Have you ever wondered what it’s like to Host a Traveling Vineyard wine tasting? Introducing Tasting Stories from Traveling Vineyard, where we bring you inside a real wine tasting party and tell you what made the event memorable and fun for the Host and their Guests! Tasting Stories are inspired by Five Star reviews submitted by real Hosts.
The holidays have come and gone, but the memories of gathering and celebrating with friends and family are still fresh in our minds. That’s certainly true for Kelly Christensen who hosted a holiday-themed wine tasting event with her Wine Guide, Ziarra Link, in Wisconsin. In fact, Kelly sent us a rave review about her tasting experience with Ziarra, a Three-Star Leader out of Dalton, Wisconsin. Turns out, Kelly is a repeat Host! Here’s her Tasting Story.
Kelly and Ziarra have been family friends for over 25 years. Kelly hosted her first Traveling Vineyard wine tasting in 2016 to support Ziarra’s new wine business. She says the “discount on wine was nice, too”—which starts with five free bottles to share with friends at the tasting! Since then, Kelly has hosted three events with Ziarra!
As a repeat host, Kelly wanted to try something new at her holiday wine tasting, so Ziarra helped her choose a theme for the event—an “ugly sweater” theme, which is a favorite choice among Wine Guides and wine lovers.
WHAT KELLY LOVED:
“The camaraderie of having all the ladies together and having some wine, food and laughs.”
Wine wisdom is a big part of the Traveling Vineyard experience—and so is the fun, relaxed style of an in-home wine tasting. At Kelly’s wine tasting, this repeat group of wine lovers certainly ramped up the FUN! “We had an ugly sweater contest! We were all doing a kick line in the kitchen in our ugly sweaters!”
To keep with the theme of the event, Ziarra brought along some of our favorite cozy red wines, like our 2016 Tria Reserve, Mourvèdre/Syrah, California, and our 2016 Perique, Côtes du Rhône Villages, France, which not only pairs well with a cozy fireplace, but also decadent dark chocolate and rich cheeses!
“One new thing I learned from this event, was how great the wine is when filtered through the aerator!” says Kelly. Ziarra demonstrated our Magic Decanter Aerator, which shortens the “breathing” time for your red wine from hours to seconds. Perfectly aerate your red wines while simply pouring into your glass – all the taste, with none of the wait!
“Ziarra did an amazing job,” Kelly says. She was a great match for Kelly’s extroverted group of wine lovers. Kelly says Ziarra was flexible and tailored her presentation to the group.
The best thing about Kelly’s event? It was simple and fun, she says. She loved “the camaraderie of having all the ladies together, and having some wine, food and laughs.” Kelly and Ziarra prove that with wine there is always something new to learn, and that repeat wine tasting events enhance the experience of new wines while ramping up the fun.
Ready to taste with your friends? Connect with a Wine Guide today to get your spring fling wine tasting on the calendar.
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