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| Wine Tasting | ||
How and Why to Host a Wine Tasting Party (To See a Photographic Essay of a Wine Tasting, Click Here) Updated March 1, 2005 Ok, ok, I admit it, this sounds totally lame. Give me a chance to explain, though. If you and a few of your closest friends really enjoy wine (whether it's expensive, cheap, or somewhere in between), my version of a wine tasting party has proven to be a great way to spend an evening with friends. Use these instructions as a guide and I promise you an evening of fun and maybe, education.
*6-8 BOTTLES OF WINE, ALL SIMILAR VARIETALS, BUT FROM DIFFERENT WINERIES (in other words, all of them should be Whites (Chardonnays, Sauvingon Blancs), or reds (Cabernets, Merlots, etc.) More details later)
What a Wine Tasting Party Should Be Versus What I Advise: Traditionally, a wine tasting party is designed for snooty wine lovers to sit around and discuss all of the ins and outs of the different wines they taste. They'll discuss things like aromas, bouquets, body, color, tannic acid and a bunch of other terms most people don't care about. AND, they spit the wine out rather than swallow it! Blasphemy. My wine tastings are different. My parties are designed for two things; Fun, and a little bit of education. Not traditional "book" education, but rather the type of learning that really matters: Hands on observational learning. The goal of my wine tastings is to gather together friends to compare wines that come from all types of backgrounds and price ranges. Since no one knows what they're drinking at the time, it's always fascinating at the end to see which bottle most people rated as the best. Often times, it's the cheapest/cheaper bottle that wins out over a $100 bottle. Along the way, you eat some good food, have some great conversation and enjoy the company. No pretentiousness, no pompousness, and no stuffiness. Who You Invite: Everyone should know each other. This is not the time for someone to be "marking their territory," over who likes who best. You need 4 people minimum, and I suggest no more than 10. Everyone should be friendly with each other and not afraid to say what they think.
CHOOSING THE WINES How It Works: Each wine bottle is placed in a bag or wrapped so that no one can see the label and each bag is numbered. Beginning with bag #1, pour a SMALL amount of wine in each glass. We're talking two swigs, no more (otherwise people will get too drunk too soon. Trust me, there's plenty of time to finish the wine as you go). Each person should then taste the wine. Savor it, swish it around, swallow it. While this is going on, people should be talking, conversing, having a good time. This is no time to get all serious and stuffy. When appropriate, make some comments about the wine. "too fruity," "yuck," "Ohhh, I like this." Also make some notes about the wine on your paper so you remember later. I usually rate each one as I go on a 1-10 scale. Then have everyone finish their glasses, comment and write again and continue having fun. At this point, everyone's glass should be rinsed out with cold water before moving on to wine #2. Also, everyone should have a bite of a snack now. Some bread, crackers, cheese, etc. Make sure everyone cleanses their palate before moving on. Get to bag #2 and repeat the process through the remaining wines. |
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