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Excellent! Email our Chairperson here to volunteer (AWS National members only are permitted to house-host, due to insurance purposes!) No Ideas? Never hosted before? Just ask, we'll be glad to help.
See what's open on the schedule (see Tasting Schedule on the Home Page) make sure you have time to prepare. Consider how many people you are limited to, and any parking considerations in advance. Send directions, a sketch of a map to your house, phone number etc. to our Chairperson well in advance, so it can get published and distributed
Meetings are held at a member's home, and another (usually) will present a flight of wines for education and enjoyment. Glasses, water carafes, buckets, badges, blank forms, pens, etc. (glassware) will need to be procured and cleaned from the previous meeting's host(s), and you should count on having to prepare or arrange for their delivery to the next host.
Most attendants will bring a dish of something, and/or bottle of other wine to serve, enjoy, explore, and compare with different foods and wine left over, and discuss or just socialize after the presentation session.
The meeting starts at 2 P.M. and should close by 5 or 6 P.M.
Meetings should be fun, but are NOT parties!
For help hosting a meeting at your house -
House Host Helper
and also see Host Responsibilities and House Host Guidelines and any of the other informative documents there. Print them out, if you need. Can't print them yourself? Email me with your address and I'll mail you the forms you want via Post or fax, if you like.
IF THIS IS YOUR FIRST HOUSE HOSTING keep these things in mind:
New house hosts often draw a larger than usual turnout, as we are all eager to see your new venue - so be prepared:
- Set a limit for the number of guests well in advance
- Make sure the Chairperson has the correct phone number well in advance to tell members to RSVP.
- Keep a list of those RSVPing, and apologetically deny latecomers, once your dance card is filled.
- Consider driving directions and parking arrangements: Neighborhood covenants, mud, narrow streets, long walks, steep hills, irate neighbors, etc. Just let the chairperson know in advance, and attendees will cope.
For help hosting a wine presentation -
Tasting Guidelines
Start with an idea on what you think would be an educational wine tasting event: a common theme; contrast/compare; vertical flight (same wine type over several years); a country, region, or style. You may present it yourself, or perhaps host a guest speaker. Local wine stores are eager to help, and some offer COST DISCOUNT.
Typically a light starter wine is used to get acquainted and settled, which may or may not be relative to the presentation - you should obtain a bit more of this, as it is self-served as the attendees convene.
Cost of wines is to be watched carefully, as $15 or less per person is expected - if you will exceed this, tell the Chairperson early enough to alert members in advance. Count all your bottles, get all your receipts, and officers will handle the numbers. Unopened wine will save everyone money, and you can often return what isn't used back to the store for refund, or bring it to supplement another meeting. Keep in mind: OPEN BOTTLES MUST BE SEALED IN SOME WAY TO BE TRANSPORTED.
The sequence of wines is usually light to heavy, pale to dark and dry to sweet, or something along that order (light wines don't show well after strong ones.)
Tasting/scoring forms will also be needed, and can be blank, but it helps if they are printed out with the wines in the order of their presentation. You can download them from the DOCUMENTS - The AWS Scoring Sheet for printing as many as you need. For an elegant touch, enter the wines in the order of presentation into the Word form prior to printing. Or just print one and have Staples or Kinkos make two-sided copies for pennies each.
Got an idea for a tasting theme that you'd like to see,
but can't host it yourself? Send your idea in here, we can pass it on to other hosts for possible future tastings.Thanks! - webmaster
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Promoting appreciation of wine through education |