How to Coordinate a Vodka Tasting Event
By Mark S. Baker
How to Coordinate a Vodka Tasting Eventthumbnail Vodkas are distilled from a number of different products, including potatoes, wheat and corn.
Coming up with a theme for a cocktail party can be difficult. Most cocktail parties either have no theme or have a theme that seems straight out of the 1970s, such as playing board games or charades. A theme that involves all of your guests will be much more popular, such as hosting a vodka-tasting party. There have been a number of new brands of vodkas that have hit the liquor store shelves in recent years, many of them flavored. A vodka-tasting party gives your guests a chance to sample these new vodkas and decide which ones they like and don’t like, without the expense of buying them on their own.
Topic To Coordinate a Vodka Tasting Event:
- Food Buffet
- Dinner Party
To Coordinate a Vodka Tasting Event Difficulty:
- Moderately Easy
To Coordinate a Vodka Tasting Event You’ll Need:
- Vodka
- Glass decanters
- Disposable cups
- Taste-test forms
- Pencils or pens
- Appetizers
- Bottled water
- Containers
To Coordinate a Vodka Tasting Event Instructions:
- Choose a number of different vodkas for your tasting event. Choose between moderately priced and expensive vodkas, as well as different flavored vodkas. Allow for approximately 15 servings in every 750-milliliter bottle of vodka, and make sure that you have enough variety for your guests to be able to sample each vodka at least once.
- Decant the vodka into glass pitchers and place the pitchers into the refrigerator to chill for about an hour prior to the event. Because some brands of vodka are packaged in instantly recognizable bottle, decanting the vodka keeps the vodka’s identity hidden. Keep a list of which vodkas are in which pitchers.
- Print up tasting forms for your guests to fill out. Label each one with a letter or number that correspond to what section the vodka samples will be in when set out. Create categories such as taste, mouth feel, appearance and aftertaste. Set up a scoring system, such as “1″ for a poor score and “5″ for a very high score.
- Arrange a table to set up disposable cups filled with a shot of vodka — 1 1/2 ounces. Set the cups in rows or sections for each individual vodka. Label each row or section with a number or letter that corresponds with tasting forms that your guests will fill out, and with your own list of the vodkas. Place the taste-test forms, with a number of pencils or pens, in front of each section.
- Make appetizers available for your guests to snack on before, during and after the tasting. Choose mild-flavored appetizers with limited seasonings, such as chips and dips, so the flavors do not impede on the flavors of the vodka.
- Have plenty of bottled water on hand for your guests to cleanse their palates with between tastings. Consider setting up containers for guests to spit out vodka to keep your guests from becoming too drunk.
- Add up the scores from your guests’ forms according to your list, and declare a taste-test winner.