If you have a party planning tip, we would love to hear it... send it to partytips@winelabel.com.
Party's, affairs, galas, special get together! Different names
for special events which all require plenty to eat and drink. Like all
good hosts, you want to provide your guests with food and drink they'll
enjoy. Following are some guidelines to help you through it all!
BEVERAGES! WHAT TO BUY?
Nothing like knowing exactly what your guest like. But if not,
I suggest the following:
At a stand-up party, most people choose a white wine, with red a distant
second. If you are buying six bottles of wine for guests get two
bottles of Chardonnay and impress them with two bottles of German
Kabinett, one bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot will cover all
bases. Merlots have become very popular in the last couple of years!
With so many microbrews coming out, it's fun to offer different types of
beer. Provide a small amount of bigger bodied beer (Ale, Bock, Porter ,
Stout). The rest should be lighter beer (Domestic, Lager, Pils,
Pilsener).
Sodas and waters appeal to guests of all ages. Provide a variety to
satisfy the designa ed drivers in your group. Cola and root beer are
always favorites (pick up some caffeine free sodas too), and don't
forget sparkling and still waters.
For every 20 adults we suggest:
| Office Party | Sit-Down Dinner | Stand-up party |
| 750 ml. wine btls. | 6 | 10 | 10 |
| 6 packs of Beer | 6 | 6 | 10 |
| 6 packs Soda/Water | 4 | 6 | 8 |
SERVING WINE The glass should be filled half way allowing
adequate room to swirl the wine. Open mature red wine 20-30 minutes
before serving. Doing so will allow the wine to 'breathe' shedding any
upleasant odors.
White wines should be chilled (45-55 degrees) for a few hours in the
refrigerator. Reds should be slightly cooler than room temperature
(about 65 degrees) Young fruity reds benefit from chilling. Sparkling
wines should be throughly chilled; refrigerate several hours or the
night before serving. Dessert wines should be served at room
temperature. Chilling tones down the sweetness of a wine. If a red wine
becomes too warm, it may lose some of its fruity flavor.
PAIRING FOOD WITH WINE
It is a gracious gesture to add wine to your dinner party. Generally,
light-bodied wines complement light food; full-bodied wines are needed
when pairing with hearty food. Very sweet wine does not usually enhance
any food other than dessert.
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