Which wines for special events such family celebration or a party with clients?
How much wine should you order? What type of wine should you order? How much should you pay? Too often the wine is overlooked and left to the caterer, be smart and spend some time to find out more.
Here are the basic steps that you should bear in mind:
Say you are organising a party or event. You have a budget, to cover the venue, food, wine and activities.
Firstly question is how much wine will you need? I tend to work on a bottle per 2.5 guests. So if there are 20 people buy 8 bottles. If there is any left take it home and enjoy it.
Of those how many bottles of red, white and sparkling? It depends on the time of year and the menu. If it is a summer event, held in the open air I would recommend a mix of 50% white, 25% red and 25% sparkling. However, if the event was in the autumn or winter and inside then I would change the mix to 50% red, 30% white and 20% sparkling.
When choosing wines for special events, what kind of wine should you buy? If it is your event then you should do a bit of homework and add your personal touch. Here are some things to bear in mind:
Who is coming?
Is is business contacts or family and friends?
What is on the menu? Seafood, summer dishes or richer red meat dishes?
Is is a lunch or dinner?
Formal or casual?
Red Wine – Decide on your budget per bottle, there are so many good wines from which to choose. To have some fun with your friends why not buy different wines and taste them together and decide which you all prefer. As we are in Spain, you will want to have some Spanish wine but why not try include wines from other countries such as a Chenin Blanc from South Africa, a Malbec from Argentina or a Nero d’Avola from Italy.
White Wine – along with a nice Albariño or Verdejo why not include a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, an Australian or Chilean Chardonnay, a Riesling from Germany.
Believe me your guests will remember your event for the original, distinctive wine selections.
If you have any questions or would like to find out more feel free to drop me a line.
