Hosting wine dinners at your club can be done for the enjoyment of your members or to enhance the reputation of the club. Wine-based events have the ability to be among the most enjoyable events for members and their guests to attend and the staff to host.

These writings cannot nearly capture the breadth or depth of detail in hosting a wine dinner, but they discuss many of the considerations in doing so.

Begin with the end in mind.
Develop the purpose of the event. Is it to convey knowledge? Will you contrast or compare disparate wines or vintages? Do you wish to market a new niche on the wine list? Are you trying to have your members associate the club with fine wines and food? Once you conceive the purpose of the tasting, many factors will to fall into place.

The most creative events will most often also be the most popular. See ideas for wine events are listed below.

Winemaker - invite a winemaker to compare and contrast his wines. Look for other wines associated with the winemaker at different properties either as a consultant or winemaker, i.e. Tony Soter of Etude, Moraga and Spottswoode.

Regional - focus on the wine of a particular region, i.e. the Southern Rhone's Chateauneuf-du-Pape blanc made from marsanne and rousanne, Chateauneuf-du-Pape rouge made from blends featuring grenache, syrah, and mourvedre, Condrieu made from viognier, and Gigondas made primarily from grenache. Emphasizing the regional cuisine is a consideration for menu planning.

Varietal - choose a single varietal and focus on its characteristics in different regions or in different vintages such as syrah from Australia (Penfold's Grange Hermitage), California (Qupé Syrah Bien Nacido Reserve) and France (Jaboulet's Hermitage La Chapelle).

Vintage - also known as vertical tasting, contrast same or similar wines in separate vintages, i.e. pouring the past eight vintages 1989 through 1996 of Chalone Pinot Noir Reserve.

Comparative - the most famous example was held in Paris in 1974 where American wines were a surprising victor over their French counterparts. Compare a Carneros chardonnay to a Cote du Beaune offering. Vote and tally the favored wine at each course to determine the victor.

Food - choose one food that is complimented by different wines. Oysters for example may be served accompanied by Chablis, Champagne, Muscadet and Sauvignon Blanc.

BYO - serve a dinner complete with wine excepting one course that is made known. Allow members to bring a specific wine geared to the course from their own cellar. Note: review the local code for your alcoholic beverage license before embarking.

Barrel samples - obtain the pre-release samples of wine to taste with food. A large appeal for this event is exclusivity because wines are not yet released. The wines may not be ready for consumption particularly those with high tannins and would require substantial hors d'oeuvres.

Vineyard - choose a vineyard with different wines or producers. Bien Nacido Vineyard is the source for chardonnay, pinot noir and syrah for winemakers such as Au Bon Climat, Hitching Post, Qupé, Jaffurs Cellars, and Zaca Mesa.

Blind Tastings - Generally these tastings should group wines within a very specified range unless the tasters are very well seasoned and short on egos.

The Club Within the Club. Create a club wine society of your members and give them "exclusive" invitations to these wine events.

Wine events need not be formal. Many of the proposed formats would work for a lunch dinner or reception. Look to utilize different venues or themes as well. For example, a champagne tasting could be featured around your putting green set up for croquet. Have members wear their croquet whites and host a fun event in a setting that is not completely focused on wine.

Introduction of the Wine Expert
Wine experts come in many shapes and sizes. The best part about this business is the fraternity of the vine so to speak. The world of wine tends to be very friendly. As one would have expected from Bacchus, the Greek God of wine and revelry, wine experts are eager to participate in events that promote wine. Many names are available for events provided you plan far enough in advance (6 months to a year) and don't mind paying expenses commensurate to the speaker.

Internationally acclaimed wine writers such as Clive Coates, James Laube or Robert Parker would certainly add luster to any event. To have one of these luminaries attend a wine function as a speaker is perhaps not as difficult as it seems. Wine speakers and writers love to participate in a tasting of significance. A significant tasting would tend to have older vintages of established wineries or be of sufficient breadth to accommodate many. Moreover, these individuals tend to be somewhat glib and can wax nostalgic about almost any subject matter pertaining to wines, vines or phylloxera. Contact may be made with these individuals by contacting the various publications carrying their columns. Typical fees range from $1,000 to $3,000 plus expenses for transportation and lodging.

Vintners, owners and marketing representatives can be fine additions to discuss their own wines or those wines made in their region. Very few winemakers or owners are myopic. Most will be able to distinguish what makes their wine style versus the style of other vineyards. A note of caution is in order: Many of these men are farmers first and, as such, they have not polished their presentation skills. Planning a structured program for these individuals may be wise. A few winemakers consider these visits to be interruptions to their singular focus and only leave the vineyards to appease their a) owner or b) national sales and marketing director. Generally, they are fairly jovial and, once the wine is poured, they tend to be in their element. The cost of hosting a wine professional tends to be less expensive especially when the distributor sponsors their visit.

Your local or national distributors are the keys to landing these wine professionals. National distributors such as Brown Foreman, Kobrand or Frederick Wildeman and Sons have a large base of winemakers and properties to draw from. Contact your local distributor and solicit a list of visiting winemakers scheduled to appear in the coming months. Once or twice a year, winemakers will venture forth to help promote their products. Take advantage of this with your distributor. The distributor representatives are particularly sensitive to showing these dignitaries off to the prestigious accounts that clubs are inclusive in.

The club may choose to draw upon a local expert from a distributor or even a member. This individual is likely to be well-versed in the wines of their portfolio or cellar. Oftentimes their interest is carried further into receiving a designation of Master of Wine (MW) or Master Sommelier (MS). Achieving either designation shows very detailed knowledge of not only wine but also winemaking practices. Should you develop a relationship, this individual could also be used for other events outside his/her portfolio.