Wine Jeopardy

When it comes to recalling experiences, we have a tendency to remember the most intense moments and the way things ended.

You can use this cognitive bias—known as the peak-end rule—to improve course design by engineering high points and a strong finish to make a lasting impression on your learners.

When I was a wine educator, one of the “peaks” I used was a quick-fire quiz.

Things would start out civilized, but inevitably heated up as students started to cheer each other on and even leapt out their seats to yell the answers.

“Which grape has thicker skin: Pinot Noir or Syrah?”

“SYRAHHHHHHH!!”

It was loud. It was FUN.

And that’s what students mentioned in their course feedback—not the comprehensive learning materials I designed or the metaphors used to explain tannin structure.

Participants learned a lot, but what they really enjoyed was testing their knowledge on the fictitious gameshow, Wine Jeopardy.