The Best (Wine) Party of 2008

On March 8th I hosted my first wine tasting party of 2008, which was the 2nd ever wine tasting party I have hosted in the U.S. (My best mate Steve and I co-hosted several wine tasting parties in Australia in 04' and 05,' which were a blast). This last party was the biggest yet, with around 25 people contemplating the aroma and taste profiles of several solid wines, while also enjoying many delectable appetizers and captivating conversations with the fellow party goers.

The food was amazing; my good friend Marc has done a phenomenal job on the appetizers for the last two tasting parties. My brother-in-law Gary also contributed to the all-star food line-up with his mouth-watering stuffed mushrooms. We couldn't have done this without our good friends the Clarks' letting us use their massively spacious living area for the party. If they were only staying in the area long term I am sure we could have made a thriving business out of hosting wine parties!

I love hosting these tasting parties. I thoroughly enjoy "researching" and buying the wines, coordinating the food and setup with all involved, and most of all I enjoy sipping a fantastic glass of wine while looking around the room seeing my dear friends enjoying the food, wine, and each other.

It was a blast to hear people positing an opinion about what they detected in the wine. It was especially fun to have my friend Bruce, who knows almost nothing about wine, come up to me and tell me he was detecting hints of chocolate and cherries on the bouquet, which I also detected. Wine is such a fascinating world to explore, especially when the exploration is done in the company of friends.

We tasted two whites, 6 reds, and 2 dessert ports. Suffice to say, there was enough wine for everyone to enjoy the evening, all of them were from Washington State. We started the evening with a Chateau Ste. Michelle 2006 Sav Blanc from Horse Heaven Hills, this wine was a solid Sav Blanc, at 12 dollars I would drink it again. The second wine we tried was from Dunham Cellars Four Legged White, a Riesling from the Columbia Valley. This wine had a great balance of acidity and sugar. I enjoyed this wine quite a lot. At 18 dollars a bottle I thought it was good, but also thought there were plenty of other Rieslings you could find in this price point or cheaper. The third wine we sampled was Forgeron Cellars' Zinfandel from the Columbia Valley. This wine was excellent. It was unique and delicious; definitely worth seeking out if you can. At 30 dollars a bottle this isn't an every day drinking wine, but for a special dinner this wine will only add to the occasion.