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April 16, 2008 - Muscat Wine

Muscat Wine For Your Reading Pleasure

Wine Tasting Fundraiser

Looking for tips on organizing a wine-tasting fundraiser? Here are some ideas on organizing your fundraising event in order to maximize your proceeds.

Obviously, a wine-tasting event needs wine experts, so begin by seeking suitable merchant partnerships based not only on expertise, but also access to the best wines. After all, you have to be able to provide numerous bottles of expensive wine and there's no sense in paying anything near retail price.

Partner with a wine merchant or distributor who can not only help with supplying wine and expert advice, but can also help sell advance tickets to your event.

Organization Tips
Getting plenty of advance publicity is a must. Take the time to put together a press release and get the word out to local media outlets such as tv and radio stations.

Be sure to offer tickets through not only your organization, but also through participating merchants and other groups who support your cause.

It never hurts to have another nonprofit group plugging your fundraising event to their supporters as well. Strike an agreement to do the same thing for their fundraiser.

You will need a suitable place for your wine tasting fundraiser such as a reception hall or scenic outdoor setting. Arrange tables in a layout to suit the space and leave plenty of room for access to each table.

Experts can describe each tasting while wearing a lapel microphone and visiting each table. Use volunteers to bring a bottle of each vintage to all the tables prior to their discussion and have them handle the pouring.

To add a festive flair, consider providing live music with a string quartet or jazz group.

Profit Tips
There are many additional ways to raise funds at your wine tasting. One is to conduct both silent auctions and live auctions for rare wines and wine-related merchandise.

Run your silent auctions from an easy to reach spot such as the check-in table and always do a last call for bids. With live auctions of expensive wines, consider using a professional auctioneer in order to maximize bid prices.

Talk to your merchant partners about ways where both of you can profit such as offering gift certificates to their stores or special case buys on recommended wines.

Look for tie-ins with other merchants who offer related products such as wine glasses, gourmet food items, or travel trips to wine country.

For really large events, provide valet parking services and raise a few extra dollars.

Additional Event Fundraising
Auctions are an additional way to maximize revenue at your wine tasting event. You can offer bottles of fine wines via silent auction or conduct a live auction.

Raffle tickets are another great way to raise additional funds. They are a great way to offering an inexpensive chance at winning an expensive prize. Sometimes, you can even raise more money buy raffling off an item than by auctioning it to the highest bidder.

With a good-sized crowd, raffle off multiple items. You can use the approach where one fairly pricey ticket gives you a shot at multiple prizes. With a high-priced single raffle ticket being sold, you draw from the same pool for multiple winners.

Another approach is to keep the ticket price low and encourage people to buy multiple tickets. This way, the chance that an individual ticket will win is much lower, but people will often spend a greater amount on the lower-priced tickets.

And of course, a raffle allows you to sell tickets to people who can't make the event but would still like to participate in the fun.

Closing Tips
For a successful wine tasting, be sure to allow yourself enough lead time to successfully publicize and organize your fundraiser event. Get the maximum possible turnout by making tickets available at a discount for advance purchases and at a higher price at the door.

If your location is not well-known, be sure to provide directions on flyers wherever tickets are sold. Print a contact number on the tickets for any last-minute questions.

Do everything you can to make the night memorable. Decorate your location appropriately, provide live music and dancing, use a dedicated announcer, and serve plenty of unusual wines to compare.

Using a local media personality as a host is another great way to ensure a large turnout. It's best to route such requests through the program director of their employer.

Good luck with your wine tasting fundraiser!

About the Author

Kimberly Reynolds writes about fundraising and ideas on having a wine tasting fundraiser event on her website. Find hundreds of fundraising ideas on her website.

Muscat Wine and More

Residential Wine Cellars

Wine has become a popular beverage with many Americans, and is sold almost everywhere. This is because it is studied consistently for its wide variety...

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Muscat Wine Products we recommend

Moro Cuvee Barrique

Wow!!! I have never tasted a wine like this. "Moro" is a rare red coral from the Caribbean. Rudolf Geil has selected this beautiful creation of nature to describe his own specialty. This is a blend of Dornfelder, Dunkelfelder (rare variety), and Spatburgunder (P. noir). Tons of dark, ripe fruit, which has then been aged in new French oak barriques. The wine was bottled with a reasonably high amount of residual fruit. This reminds me of a fine Italian 'Recioto di Amarone', with its sensual texture and aromas of ginger, cloves, and other exotic spices. This wine is destined to become another Rudolf Geil "legend"! MOH02 MOH02

Price: 39.99 USD

Headlines on Muscat Wine

Greenway goes wet; Saratoga stays dry (Richmond Register)

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 09:14:29 PDT
By narrow margins, one Richmond precinct voted Tuesday to allow alcohol sales, while another voted to remain dry.The outcome leaves only two dry precincts in the city.The Greenway precinct went wet by a four-vote margin, 31-27. The precinct contains 535 registered voters, 61 of whom signed the petition calling for the referendum. Only 58 people made it to the polls, three fewer than signed the ...

