What did I just get myself into?
A charity auction started my adventures in wine pairing recipes. My mother asked if I could make a few appetizers for a wine pairing party she was contributing as a silent auction item for her Rotary group. Of course, I agreed (mom + charity = moral obligation). I thought it would like a small Mystery party I had cooked for her a while back.
I was at this auction, and to my surprise, she had a sign-up sheet for at least 20 spots. It was described as Wine Tasting paired with “(my name in bold here)’s famous appetizers”. Um, okay? I went back to my table and had another glass of wine.
Goodness, how do I live up to the hype?
Twenty guests, two hosts, and a wine “sommelier”, myself plus “just in case” a few more heads. We rounded it to prepare for 30 people with 6 tasting courses. I had never before cooked so much for so many at once.
Luckily, my earlier professional career delved into a lot of event management, project management, and creating marketing materials. Aside from my personal love of cooking, I leaned heavily on my professional skill set to figure out how to make this all come together.
The Wine Party Was the Theme
Even though we’ve done themed parties in the past (Murder Mystery), this one has not theme or occasion. The whole idea of having a Wine Tasting was new for the group, so therefore it was the theme of the party.
So we focused on making a formal menu and serving six courses, not an open buffet style as we’ve did for the mystery dinners. Some nice wine-themed cocktail napkins and just having some fresh flowers around to decorate was the decor focus.
Menu Strategy
My plan of attack was to do what I knew how to make really well, throw in a couple “easy” dishes. I also strategized to make ahead anything that I could utilizing my freezer quite a bit.
First Course Strategy: A small bite, but with a wow factor because we were serving real Champagne. Something I could put on a tray and set out as guests arrived.
Solution: created a Salmon Mousse Crunch Blini (blini, smoked salmon mousse, marinated cucumber matchsticks, potato chip crumbs).
Second Course Strategy: a really easy dish to prep and serve. Something fresh and light to go with a white wine.
Solution: a Mexi Street Corn Salad. Leaned on Trader Joe’s fire roasted corn as a base and added a lot of fresh ingredients that go on mexican street corn. Quick to assemble and serve.
Third Course Strategy: after protein and veg, a more carb focused dish to pair with a Sauvignon Blanc. Leaned on pre-made ingredients plus some make ahead ingredients so not a lot of fuss to make.
Solution: Caramelized Onion and Fig Jam Tart was a great flavor combo. Bought premade puff pastry sheets and fig jam. The rest I could make ahead or just prep in minutes. Bake, Cut, Serve.
Fourth Course Strategy: transition to red wine pairing and another protein. As the next dish would take a lot of focus to put together, needed something prepped ahead and simple to assemble and serve.
Solution: Mini Chicken Meatballs with BBQ sauce served on skewers to keep them tidy on a plate. Made well ahead and fully cooked, just re-heated in BBQ sauce, which was store bought with some added spices to pair with the wine.
Fifth Course Strategy: requested to do pork tenderloin and I’ve cook it a lot, so it was in my comfort zone. But it needed to be served as a small plate as well as a complete course. It was also paired with a red, so needed to have depth of flavor and some kick.
Solution: Pork Tenderloin Sliders with Bacon Onion Jam leaned on the bacon to add smoky depth. Plus I added some peppery arugula to give it some bite. Even though I made the jam ahead of time, I cooked the pork during the event as I didn’t want to risk dryness through reheating.
Sixth Course Strategy: final and dessert. Something easy, chocolate, and quick to serve was the goal.
Solution: Flourless Chocolate Torte with Coffee Whip hit all the markers. It wasn’t hard to make, made the night before and just cut and serve with a dollop of Coffee infused Whipped Cream. Simple yet indulgent.
Grazing Tables: we set up a table with food nibbles like cheese, crackers, veg & dip platters in case people got hungry between courses. But we discovered it wasn’t touched much, as six courses of “small plates” was a lot of food.
No whining about the wine.
Alas, I didn’t get to choose or taste the wine ahead of time for this wine pairing party. Seems a miss in hind sight. I did get tasting notes from my brother, who has a long career in wine distribution, thus was volunteered as the sommelier (same mom + charity equation applies to him). It wasn’t ideal, but tasting notes are a good place to start.
My mother and brother came up with a wine list to find tasty wines that kept within an overall budget – a mix of 3 whites and 3 reds. We started with whites and with each course progressed through the richer wines.
Once we were at the event, I sampled some of the wines. It was then that I made the decision to swap the 2nd and 3rd course whites. It wasn’t a huge deal, but this is why you should always taste the wine with the food prior to finalizing the menu – no matter what other people’s wine notes state.
