Wine tasting parties are the new, fun way to have parties. You can have a wine tasting party for a friends or family get-together, a holiday gathering, or even an office party! Nectar of the Vine wants to ensure you have all of the necessary tips to help make your wine tasting party the best, so we shared some of our favorite wine tasting party tips with you below:

Decide a wine theme. There are so many different wines out there and making sure you choose a wine theme for your party will help satisfy your guests and give them some direction on what to expect. Some wine theme ideas are:

• value - set a price point and have everyone find a bottle around the given dollar amount
  
• variety - pick a specific wine (e.g. Pino Grigio) and try different brands of the selected wine
  
• region - pick a region and try different wines from the selected region
  
• random - just have everyone bring any bottle of wine
• blind tasting - everyone brings a bottle of wine and you pour the wine into pitchers, bag them, or cover in foil to disguise the bottle's identity when tasting 

Have a unique twist. Serve something unique, such as wine frappes, to make yourself and your party stand out. Frappes also give another fun way to taste wine with friends and there are so many different flavors to choose from!

Serve the right food. If you are doing a variety or region tasting, you want to make sure the food or snacks you serve go with the wine. Research some common foods or pairings for your selected wine and decide your menu from there. If you plan to do a random, value, or blind tasting, you want to make sure you have a variety of different foods to ensure your guests are getting the best possible taste of their wine.

Make sure you have the necessary supplies.  One of the most important aspects of having the wine tasting party is to make sure you have all of the supplies that will be needed throughout the party. There are some key things you should always remember to have so you do not run into an issue during the party.Some of the necessary supplies to think of when planning are:

• ice buckets - To help chill the white wines before serving (red wine is to be taken out a few hours beforehand). 
• glassware - Make sure to have one clear wine glass for everyone. You want to ensure they are clear so guests' can see the color of the wine when tasting. Also, be sure the glasses have a stem, as you do not want the glass getting warm from their hand and in turn, warming the wine. 
• corkscrews - Always have a corkscrew on hand to open the bottles and have a back-up in case one breaks. No one wants to pull the cork out the hard way! 
• glass identifiers - You can have fun with these! There are plenty of fun options that are sure to entertain or you can make some on your own. Check out DIY glass identifiers or you can use a wine glass marker for people to write their names on the glasses. 
• scorecards - There are plenty of templates to print off online or you can make your own! This will allow the guests to rate each wine based on a scale or on aroma, appearance, flavor, character, and aftertaste. *(We shared with you a scorecard below! Just save the image and print off to use.)

Keep the guest list within your small circle. Wine parties are better when they are intimate. It allows everyone the chance to sample each wine and focus on conversation with one another. It also makes it easier when serving and portioning single bottles of wine for everyone to try. Although keeping the party small is more intimate and convenient, you can still have a wine tasting party with a large group!

Remind guests to cleanse their pallet with water and other snacks. Make sure on top of having the wine, you also have water available for your guests. It is important they cleanse their pallet after each taste to ensure they are getting the full flavor of each wine they try. They can also do so with flavorless crackers or pieces of bread without grain or salt.

Decide on a table style and decorate. The table styles are endless. You could try a chalkboard or a paper bag table runner or create a table theme. You can create a theme by coming up with mini table top displays and making sure all of the glass identifiers and scorecards go along with the theme.

You're now ready to have a wine-tasting party! Still need some inspiration on what to have or do at your wine tasting party? Check out our  Wine Party Tips Pinterest board for more ideas and themes!