Wine Tasting Tables Resources

How to Throw a Wine Tasting Party Your Friends Will Talk About

There is nothing that will bring your friends together more than tasting different types of wines together. Watch the conversation esculate with each passing glass. What makes it so fun and competitive is each couple (guest) brings a bottle of wine that fit the parameters you set for the wine tasting contest. For example, you could say "Please bring a bottle of your favorite California wine, or a Pinot Noir in the $20-30 price range, or a French wine from 1990". The great thing is you can mix up the parameters every year. If you really want to make it affordable ask your guests to bring an appetizer that would compliment their wine choice. Otherwise, you can't go wrong with a cheese, fruit, and nut platter with an assortment of crackers and breads.

Send out the invites:

Choose the type of wine you are going to have your guests bring and add it to the invitations.
Setting up the wine bags.

The amount of bags you buy depends upon how many people RSVP. You need enough bags to cover each wine bottle as your guests arrive. These bags need to be numbered. You can order these speciality bags online, or use pretty colored favored bags available at most craft stores.

Make sure that the bags are long enough to cover the the wine bottles.

The bags can be numbered with a sharpie pen, or you can make fancier numbers with paper, glitter, rhinestones. Use a glue stick to adhere to the bag.

Prepare the wine tasting table.

Place a pretty tablecloth over a long table and set with:

Wine glasses (plus extras), wine charms (or other markers to keep glasses with their owners), a dump bucket, a rinse pitcher, water to drink, bread sticks to cleanse the palate. Chocolates are nice to have at the tasting table, especially if you are tasting Cabernet Sauvignon. Be sure your table includes: Napkins, paper and pencils (for recording notes/favorite wines), and a wine tasting guide.

Setting the mood for party.

No party is complete without food. Think lots of different cheeses, fruit (fresh and dried), bread, crackers, and nuts. I have had a lot of success with sushi platters ordered from my local grocery store. You will need several bottles of wine to serve before the tasting starts. White wine is a nice starter wine. Make sure your white wine is chilled adequately before serving. Turn on the music and dim the lights. Light alot of candles to create a festive mood, unscented candles work best with a wine tasting party.

Set up a table by the front door with the wine bags you made. When your friends arrive with their wine quickly place into wine bag (in random order). Once all of your guests have arrived cork the wine and place on the tasting table discreetly. Uncorking numerous bottles of wine takes more time than you think. Have an extra wine corkscrew available and ask someone for help. No peeking! Have your prize gifts close by to hand out at the conclusion of the tasting.

It's party time.

What I like to do, to get the competitive juices flowing is at the beginning of the tasting I will ask everyone to put a dollar (or two) into the bag of their favorite wine. They can also have multiple favorites. The wine with the most money in it at the end of the night is the First place winner. This really gets people talking and is espcially fun for the 1st place winner!!! Second and Third runners up, I always give a nice bottle of wine to. When the tasting is over and the wines are revealed your guests will be amazed! Sometimes, but not always, the most unlikely winner will prevail. I enjoy the collaborative event and always find new favorites.