Useful tips if you organize a wine tasting yourself

Organizing a wine tasting at home with friends or with your wine tasting club is popular. What should you do if you are going to organize a wine tasting yourself? How do you go about it? Below we give some tips to make such an evening a great success. Because it is not only the company that counts, but also good preparation.

How many bottles do you need?

The number of bottles you need depends on your budget, the number of tasters and the experience of the tasters. For wine lovers who do not have much tasting experience, six to eight wines are a suitable number. More experienced tasters can taste up to about twelve bottles. At a wine tasting, you do not fill the glasses. After all, it is about tasting and not about drinking. You only pour a little. You should be able to let about 18 people taste one 75 cl bottle. If your guests swallow the wine instead of spitting it out, it is wise to serve no more than eight bottles.

Which wines do you choose?

That is always one of the most fun but also the most difficult questions. It is fun if the bottles you choose have a certain coherence. You do this by choosing a 'theme'. That theme can be anything. It is obvious to choose wines from a specific country or region. For example, eight different Spanish wines or three bottles from the Rhône and three bottles from Bordeaux. This way you can compare bottles and look for differences and similarities. You can also choose different wines from the same grape. For example, six different wines from the Syrah grape or three wines from different countries but from the same grape. Are you looking for more inspiration? Then you will find twelve themes for a wine tasting here. Some tasting clubs agree that everyone brings one or more bottles. This can be around a theme, or completely random.

How do you determine the order?

It is important to determine a good order for pouring the wines at your wine tasting. In principle, you work from white to rosé, to red and then to sweet. An incorrect order can lead to disappointment because the wines do not come into their own. Here you can find more information about a good tasting order.

You can pour the wines one by one or serve them in 'flights'. In the latter case, you pour different wines that belong together at the same time. For example, a flight of three white wines, a flight of three red wines or a flight of two sweet wines. Your guests can then better compare the different wines, but that only makes sense if the wines are really related. If you opt for flights, make sure you have enough glasses.

When should you decant or carafe?

Most wines can be poured without having to decant or carafe them first. But there are exceptions. Very old red wines or unfiltered wines are often better decanted to prevent sediment from getting into your glass. Wines that are not yet fully ready to drink are better decanted to give them oxygen. Here we explain when to decant or carafe a wine.

Make sure you serve each wine at the right temperature

The temperature of the wine has a huge influence on the taste of the wine. Wines that are served too cold come across as tight and thin. Wines that are too warm become unpleasantly sluggish. Pay close attention to serving different types of wine at the right temperature. Here you can read at what temperature to serve different types of wine.

Do you taste blind or not?

You can choose to have all your wines - or just some - tasted blind. Your guests will then not know which wine is in their glass. You can wrap the bottle in aluminium foil, but there are also sleeves that are specially made for blind tasting. Your guests can then - with reason - guess which type of wine (country, grapes, year) they are tasting. Remember that blind tasting is very difficult - even for seasoned connoisseurs. The chance that wines will be guessed correctly is therefore small. You can make it a bit easier (and more fun) by giving hints or by giving three or four possible answers in advance (multiple choice).

What are you talking about?

For those who have never organised a wine tasting: there are no strict rules. It is about having fun and learning something about your wine or your own taste. In general, you discuss wine by wine with each other: What do you smell? What do you taste? What do you think of the quality and do you like the wine? It is not about whether you are 'right', it is mainly about putting into words what you think and why. If the group is a bit larger, you can choose a 'director' who directs the conversation so that everyone gets more or less equal say.

It is very useful to use a tasting form. Everyone first fills in the form per bottle, which gives you a good basis for discussing the wine with each other. You can find a tasting form to download here. But then you have that form neatly in front of you, pen at the ready, but you do not know what things you could write down now. In that case, you can download a guideline for your tasting notes here.

Are you serving something to eat with it?

To taste well, snacks are not necessary. You can limit yourself to water and possibly some French bread (but French bread is not really necessary either). Food is not necessary to 'neutralize' between two wines. The next wine generally 'neutralizes' the previous one. A sip of water also helps. It is of course nice to organize a slightly more dressed up tasting. Make sure that your snacks are not too dominant. Light cheeses with white, a nice ham with a not too heavy red wine or a good, spicy sausage with heavier red wines almost always go well. Blue cheese is often a very nice surprise with sweet wine. You can find more tips for wine and food parings here.

What else do you need?

Always put a carafe of water and water glasses on the table. You wouldn't think so, but wine tasting can make you thirsty. And water is also nice to rinse between two wines. It is also advisable to place 'spittoons' on the table in which your guests can spit out the wine. You can also opt for small buckets or vases, but then place a piece of kitchen paper at the bottom to prevent splashing.

Enjoy your wine tasting!

If you prefer to organize a tasting with a professional oenologist who will guide everything and tell you a thing or two about the wines, we can arrange that for you. Here you can find more information about ordering a wine tasting at AndereWijn.