Here we go!
Step 1: Pick a theme
When planning a wine tasting party you’ll want to pick a theme. What kinds of wines do you like to try? There’s no right answer to pleasing all your guests, so make sure to give them diverse options. Everyone will appreciate the variety and you have a better chance of finding something for everyone.
Step 2: Choose the food
You shouldn’t be eating during the wine tasting, other than the bread or crackers that will be needed to cleanse your palate. So decide whether you want to give your guests a light meal before the tasting, serve dinner, or do appetizers or desserts after the tasting. Ideally, some sort of food should be provided so your guests don’t get drunk while tasting the wines.
Step 3: Gather your supplies
It goes without question that Coravin will be the star of your wine tasting. With Coravin the wine will never be tossed away when the party’s over and you can ensure everyone has a seamless experience when tasting. Do we hear a wine tasting part two?
Aside from your Coravin, you’ll need longer, less oval-shaped glasses for white wines and rounder, larger glasses for reds. Keep in mind the glasses should have stems so your guests don’t warm their drinks with their hands. You’ll also need a spittoon. This can either come in the form of a large bowl in the center of the group or as an individual cup for each guest. You’ll need an ice bucket for chilling the white wine to avoid running to the fridge, white tablecloth or white napkins to help your guests see the color profiles of your wines, and an aerator or decanter to help bring out the flavors in your red wine.
Step 4: Invite your friends
Send out your invites and gather all the wine lovers! Keep in mind that a good time to host your guests would be around 4pm when they haven’t had dinner yet or just after dinner when they’ve eaten, at around 9pm. It’s best to gather before or after dinner because you really shouldn’t be eating during the tasting. Eating will ruin the flavor of the wine.
5: Enjoy!
It’s finally time to explore your wines, so put everything out on the table and get excited for the night! Go for some wine tasting techniques like swirling the wine around in the glass to let it “breathe” and encourage your guests to smell the wine to get a better sense of the flavor. Avoid having flowers or scented candles out in the room as those strong aromas could make it difficult for your guests to recognize the flavors of their wine. After that, your guests should take a small sip of the wine, swirl it around their mouths for a couple seconds, and either swallow or spit it out in the bowl or their cup. You should start off trying the lightest wines and working your way to the darkest ones. If you have dessert wine on the menu, you should taste it last, even if it’s a lighter color than the other red wines.