Planning a Party

The first step is deciding how much wine you will need. For cocktail parties or buffets, plan on about 1 1/2 glasses per person, per hour. Each 750 ml bottle contains about 6 glasses. If you are hosting a more formal wine tasting, the conversation about each wine will slow consumption and you can lower this estimate to 1 glass per person per hour.

For example, 10 guests for 2 hours would consume approximately 30 glasses of wine or 5 bottles. Of course, this depends upon the day of the week, time of day, amount of food, and your guests but it's a good rule of thumb to begin. In general, a dinner party can be expected to consume 2 bottle per person over the entire meal.

For less formal gatherings, or to stretch your wine budget, consider making your own punch or wine coolers. A sweet or semi-dry Ohio fruit wine with a little club soda and a fruit or mint garnish makes for a memorable night. You could always create a classic Sangria by mixing cut-up fresh fruit, dry red or white Ohio wine, club soda or lemon-lime soda and pouring over ice into a tall glass (keep the crystal in the cabinet).

Invent your own wine mash up with an Ohio sparkling wine and fruit nectar or crushed fruit. Pureed strawberries, peaches or raspberries with a splash of Ohio sparkler make a real treat for you and your guests. The sky is the limit. As with all things wine, the only important rule is "Drink what you like." Yours is the only opinion that matters when it comes to wine enjoyment.

Match the weight of the food with the weight of the wine. Lighter, simpler foods do well with similar wines and vice versa. Sweet or semi-dry wines tame the heat from some spicy ethnic dishes. Beware of high alcohol wines with spicy foods, as the alcohol will accentuate the heat of your dish.

Throw out all of the rules and go your own way into the wonderful world of Ohio wine. We are well passed the time when hard fast rules such as "Red with red, white with white" are obeyed. Have fun and experiment. Your guests will appreciate your ingenuity and enthusiasm for your latest wine selection or creation far more than yet another dinner with the same old wine they've known for years.