "If you think it's bad, say it's bad," says Philippe Boucheron, the Droitwich expert keen to share his passion for wine with the people of Worcestershire.

On Monday, Philippe will hold the first meeting of the newly-established Droitwich Spa Wine Club.

In between quaffing delicious pinot noirs from all over the world, the host - who began writing about wine in the 1970s and used to write a weekly wine column for your Worcester News - divulged his trade secrets about how to enjoy this tipple to the full.

"You should never be told what a wine tastes like" he said.

"If someone tells you a wine tastes of citrus and honey, you will assume it must taste like citrus and honey.

"You shouldn't be told because you should find out for yourself."

Philippe, who believes the best time of the day to taste wine is first thing in the morning, is interested in forming a Worcester-based wine club.

He knows there are others in existence but wants, in his words, to "put the fun back in to it".

"Wine tasting should be fun," he said. "I wouldn't do it if it wasn't.

"The main reason I want to set up a club is so that I can share my interest for wine with others. We recently held a tasting with the Mayor of Worcester and it was incredibly successful. There was a lot of feedback."

The art of wine tasting is as old as wine itself but it is becoming more common. Type wine tasting' into Google and brace yourself for more than six million results. Wine lovers can pick up tasting guidebooks, informative CDs for the car, book themselves on wine workshops and tour the vineyards of France on a wine tasting holiday.

Local tasting clubs, like the Droitwich one run by Philippe, are considered the ideal way to not only expand your knowledge of wine but meet new people.

Councillor Stephen Inman, Mayor of Worcester, is a firm fan.

"You do learn a great deal," he said. "You are guaranteed to learn something new about a fascinating subject and the more you learn the more there is to get to know. It's infinite.

"It's also a very sociable activity. It gives you the chance to talk to people who you might not normally meet, which is always a pleasant experience."

The Droitwich Wine Club is to be held at the Old Cock Inn, Droitwich, every month.

At each meeting the group - no more than 16 people - will try 10 different wines, selected by Philippe who will also provide tasting notes and give each a general introduction.

Over the coming months they will focus on wines from the Alsace region of France, taste what Philippe describes as "oddball wines" produced from unusual grapes, and find out more about organic and biodynamic growing.

Biodynamic wine production is something Philippe enthusiastically supports. A kind of organic agriculture, it is based upon philosophical principles, holistics and the use of the astronomical calendar to determine times of planting and harvesting.

"We know tides are caused by the gravitational pull of the Moon," explained Philippe.

"It also controls the sap within the vines. It is drawn downwards, then upwards with the lunar rhythms.

"Biodynamic growers are in harmony with nature."

To find out more about Philippe's wine tasting clubs e-mail him at pboucheron@btinternet.com.

HOW TO TASTE WINE BY PHILIPPE BOUCHERONColour Look at the wine in your glass: all wines should be star-bright. But what colour is it? The only truly white liquid is milk and that's technically a solid. Still and sparkling white wines range from watery, through straw tones to burnished gold. Red wines run from purple when young to brick, garnet, ruby and become tawny-rimmed with age.

Aroma Stick your nose in the top of the glass. What do you smell? Give the glass a gentle twirl to let some air in; sniff again and you will find that the oxygen has enhanced the aromas.

Flavour Next take a small sip, drawing a little air in through your lips. Use your tongue to swill the wine around your mouth and chew at it. The idea it to get the wine to room temperature and then to each of the nine thousand tastebuds along your tongue. There are others in the oropharynx, where the nasal passage meets the throat, as well as at the top of the oesophagus.

The tastebuds that detect glucose and sucrose sweetness are at the front of the tongue, followed by those that respond to complex salt, bitterness and, surprisingly, fructose sweetness; while those at the root of your tongue react to sour and acid tastes.

Use the roof of your mouth to echo the flavours in much the same way a cathedral echoes the sound of a choir.

Now spit - but only if you want to!

Structure and balance White wines depend upon the natural acidity of the grape for their structure, while reds invariably use tannins found in the grape skin. Think of a wine's structure as if it was the trunk of a tree and the aromas as flavours of the fruit and flower-laden branches. When they appear to be in equilibrium, then we say that a wine is balanced'.

Always make a note of what you see, smell and taste.