“Do you have any tips for my wine tasting next weekend? I’ve asked people to bring one bottle per person…and we have picked 3 or 4.”

Do. I. Have. Tips.

I have to reign it in because I get so excited and geek out and tend to overcomplicate things. And even though there are already a million resources (tasting sheets, pairings, etc.) on the internet, perhaps having hosted and attended tastings in friends’ homes over the past 13 years makes me a reasonably credible source for tips.

1. Everyone’s comments about how the wine tastes are RIGHT.  Yes, when someone says “smelly socks” and you say “roses” you are both right.  Because our tastebuds are all different.  State that up front and let people have fun, laugh at each other and themselves. Take the stuffiness right outta that tasting. Have some note cards and write down what people say about the wines…a helpful reference for later (if you haven’t spilled wine all over your card during the process).
2. Water – a glass full for each person to start, and then extra bottles all over the place so they can reach to refill. A couple of “dump” vessels are good too in case someone doesn’t like their taste. From experience, opaque dump buckets just look better…
3. Group your wines from light and dry to heavy and sweet.  Otherwise the tannin bomb red or sweet dessert white will overpower everything else for the next two or three sips. I like to pick all my wines and have people throw in cash so that I can control the quantity and variety.  But it’s cool to have folks bring stuff too (and the really awesome ones will bring something anyway!).  Here’s a suggestion based on the general wines people will show up with…and if they bring something else (or at least tell you in advance) send me your list and I’ll help you.
   • Dry Sparkling (label will say Brut, not dry…I know it’s not fair)
   • Pinot Gris
   • Sauvignon Blanc
   • Unoaked Chardonnay
   • Oaked Chardonnay (may smell a little like butter or vanilla)
   • Sweet Rose
   • Dry Rose
   • Pinot Noir
   • Grenache
   • Tempranillo
   • Merlot (stop laughing, they are GOOD and you should try some)
   • Malbec
   • Cabernet Sauvignon
   • Syrah/Shiraz
   • Sweet Sparkling (Demi-sec, Doux)
   • Dessert whites (Sauternes, Tokaj, Muscato, White Zinfandel)
4. Water, again.
5. Depending on how many you are tasting, try to pour 1/2 an ounce – it won’t look like very much. But two sips is what you need to really get a sense for it.  If you really want to taste the wines, this will help you actually get through them on the first pass.  You can always “revisit” (official wine term to politely ask for more) more later.
6. Ahem, water.
7. Oyster crackers – tiny and easy to nibble between different wines to “reset” your tongue.  Will really help after the 3rd or 4th taste. Put a little dish between every two people so they don’t spill their wine everywhere reaching for crackers.
8. You guessed it, water.
9. Some method of voting (because). My girlfriends and I used to use poker chips for this. Each bottle had a cup in front of it, and you put colored poker chips in your favorite ones.  Because we love French stuff, we went with the French flag: Bleu (blue) was first place, 3 points; Blanc (white) 2 points; and Rouge (red) 1 point.  You’re absolutely right, if you haven’t been drinking the water the math is very hard.  Keep it simple, one chip or token per person, most tokens wins bragging rights if they brought the bottle.

If folks want to get a little geekier…here you go.

1. Have three glasses per person. This lets you hold onto a little something if you want to compare it to something else later. And if someone is slow, you can pour the next wine into an empty glass and they don’t have to chug/dump the current wine.
2. Tasting – name 3 fruits and 1 other flavor (ex. cherry, plum, raspberry, chocolate).  These are good to jot on your note cards, again for reference later when you want to remember a wine.
3. Be quiet for the first 45 seconds while everyone tastes. This lets each person form an opinion before some wine know it all “friend” of yours shouts out all the flavors. We ALL have our own taste buds an opinions.  Just ’cause you don’t taste it doesn’t make them wrong, and vice versa. And then you can start shouting. Yes, it gets harder as the tasting progresses.
4. Give everyone 2 red grapes before they start. Ask them to peel one and separate the skin from the pulp. Let them eat the pulp first – should notice fruity, sweet and acid. Then eat the skin – should dry your mouth out like crazy. And that dry mouth = tannin.  Thank you Catherine Rabb and Johnson and Wales University for this example, it’s brilliant. Now you can eat the whole grape and see how it all works together.
5. Food – this can get tricky, but also really fun. I’d encourage you to taste all the wines first without food (remember 1/2 ounce pours) and THEN everyone can load up their plates with small bites that you’ve prepared. Return to the tasting line and sip, bite of food, sip, discuss.  Sweet wines will soften spicy flavors, butter will dull the butteryness of an oaky Chardonnay, cheese will soften a high tannin wine, acidic wines will cut through cheese and charcuterie. Another food tip – if you are sticking to wines from one area, buy foods that are common to that area. Mother Nature knows what’s up and tends to pair that stuff pretty well. Last trick – sip a high acid white, lick a lemon, sip the wine again and see how it changes!
6. Pick a grape variety (like Cabernet Sauvignon) and get a few examples from the same region (like Alexander Valley CA) and a few examples from a different region (Chile). You can really learn a lot about New World vs Old World

I hope these things help you have the most fun hosting a wine party you’ve ever had! Send me your questions and tips or post here!