Prep & Planning
Circling back to my event management experience, I knew that only way I was gong to make this work with with a lot prep and planning. For this event, I was focusing on the cooking and how I was going to manage it all.
With so much going on in my work and home life, I needed to set a calendar and schedule to make the time to get the cooking done. Not only to cook things, but all the shopping trips.
Once I had general menu in mind, I broke down each dish into stages of prep. And then scheduled on a calendar what I would make when. Often there are part of a recipe that can be made well in advance if stored well. Your freezer is your friend.
Example prep table
| Element | Week+ Ahead | 2-3 Days Prior | Day Prior | Day of Event |
| dish element | buy ing | prep & freeze | thaw | reheat |
| dish element | make/freeze | – | – | prep |
After a first pass, if too much was piling up on the day before or the day of the event, I took a good hard look at what I could possible do earlier.
I also looked at optimizing any steps across recipes. For example, I had two dishes with caramelized onions. So I did one large batch and split it for the two dishes. Anytime I could combine steps across recipes (where it would save me time) I did.
Lots of Lists
My first big step was creating a list of all the ingredients needed for all the recipes. From making it to plating it.
Once I had this master list – I broke down when I would be getting the ingredient base on:
- shelf stable or able to store for longer periods (like pasta, jarred jam)
- what prep stage was it needed for (weeks head, 2-3 days ahead)
- how fresh it needed to be
Then I scheduled three main shopping trips:
Early shopping: bulk of shelf stable/storable ingredients, plus early make ahead prep. Also ordering hard-to find ingredient that may take a while to ship.
Week-ahead shopping: buying what was needed to prep anything making the week of and anything that could be refrigerated for a few days
Day before shopping: picking up fresh ingredients, especially produce used fresh and for garnishes. (Also good for seafood items).
I also started up lists for things I thought I needed to bring with me and general supplies. This is good to have if you aren’t hosting the party of your own home. As I was in someone else’s house that I was unfamiliar with, I brought a lot of my own cooking items. It was also a good list to have to check packing everything out.
An event to repeat
All in all, it was a very successful event. Guests left sated, money was raised, and several folks asked about my catering company (which I don’t have).
I was utterly exhausted by the end. However, I made some mental notes that night on what to do differently next time. Because I figured I would eventually be asked to do some sort of cooking thing again.
And I was right. On the heels of that event, they started talking about doing another one. Then we talked about doing it every year, and so we have (more or less).
Three Big Lessons
After each event, I do a review to check on what went well and what didn’t. These are little knowledge nuggets based on what the heck I’d do differently next time.
Foot Fails
This is a painful lesson you will want to avoid. Our host has a large, lovely kitchen. Italian themed with marble countertops, two ovens, and giant island in the middle. And a hard-as-brick tiled floors.
My god, I was not prepared to be on my feet for that long on that floor. My feet hurt so much by the end of the night I was almost in tears. I could barely walk the next day.
Wine Pairing Party Tip: care for your feet that you will be on all day. I now wear super cushy shoes and bring over my super cushy kitchen mats. I also take sit-down breaks throughout the night.
Cushioned Kitchen Mats: Sky Solutions Anti Fatigue Mat – Cushioned 3/4 Inch Comfort Floor Mats for Kitchen, Office & Garage – Padded Pad for Office – Non Slip Foam Cushion for Standing Desk (20″ x 32″, Black)
Dishing Up Alternatives
Found out our co-host had a gluten intolerance. I put together some alternatives with what I had on hand for her at the time, but it wasn’t great.
Also, one guest didn’t eat pork, another was vegetarian. I didn’t really have alternatives for several dishes for them.
Wine Pairing Party Tip: ask about common food concerns and consider if you will have alternatives (gluten, dairy, nuts, etc).
Knowing my hostess has a gluten issue, I now focus on gluten free dishes. Knowing there are some with specific meat avoidances, I work in vegetarian versions of any meat dish. It still won’t care for everything, but it will care for a lot of possibilities.
Caring for Criticism
It’s a wine pairing party, so people are pretty much judging what they are consuming. You can hear bits of conversation “oh, that’s nice” or “it’s okay, but I like the tart” or even “ugh, no. Just, no.”
It is a bit hard when you’ve put in hours of your life so far and are continuing to cook for everyone, to hear something unflattering about your dishes. But that is how most people approach food. I do it too. Even if I don’t say it out loud, on the inside I’m judging. Oh, yes I definitely am.
If guests have mostly enjoyed it, mostly ate it, and had a good time, that is what matters. So my meatballs were a bit on the salty side, there are worse things. (BTW, I’ve since adjusted the recipe.)
Wine Pairing Party Tip: Take criticisms with a grain of salt, or reduction thereof, learn from it and move on.