One Alta Journal reader shares a great party idea in response to a recent Ask a Californian column on wine snobs. Got something to say? We’d love to hear from you. Email letters@altaonline.com. Please include your name, city, state, and phone number so we can contact you. Letters may be edited for brevity and clarity.
PASS THE BROWN BAG
I really appreciated the article and wanted to share with you the results of a wine-tasting party my wife and I hosted. We asked each of six couples of our friends to bring their favorite red wine, preferably cabernet, to our party. We indicated that they should also bring a cheese that would pair well with their contribution.
We provided the appetizers and entrée as well as two of our own favorite wines. Everyone gave us their bottle of wine, and we placed the bottles in unmarked brown bags and distributed scorecards with numbers on them that corresponded to the unmarked, but randomly numbered, bags.
At the end of the tasting, everyone scored the wines, and we tabulated the results. Each of our friends identified their wine, explained why it was their favorite, and disclosed the cost, which ranged up to $75 a bottle.
At the conclusion, the clear winner was one of the two we had provided, a $6 bottle of wine from Trader Joe’s! Everyone at the party took a picture of the label so that they could go buy some. A good time was had by all.
Joe Hilberman
Los Angeles, California•
