Host a Wine Tasting Event PLUS What To Do With Leftover Wine [VIDEO]

One of the best ways to try different wines and spend some time with friends is by hosting a wine-tasting event. Tasting wine is one of life’s great enjoyments, and what better way to enjoy it? The get-together should be light-hearted rather than a pretentious affair where everyone tries to show off their knowledge. (OK, that one friend will probably always take the proceedings too seriously, but don’t let that stop the fun).

Read on to find out everything you need to know about hosting a wine-tasting event!

How Much To Buy

A group of about 6 to 10 people is a good number to invite, so plan to buy about one bottle of wine per person if you have six people and double it if you have 10 guests. This gives everyone the chance to enjoy a little more of their favorite wines. Check out our drink calculator if you are looking to hold a larger gathering or want to be able to offer other beverages besides wine. 

How To Taste Wine

Tasting wine is a simpler procedure than you might imagine. Whether you’re tasting relatively inexpensive wines or have invested more money in your bottles, the procedure is the same, and it’s an easy one to share with your guests.

Pour each wine glass about one-third full, and start by looking at its color. In general, red wines often grow lighter with age, and white wines usually become darker. Consider each wine’s clarity as well. If a glass of wine looks quite hazy, it may have spoiled.

Then use your nose. Does your pour smell like wine? After that, get a little more sophisticated and consider its aroma. You might get some hints of fruit, floral notes, or the aroma of wood.

Next, you’ll taste the wine and then consider its after-taste.

What Are Wine Legs?

You might’ve heard talk about legs and how they reveal a wine’s quality. You’ll see a wine’s legs–sometimes more poetically described as its tears–after you swirl your glass and see liquid running down the side of it.

So what do legs reveal? If you’re evaluating a horse, legs matter, but with wine, they don’t. Our own Jack Farrell puts it bluntly in his video about wine legs: It doesn’t mean a damn thing.

What To Do With Your Leftover Wine

If you have some open, unfinished bottles of wine, you could put the cork back in them and stick them in the refrigerator for about 12 hours, and they would probably be OK. But you’re probably not following up a 7 p.m. wine tasting by waking up at 7 a.m. and pouring yourself glass after glass. Seriously, please don’t!

To make your leftover wine last longer, we recommend investing in a handy little gadget called a Vacu Vin. You can see its use demonstrated here. 

It’s inexpensive, and it will let you save wine anytime you have some left over. The Vacu Vin comes with a wine stopper that you’ll put in your wine bottle and a pump that lets you remove excess air from the bottle. This vacuum helps the wine maintain its aroma and flavor for about 10 days. When you’re ready to take the cork out, it should pop because the air has been pumped out of the bottle.

Stop by Haskell’s for some recommendations for your wine-tasting event. Maybe you want to try some bottles all from the same region, or perhaps from the same winery. Whatever you’d like, we’re happy to help you make your selections and answer any questions you may have.