Wine Information

Hosting a wine-tasting party. Any tips?

I'd like to host a wine party and have each guest bring at least one bottle of their favorite. What types of food should I have available? Also, should I contact a wine shop about making it a full-blown wine-tasting party? If you're familiar with hosting those, what can you tell me? (I'm not sure how many people I'm going to have, etc.) The best tip gets 10 points ... and maybe an invitation if you live around Wausau, Wis.!

Public Comments

1. I use the Traveling Vineyard...it is kind of like a tupperware party thing and your consultant tells you what foods and such to have on hand..they bring the wines.. www.travelingwinetasting.com I'm not sure if they are licensed in your area, but check out the website to find out.Then you get to have fun without stress and do wine tasting...they do not pressure you either!!! Good luck!
2. Assortment of cheese, french baguette, chocolate truffle, smoked salmon, Foie Gras, and various Pate. If you are also serving sparkling wine then caviar as well.
3. White wines are served chilled and reds are served room temp. I like to drink wine from a glass, not plastic. You don't need to consult a wine shop, but if you are having a lot of people, you might want to rent glasses. Cheese and crackers are always good. Dark chocolate in nice with some reds. Fresh fruit is nice too. Just remember to relax and have fun. Don't let anyone tell you they know everything about wine. There are too many in the world for any one person to taste in one lifetime. If you like it, it's good. Thanks for the invitation to the party, but I don't drink and drive. Make sure all your friends are invited to stay the night if they have too much. Enjoy!
4. Just have fun with your friends, don't worry about getting a wine shop involved. If each person is bringing a bottle, it might be nice for them to also bring some notes about the wine or the varietal, just to spark conversation -- if they can find a published review, great, but even being able to tell people where the wine is made, what foods are usually recommended with the wine they've brought, or whatever -- it doesn't have to be anything elaborate. For food, be sure you have sliced baguette and a selection of crackers, but don't use any that are heavily seasoned. They should be available to clear people's palates in between pours and paired with a variety of cheeses and pates and perhaps a dipping oil. Olives, almonds, sausage, and pickled or cured vegetables are nice choices -- an antipasto buffet, if you will. Simple crudite works, too. I, too, prefer to drink wine from glass, rather than plastic, so I'll second the recommendation to rent glassware if you need to. I'd also add that initial pours should be quite small -- no more than an ounce, unless your group is filled with knowledgeable aficionados. A smaller pour allows everyone to sample each wine without having to guiltily commit to (or get drunk on) something they don't like, or pour out half a glass that someone else might have enjoyed. People can go back for seconds if they like once they've had their first mouthful. Have fun & remember: there are no rules but the ones you discover!
5. My sister, her friend and I have done this before............what we did is we got cheese. It goes really well with wine, oh and you could have some crackers to go with the cheese...its really good.
6. An exciting wine party is the "brown bag wine bash". To set up this party you tell every guest to bring a bottle of wine below a certain price range, and bring a brown paper bag that covers the wine bottle. Capping the price ensures the wines are all about even (A "No chuck shaw" rule might be needed if you have cheap friends =) ). Number each bag and you have a blind tasting! This setup encourages everyone to try each wine and comment on the flavors. I like to set up a big whiteboard so everyone can leave comments about each bottle. The order of the wine tasting is important. Either make people bring only reds or only whites, or separate the whites from the reds and bring out the whites first. The whites should be chilled (~50F) and the reds should be served at room temp. For food, just have appetizers in small portions. I'd check websites like foodnetwork.com, epicurious.com, and foodandwine.com for good wine parings and recipes. Make the food fit the wine, red or white. Make sure to have a variety since you don't know what wine your guests will bring. Putting out a "spit bucket" will give people the idea that they don't have to drink a glass they don't like. Plus, people are less likely to lose their palette from over-consumption. Enjoy!
7. Have an assortment of cheeses and crackers. Bottled water should be on hand, also. If you're having some "serious" wine tasters at your party, then it might be a good idea to have wine crackers for them to eat to cleanse their palate before drinking a new wine. Also, you might want to have a bucket for people to pour their wine if they don't want to drink too much (or if they don't like a wine). You should have tags for the wine glasses so people's glasses are easily identifiable. And, most importantly, you should have a wine opener!
8. Try this kit from Target - it comes with a book of activity suggestions, tags for wineglasses, flavor/aroma guides, etc. It seems like a good place to start. Oh, and don't forget the caviar!