Written by Wine Guide and Guest Blogger, Jenna M Shreve
Hosting a Cozy and Memorable Wine Tasting is Easy!
As we say goodbye to Summer, and watch as the leaves begin to change color, and as the weather turns from unrelenting to a welcoming crisp gentle breath of cinnamon and spice – it's the perfect time to gather friends and family for a delightful autumn wine tasting. Hosting a wine tasting event is a great way to explore different flavors, enhance your palate, and create lasting memories. So, grab your corkscrew, sip back and relax as we guide you through the essentials for hosting a fun and memorable wine tasting this fall, from selecting the perfect wine and food pairings to creating a cozy and inviting atmosphere.
Selecting the Perfect Wines
One of the most important aspects of a wine tasting is the selection of wines. It's essential to choose a variety of wines that offer different flavors, aromas, and characteristics allowing you and your guest to explore and compare various styles and find personal preferences. A Traveling Vineyard Wine Tasting takes the guess work from having to determine which wines to select to ensure you encompass an array of guest palates. Our wine experts have embraced the flavors of the season and curated the perfect wines to showcase at your next wine tasting this fall.
Choosing only the best grapes to bottle from vineyards around the world with flavor profile notes of ripe fruits, spices, and earthiness that are ideal for this time of year. Each curated tasting set includes a variety of wine styles in both red and white, as well as sweeter style wines to cater to different taste preferences. Together, you and your guests will explore new yet familiar varietals as you take a sip trip around the world. Your journey will include wines from different regions with their own unique characteristics that influence the taste and aromas of each wine. Ideal Wines for an Autumn Wine Tasting With each tasting set, our wine experts carefully selected 5 wines that will embark you and your guests on a sensory exploration. Of the variety of wines that may be included, some of our most recently released wines are popular favorites for the fall:
Perfect for peach cobbler this fall, our semi-sweet 2022 Smirk, Muscat from the Western Cape of South Africa exhibits earthy notes complimented by juicy mandarin orange and lime on the palate.
From the South Eastern region of Australia, our 2021 Peekaboo, Chardonnay will warm the hearts of both white as well as red wine drinkers. With its vibrant structure, this medium-full bodied beauty sports a mild creamy texture with tropical fruit aromas and a hint of vanilla.
Enjoy this fun label to tickle your nose – Our 2021 Whiskers is a unique 5 component red blend with an interesting nose of blackberry, dark earth, black pepper and a hint of toast over red and brown fruit. This serious yet approachable red blend will surely please the red wine lover in you.
Pairing wonderfully with cured meats, parmesan cheese, and front porch socials, our medium-bodied 2021 Black Trumpet, Teroldego from Lodi, California is bursting with a refreshing juicy blackberry flavors. This red is larger than it looks, while light on the palate.
Autumn Food and Wine Pairings
No wine tasting is complete without food pairings. Imagine going to a dance with music but no dance floor. Wine tastings should include simple pairings that will enhance both the flavors in the food and the wine, as well as your overall tasting experience. With the use of Traveling Vineyard Sommology method, our Wine Guides love helping bring out the flavors and complexities in wine by showing how to perfectly pair wine and food. And together, you and your wine guide will select the perfect food pairing for an autumn wine tasting to fit your budget.
Get creative with your autumn wine tasting by choosing to make it a themed event. Host a pumpkin patch wine pairing and serve up a variety of pumpkin flavored bites or perhaps your team apple and would rather host an apple picking contest pairing, where guests vote on the best apple bites that you’ve selected to serve. And for our Halloween fans, invite your guests to dress for the occasion in their favorite costume and serve up a Halloween candy trick or treat themed event. Or elevate your tasting with each guest bringing a simple pairing perfect for your themed event. There are so many fabulous fall theme ideas that the list is endless.
The key to perfectly pairing food and wine for your autumn wine tasting is to not confuse your guests as to why they were invited. The wine is the main feature of your event. Therefore, there is no need to break the bank preparing a 7-course meal. Instead offer simple pantry pairings like popcorn and chips, or a small charcuterie of meats and cheeses. Remember, this isn’t a meal – it’s a tasting. Offering smaller bite sized potions (or by splitting larger portions into smaller ones) will keep the focus on wine.
Engaging Entertainment
Throughout the tasting, our enthusiastic wine guide will share their knowledge of Traveling Vineyard and their wines with a splash of wine-101 fun, while encouraging your guest to engage in a fun, social, and unpretentious environment. Using fundamental wine tasting techniques of See, Smell, Sip, and Share, you and your guests will enjoy a memorable tasting using your senses to explore the world of wine through a sipsational wine tasting event.
Create a Cozy and Inviting Atmosphere
An autumn wine tasting has a sense of warmth and coziness to it. Here are some useful tips to help set the mood for your event:
1. Choosing Where to Sip
Hosting a wine tasting doesn’t require a lot of room. With nicer weather permitting, a backyard or patio may be the ideal setting for your tasting this fall. No matter the time of day, whether for brunch or an evening, hosting a tasting can be held around the kitchen island, at the dining table, relaxing in the living room, or taking in the autumn air outdoors. And during the cooler autumn evenings, consider a campfire tasting around the fire pit to stay snuggly warm.
2. Decorate with Fall Accents
Enhance the ambiance of your event by incorporating fall-themed decorations. Use autumnal colors like deep reds, oranges, and browns in your table settings, napkins, and floral arrangements. Add touches of nature with seasonal foliage and pumpkins to create a cozy and inviting atmosphere. Consider adding wine-themed fall decorations like wine cork vases to hold your fall arrangements, pumpkins made from wine corks, a centerpiece cork wreath complete with fall accents.
3. Time To Wine
Now that you have touches of autumn décor to create the perfect inviting atmosphere for your guests, your Wine Guide will complete the setting with the featured curated wine set and tasting sheets – In most cases, we can even bring the wine glasses.
Fall Wine Tasting: A Celebration of Flavors
A fall wine tasting is a wonderful way to celebrate the changing of the seasons and indulge in the flavors of fall. From selecting the perfect wines and food pairings to creating a cozy and inviting atmosphere, every element contributes to a memorable and enjoyable experience for you and your guests. So, gather your loved ones, raise a glass, and toast to the beauty of fall with a delightful Complementary Traveling Vineyard Wine Tasting adventure.