It’s My Party and I’ll Wine If I Want To

It’s that time of year where the party train starts to pick up steam and chances are you’ll be hosting a couple of soiree’s yourself.  As a wine lover, or connoisseur even, do you serve a lot of wine at your parties and if so what styles and at what price points?

The dilemma is how do you balance your love for the grape at a gathering where others are most likely not as into it, knowledgeable or might even prefer the Corona light you got in the fridge (that’s been there since Summertime) or maybe a mixed drink?  Worse yet, your friends or co-workers probably know you’re that wine geek and might even expect something fancy when they show up, but you’re not sure whether you want to pull that higher end juice from the rack.  You don’t want to look like a snob nor a deadbeat, so what’s a guy/gal to do?

I try to have a little of everything to have the bases covered, but I generally will not make any assumptions that my guests will want to croon over the cellar and talk Brix and Beaujolais all night… that would be rude, especially if it’s a work party.  Now, you probably know best who you are dealing with, so this may not be as big a problem.  But, if you don’t know the guests very well, you might even consider BYOB.

We will often go to the discount wine shop and get a case of a good mix of value wines (~$7-15) of various well-known styles and varieties: your Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, etc… nothing too crazy like, say, Renardat-Fache Bugey du Cerdon Sparkling Gamay (I hear it goes well with Chicken, or not).  And make sure you do have some beer, soda and water on hand for those who aren’t into wine.  Then throughout the party you may strike up conversation with others who have made comments about your wine or the wine art you have around the house (including the maps of Sonoma and Napa, that picture of you and the wife overlooking the valley at Sterling, and the framed winery posters… you know what I’m talking about, don’t you?) that easily identifies you as THAT wine geek.  From that point you can determine during the later hours of the party if you pull that high-end Napa Cab or Bordeaux to share with a select few guests… then, you’ve made a new wine-drinking friend and maybe even a new wine nerd.

I draw the line at only one thing.  If you are a guest, please do not bring or ask for a White Zinfandel.  Like Bill Gates’ house I have sensors at every entrance that will identify it and set off alarms like someone shoplifting at Walmart.

All Aboard!