2003 Moulin Lagrezette (round 2)

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 10:03:07 PDT
It is always fun to re-taste a wine after a period of time to see how cellar age and fading memory combine for a new experience. Nearly 14 months ago I tasted the 2003 Moulin Lagrezette, and it appears time has been good to this rather inexpensive wine from Cahors (the second wine of Chateau Lagrezette). Rather simple and austere at first, this brooding wine took a little time to open up - leading with meaty and cheesy aromas, later revealing smoke, mint, dark berry fruit and some "green" notes

Australia Travel Log: Day Four

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 10:44:00 PDT
Yippee! The work part is over! I felt really good about my presentation yesterday. I spend too much time thinking about presenting and stress myself out. I should have relaxed a little, but then that wouldn't have been me, would it have? Yeah, definitely feel like the weight is lifted. Kevin and Trevor put on an excellent conference. I'd do it again, if they ever asked me back. So yesterday was mostly hanging in my hotel room working through my presentation, then giving me presentation, then t

Malbec Martini, Anyone?

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 10:58:00 PDT
Malbec Martini, Anyone? Lovers of the Argentine wine now have a stronger tipple. There’s a new vodka on the block, and it traces its roots to Argentina, where a Hungarian American team is producing the world’s first single-grape vodka, Primo Vodka. According to a Financial Times article, “Smoother and more fragrant than many Polish or Russian potato or grain-based counterparts, Primo Vodka made an auspicious debut, winning a silver medal at the International Wine and Spirits Competition in En

Tisbury tie-vote on allowing alcohol sales (Cape Cod Times)

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:05:41 PDT
Voters in last night's Tisbury annual election were tied 690 to 690 whether to change the local "dry" law and allow the sale of beer and wine in restaurants and inns in town.

Sneaky Tofu Pasta Surprise

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:14:48 PDT
I mentioned yesterday that my almost nine-year-old daughter FrogGirl decided to become a pescetarian recently. I’m not sure why she doesn’t want to be a full vegetarian; I believe it is because she loves fried calamari, salmon, and California rolls! I always suspected this child had vegetarian leanings as she’s been a great lover of all fruits and veggies since she was old enough to eat solid food, and she’s adventurous about eating soups, stews, beans, and whole grains as well. When she me

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2008 - Dry Wine

A Featured Dry Wine Article

Wine Making Tips from Andre: Fruit Wines and Fruit Winemaking ?Part 1 of 2

Once again we have advent of the summer season in Western New York and Ontario and while some home winemakers limit their endeavors to the grape, others, including myself, anxiously await the arrival of the fresh fruit. Once dismissed out of hand by some as inferior and often quaintly referred to as ?country? wines, fruit wines are enjoying a surge in popularity never seen before, embraced by amateur and professional vintners alike.

And why shouldn?t they? Our region has the good fortune to possess a burgeoning agribusiness in fruit other than grapes and, as many fruit farmers have discovered (as indicated by the surge in farm winery licenses), wine returns a much more appealing margin than fruit alone. For those who are still on the fence about the virtues of fruit wine, may I suggest that you take a day to tour some of the local wine trails and try them.

For me, a family outing to the local fruit farms, especially a ?U-Pick,? was always gleefully anticipated as a summertime ritual. The delicious baked goods and the jellies and jams made from the fruit could be enjoyed into the cold winter months. That is, of course, if they lasted that long.

We still make and love all these things, but taking the extra time and expense to produce wine from the strawberries, cherries, raspberries, blueberries, peaches, and other fruits adds another dimension that will challenge and hone your skills. This is because, unlike grapes (especially those varieties which one may regularly vint year after year), fruits, berries, and other feedstock used to make these wines have less predictable characteristics in their pH, acid, and sugar. Therefore, careful testing and attention to making the proper adjustments is important to producing a good fruit wine.

There is an abundance of websites that have good basic fruit wine recipes, and even recipes to make wine from vegetables and herbs. Simply plug ?fruit wine recipes? into a search engine.

Now for another reason why home winemakers should have a second look at fruit wines. Today, people are more health-conscious than ever. Almost every day for the past decade, starting with ?The French Paradox,? we?ve been bombarded with one clinical study after another that touts the health benefits of drinking red wine in moderation.

