How to Host a Blind Wine-Tasting Party

Next time you host a dinner party why not make it fun and educational at the same time? Hosting a blind tasting wine dinner party is an excellent chance to try new wines, enhance your wine knowledge and have fun while doing it.

Instructions

Planning and Pairing Your Food and Wine

1. First, decide on the menu. It's important to have the food portion of the evening planned out first as it will dictate what types of wines you and your guests choose to accompany the different courses of your meal. Keep in mind any allergies your guests may have when planning the meal. If you're in doubt, double-check with guests to find out if they have any food restrictions.

2. Since you will likely taste many different types of wine (depending on how many guests you invite), divide your meal into separate courses. Each course will be paired with a different wine for tasting. For example, serving a dinner with an appetizer, soup or salad, main course and dessert allows you to taste at least four different wines during the course of the meal.

3. Once the menu is planned you will want to pair each course with its own wine. If you are not a wine aficionado, do some research on how to properly pair wine and food for the best complementary combination.

4. For your appetizer, keep your wine light for two reasons: 1) so as not to overpower the appetizer's flavor and 2) to start with lighter wines and work your way to bolder wines. If you start with too bold a wine it will spoil your palette for the lighter ones later on. We suggest a white wine like Chablis. If you must choose a red wine with the appetizer, then keep it very light, such as a Beaujolais.

5. The soup or salad course will require its own wine. The dominant flavors in your soup or salad will determine which wine works best. Is your soup or salad seafood based? Try a Pinot Noir or a Sauvignon Blanc.

6. The main course will be paired with your boldest wine. Try pairing a beef dish with a Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon or chicken with a Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay.

7. Your last course, the dessert course, will be your sweetest. Make sure your dessert wine is sweeter than the dessert itself. Try an ice wine or port with a light sorbet or semisweet/tart-tasting dessert such as Key lime pie.

Invitations

1. You are now ready to send out the invitations for your dinner party. Whether you do this formally with a written invitation by mail or casually with an e-mail, it's best to write out the invitation as you will also be asking each of your guests to bring a specific but different type of wine. This way they have a written reference and are less likely to forget what type of wine they're expected to bring.

2. When writing out your invitations, include the date and time of the event as well as what type of wine to bring. For example, if you are inviting four couples besides yourself to attend your blind wine-tasting party, assign a certain type of wine (Chardonnay or Merlot, for example) to each couple. Don't get any more specific than that. The fun is in seeing what type of wine each couple brings based on your request.

The Event

1. Be sure all your food is ready and your wines are properly chilled. Generally, you want to keep white wines in the fridge, well chilled, and bring them out 20 minutes before you plan on serving them. For reds, which are served warmer, place them in the fridge 20 minutes before serving.

2. On the big night start out by serving a very light white wine while guests arrive. You don't have to play "guess the wine" with this one. Just let the guests mingle and relax.

3. Once your dinner is ready to start, begin with the appetizers and the accompanying wine. You will have this wine, and each subsequent wine, in a brown paper bag so no one except you knows what is being served.

4. Allow your guests to eat their appetizers and taste the first wine. After a few minutes, begin asking questions about the wine, such as what region is it from (give them the correct one plus two wrong ones to choose from), what type of grape is it (Chardonnay or Beaujolais, for example) and what year (give one right choice and two wrong ones). You can also make up other questions that you think might be fun, such as name three flavors or the alcohol content.

5. If your guests are unsure of how to properly taste wine try these tips: Swirl the wine in the glass in order to open up the flavors and bouquet. Smell the wine and note what scents hit your nose. Taste the wine and let it sit on your tongue before swallowing. This will allow you to better taste the bold and subtle flavors.

6. Your guests can simply say their choices out loud and not keep score, or you can have them write their guesses down and the guest with the most correct answers wins a bottle of wine.

7. Continue serving each course and accompanying wine in the same fashion. Ask different questions or the same-it's up to you.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep a list of all the wines served and what course they were served with. Give a copy to each guest (that night or later) so they can buy the wines they liked later if they wish.

• Since alcohol will be served, make sure everyone has a safe ride home. Don't let your guests drink and drive. Provide a place to spend the night for those who are unable to drive.