Planning A Wine Tasting Party - Kansas City Homes & Style

Story by Dave Eckert

As a wine lover, there are few things I enjoy more than tasting a bunch of different wines with good friends and good food. More than any other wine lends itself to cuisine and conviviality, and a good wine tasting party can enhance both.

Everybody loves tips, so here are some I’ve come up with through the years.

Pick a theme that’s easy to execute with regards to both the wine and the cuisine. You can get narrower or more esoteric down the road, but out of the gate, select wines that are easy to find in a wide price range and cuisine that pairs with them quickly and easily. I’d start with something more mainstream, say Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay or Cabernet and Sauvignon Blanc, if you and your friends prefer SBs to Chards.
Decide of the type of tasting you’d like to organize. What I’ve suggested above is a varietal tasting. It’s much easier to pull off than a horizontal tasting where you would choose a single category from a single vintage such as 2010 Napa Valley Cabernets or 2014 California Chardonnays. With a varietal tasting, you can pick Cabernets, Chardonnays, Sauvignon Blancs, or what ever wine varieties you want from around the world in all different price ranges and from different vintages.
Limit the number of wine choices. I’d recommend no more than four per grape variety. This will give you and your guests plenty to taste and talk about without overwhelming their palates.
Make it a blind tasting. Remove the top of each wine and then wrap the bottles in foil, clearly labeling each wine with a sharpie. One, two, three, four for white and red is as complicated as you need to get. Mix them up in order or price and region so it’s not as simple as cheapest to most expensive, and let the fun begin.
Do a little research on the wines beyond where they come from and how much you paid. I find “tidbits” on the wines, their regions, their vintage, and their history really add to the appreciation and understanding of what you’re tasting.
Go easy on the pours. A two ounce pour per wine is perfect. Anything more and you’ll turn the wine tasting into wine chugging and that’s certainly not the point.
Set a budget and stay within the range. Your theme could easily be “Cabernets under $20” if you like, but I find it fun to bring in a wines at different price ranges and from different countries and regions to spice up the debate.
Decide on the number of people you can comfortably accommodate and provide adequate glassware.
Keep the tasting simple. I prefer either bread or crackers and water during the tasting. Save the food for after the tasting where you can create something that pairs with the wines you’ve featured. I included a great recipe to do just that, and you’ll find more at homesandstylekc.com.
Make sure the wines are the right temperature. As Americans, we serve our white wines too cold and our red wines too warm. My rule is to pull the whites from the fridge 20 minutes before serving and put the reds in the fridge 20 minutes before serving. It’s pretty much foolproof.

I could go on and on here detailing the use of spit buckets, eliminating extraneous scents in the room, which includes urging your guests not to wear perfume or cologne, talking about how your guests should view, swirl, sip, and savor the wines, but enough is enough. The key is to have fun and learn something about your palate and the wines you enjoy. Cheers!

Local Recipes

Dish Name: Tuna Tartar

Wine Pairing: Hanna Sauvignon Blanc