Well, surprise! The same health-promoting compounds found in Pinot Noir are found abundantly in fruits and berries. The polyphenol pigments that impart color to the fruit are known collectively as anthocyanins, a family of powerful antioxidants. The compound found in Pinot Noir called resveratrol is produced in greater amounts in this varietal as an antifungal because the skin of the grape is thin and susceptible to splitting. Resveratrol has been studied for its ability to block cell inflammation and oxidative stress related to arthritis and other degenerative diseases, as well as cancer treatment and prevention. *

Blackberries, mulberries, and especially blueberries are rich in powerful antioxidants like resveratrol. Blueberries also contain phytosterol and pterostilbene, which have recently been shown to be useful in lowering bad (LDL) cholesterol, preventing heart disease, and protecting the body against certain cancers.

None of these beneficial compounds are lost in the winemaking process, so why not raise a glass of fruit wine and drink to your health?

*Joseph, J.A., Shukitt-Hale B., Denisova, N.A. Bielinski D., Martin, A., McEwen, J.J., and Bickford, P.C. "Reversal of Age-Related Declines in the Neuronal Signal Transduction, Cognitive, and Motor Behavioral Deficits with Blueberry, Spinach, or Strawberry Dietary Supplementation," Journal of Neuroscience, September 15, 1999, Vol. 19, No. 18. pp. 8114-8121.]

Winemaking Tips from Ande Pazik of www.bubbleflo.com

E-mail Contact: dkceo@bubbleflo.com

Author: Andre Pazik of www.bubbleflo.com

Short Review on Dry Wine

The Basics Of Wine Tasting

Wine tasting is an assessment of a wine's quality. It's not just about taste but also covers aroma, color, the way it feels in one's mouth and how lon...

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Dunn Vineyards

"The formidable 2001 Californian Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain boasts an inky/purple color to the rim, and smells like blackberry liquer intermixed with acacia flowers. With extraordinary intensity, power, richness, and purity, it looks to be one of the greatest efforts made by Randy Dunn. Since none of the Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignons (first released in 1979) are close to full maturity, this 2001 dry red wine will probably need 8-10 years of cellaring; it should last for 3-4 decades. An interesting point of trivia is that Randy Dunn's production of approximately 4,000 cases of Napa and Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon per year has not changed since the winery's inception ... somewhat refreshing in view of the American cultural tendency to think that "bigger is better". RP - 96 (Subject to Availability) DUHCM01 DUHCM01

Price: 357.99 USD

Dry Wine in the news

Which Wines Go Best with Raw Oysters?

Wed, 26 Sep 2007 04:27:47 PDT
Said James Oliver Cury, "I got a chance to taste-test 21 wines, blind, with two types of oysters. I went in thinking I'd know exactly what I was tasting and that I'd pick the minerally, flinty, dry, slightly lemony, Old-World whites—Sauvignon Blancs and Chardonnays in particular. That's the classic pairing: Champagne, Chablis, and..."

Wine Bar Lands at JFK

Wed, 26 Sep 2007 06:22:02 PDT
Story about the airport's first wine bar, called Vino Volo. For $9 the "Taste of New York" flight includes Millbrook Vineyard's lively chardonnay, Proprietor's Reserve 2005, the floral Herman Weimer's semi-dry riesling, Finger Lakes 2005, and a cherry-bright Bedell merlot, North Fork 2005.

Today's Wine Trivia - "Off-Dry"

Wed, 07 Nov 2007 11:25:16 PST
Question: What does the term "Off-Dry" mean?

Japanese Spa Offers Beaujolais Nouveau Swimming (PIC)

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 06:09:43 PST
While the Japanese may be saying a toast to the Beaujolais Nouveau wine’s availability with the traditional "Konpai!" or "dry glass," keeping their glasses dry would prove difficult as they bathed in a sea of the red wine, the U.K.'s Telegraph says.

Rudi Wiest German Dry Wine Tour in Chicago November 2007

Sat, 17 Nov 2007 11:56:29 PST
Vinoverve attends tasting of German Dry Wines including Pinot Noir

Chicken Stroganoff (Continental): recipes from around the world

Thu, 22 Nov 2007 07:48:11 PST
Chef: Niru GuptaIngredients: 250 gm chicken breasts-boneless, cubed 1/2 cup white wine 2 tbsp butter 1 tsp oil 2 tbsp refined flour 1 cup chicken stock salt to taste 1/4 tsp black pepper 1 cup sour cream 200 gm dried noodles 1 tbsp butterMethod: Pierce the chicken pieces with a fork, on all sides and marinate in the wine

Beyond the Romance of Wine - Dry farning

Wed, 05 Dec 2007 06:51:14 PST
Dry farming is one of those wine geek issues, that most people could not care less about but obsessives occasionally seize on without really understanding anything about it. It’s like fining and filtering – words that are thrown around in the war for consumer support.

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Labels: Cabernet Wine