Wine Tasting Party Tips: How to host a fun one!

Have you ever wanted to have a wine tasting party? Every year one of my friends hosts a blind wine tasting party to kick off the holiday season. It’s not something formal or stuffy. It’s actually a ton of fun! Below I’ve listed some tips to help you host a wine tasting party this holiday season or any time during the year.

Wine Tasting Party Tips #1: BYOW (Bring your own wine)

Don’t take on the burden of providing all the wine. Unless you are a control freak or a Master Sommelier (which if you were you wouldn’t be reading my silly blog), there’s no reason to buy all of the wine for the party. Plus, part of the fun is seeing what everyone brings. You can set rules like nothing over $20 or reds only, if you like, but usually it’s not necessary.

Hint for blind tasting: You might want to invest in some cheap brown paper bags. Sometimes you can buy them from your local liquor store. If not, they can be found on the web. Tape up the bottles so they are all covered up. Leave room for pouring! Wine will drip down the sides. This is why I don’t recommend fancy wine bags. Be sure to number each one so you can keep track of which wines you like (or don’t).

Wine Tasting Party Tips #2: Potluck appetizers

You should definitely have food and non-alcoholic drinks available. Having sodas and bottled water is easy. I suggest you make the food a potluck. It’s doesn’t have to be a full meal. Appetizers will do the trick. Remember, you’re not trying to be fancy. You’re trying to have fun. If you and your friends like fancy, go for it! If not, pigs in a blanket and BBQ meatballs in a slow cooker will be good too. Don’t worry about which wines go with what appetizers. Just make sure it’s stuff people will eat. Cheese and crackers go with wine. We serve cheddar with Ritz Crackers when we have wine. There’s no need to buy cheese that’s $15/pound if you won’t eat it and your guests won’t appreciate it.

Hint for blind tasting: When setting up for a blind wine tasting, separate the whites from the reds. Physically put them on separate tables or areas where they won’t get mixed up. Have people try the whites first.

Wine Tasting Party Tips #3: Have prizes

Home Star Wine Topper (Amazon Affiliate Link)

If you really want to go the extra mile, have prizes for the best and worst wines. They don’t have to be expensive. It’s fun to keep it wine themed with something simple like a cork puller, fancy bottle stopper, wine charms, etc. We would do this every year at my friend’s party. One year, my parents won with a $10 bottle of wine from Costco. Everyone loved it! The fancy organic wine was rated the worst. Sometimes I think people brought cheap bottles to see if they could get rated the worst only to find that people liked it!

Hint for blind tasting: Be sure to keep track of whose bottle is whose! Either take a silver marker and write the last name of the person directly on the bottle or keep a secret list that matches up names and bottle numbers.

Wine Tasting Party Tips #4: Printable rating page

If you are having a blind tasting, you’ll need a sheet to keep track of which wines you like or don’t like. Believe me, after the third or fourth taste, everything will start blending together if you don’t keep track of what you like.

Wine Tasting Party Tips #5: Photo booth props

Wine Tasting Party Photo Booth Props in my Etsy store.

Want to go the extra mile? Have some photo booth props as decoration and favors at your wine tasting party. I sell some in my Etsy store that are perfect for the occasion. You don’t need a formal set up. Just download the files, print them out on thick paper, cut them out and stick them to a stick or straw. You can distribute them around the party or gather the props together and display them simply in a tall glass as a center piece.

Of course, you can also make your own.  I use PicMonkey to create the ones I sell.  I had them at my wedding and everyone loved them. It’s a great way to encourage people to take photos of the event. Plus, PicMonkey  is easy to use and a heck of a lot cheaper than most photo editing and design software. They even have a free version you can try out!

So, now all you have to do is figure out when you want to have the party!

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