Host with the most: a guide to serving wine
Playing host for a dinner, lunch or a party is one thing but being sure you’ve done right when it comes to catering wine for your function is another entirely. Providing the wine doesn’t have to be a difficult task though! Our handy hints will make sure you never have to worry if you’re going to run out of drinks or buy too much.
Planning ahead
A standard bottle of wine will fill five medium wine glasses, one case (12 bottles) equals 60 glasses. A good way to approach this is to allow half a bottle of wine per person and then add a little margin as a precaution. So do the math for your soiree as a guide for how much alcohol you’ll need. Make sure you buy a little extra just in case. You can keep this hidden in a cupboard and only use in an emergency.
The majority wins
Don’t be too specific when deciding what varities of wine you want to buy and instead cater for the majority not the minority. Keep in minc that wine preferences are usually quite evenly split, apart from in the summer when white wine may be in more demand.
Responsible service
The clever host strikes a balance between generosity and being mindful of sensible volumes. It’s important that your guests enjoy themselves and that they get home safely. You can help by having taxi service details available to encourage. Encourage responsible drinking. Don’t keep topping up glasses, so your guests can keep track of the standard drinks they have had.
Ice queen
If you’re having a big event and don’t want wine bottles crowding the fridge, you will want to use an Esky or ice bucket. When making your ice, add water and salt as this will speed up the chilling process.