The first theme we will examine  is called the Horizontal Wine Tasting. In this kind of theme, you will focus only  on one wine variety from a single year. However, each type of wine will come from multiple vineyards and different producers. For example, you can focus on a 2000 Chenin Blanc from five or seven different wine producers or wineries.

Here you can decide whether you would like to taste wines from the same region or you want to mix it up somewhat by tasting the same type of wine that comes from different wineries in different regions, such as from California, Australia or Italy.

The second theme is called Vertical Wine Tasting. Here, the wine tastings are conducted by tasting just one variety of wine. For example, you will only concentrate on tasting the Chenin Blanc from the same producer. However, the wines will be in different vintages or years. This is the vertical part. For example, you can taste the Chenin Blanc from one winery from years 2000, 2002, and 2004.

One of the objectives of this theme is to demonstrate how subtle a wine can change from year to year – an extremely exciting experience for your guests.

Priceless Wine Tasting is another great wine-tasting party theme. People normally assume that wines that are more expensive taste better than cheaper ones. Although this may be true, you can try testing their palate by withholding the price of the variety of wine you have available for tasting. By just tasting, your guests should determine which wine is worth, for example, more than 100 dollars and which one is worth less than 20 dollars.

Price Point Wine Tasting is another great wine tasting party theme that you may want to try. Here, the wines featured will be in a similar price. The goal here is to keep the wines comparable in a baseline price which is quite flexible for you to organize when it comes to buying the wine. The objective here is to demonstrate if the taste change with different price points.

Another theme is called the Big Eight Wine Tasting. Here, you will get your guests to work their way through eight different kinds of wines and determine which one they prefer. This will also give your guests, particular the ones that are not very into wines a new appreciation for the different kinds of wine.

The big eight wines are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz, and Pinot Noir for red wines, and Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Chardonnay, and Pinot Grigio for white wines.

Lastly, the Blind Wine Tasting theme can also work for your party. This is sort of mixing up the prior five themes. Just take any of the themes mentioned before, remove the labels from the bottles or put the bottles in wine bags and you have a blind wine tasting party that will surely be a lot of fun for your guests. The fact that your guests will not have any ideas on what wine they taste,  will definitely make it interesting to know which kind of wine they prefer without looking at the label or at the price of the wine.

Remember, whichever theme you choose you need to plan your party around at least one theme. Sure you can mix and match to suit your taste and circumstances, but having a theme is a great way to reduce stress and guarantee a great party.

Enjoy.

A winetasting party is not really expensive and it is also not hard to put on. It’s one way to test your wine skills and see how your friends measure up. Now, that can generate a lot of fun. Getting together will be much happier and more exciting if the party’s theme is wine tasting
and not just a bland party.

Formal wine tasting usually doesn’t allow the testers to swallow wine. Just as the name ‘wine tasting’ suggests, you will only smell, taste, and enjoy the wine. At a party with a wine tasting theme, your friends and even you, can taste, smell and yes swallow the different wines provided. Just be very careful since overindulging can lead to sobriety issues later.

Once you’ve tasted several wines and you swallowed them, you may not be able to assess the wine’s full flavor. It’s up to the guests whether they will swallow the wine or not.

There are important preparations before you start the party. You have to ensure that there are lots of clean wine glasses at the party. With clean glasses, you can easily see residue that affects the wine’s taste. Use a white tablecloth so that the guests can view the wine closely. Why white? Well, the white colored tablecloth will allow your guests to see any sediment and assess the wine’s body. Make sure that there is also candlelight at the party.

If you don’t know your friends’ wine preferences, you can ask them to bring one bottle of their favorite wine. Also, don’t forget to provide clean water, bread, and some crackers. Always remember, don’t serve cold water because it can shock the taste buds of your guests.

If you’re serving red wine, decant them before the party. The wine tastes better once it’s able to breathe; if you’re serving white/blush wine, chill it slightly first before the guests arrive. Don’t forget to keep your pencil and paper handy once the taste test begins so that your friends can rank the wines.

As the host of the party, you should supervise the wine tasting. Try to start with simpler and lighter wines. After that, you can already taste heavier and drier wines. If you start with the heavier and drier wines, you will not be able to taste the white wines.

If there are not enough wine glasses, make sure that you swirl clean water in it and then dry it using clean cloth; that way, the wine will not be diluted in water.

Do you know the ways to test the wine’s clarity, color, aroma, etc? Wine tasters follow some kind of procedure in tasting the wines and you should know about them because that’s the only way to assess the wine’s quality.

When tasting the wines, make sure that you drink water or eat some bread or crackers before tasting another wine. This is important so that the taste of the previous wine will be eliminated. Allow your guests enough time to guess the brands and varietals of the wines. Everyone will surely have fun at the wine tasting casual party.

Formal wine tasting parties are usually not very enjoyable especially if you’re having friends around; organize a casual party now and see how much fun you will have together with your closest friends.