Live digital communication has never been so hot right now– and the best thing is, we’re finding that it’s been used to stream just about every event imaginable. What started out as online workouts or business meetings has now spread globally to cover live cooking demonstrations, beauty masterclasses, reiki and energy healing, and even live ‘how to cut your own fringe’ streams!  

The beauty of virtual events is that you can use everything from Facebook Live or Facetime, Instagram Live to Zoom, to watch live content. 

One of the areas we’ve suddenly seen boom when it comes to online events is the food industry. We’ve been inundated lately with fun cooking classes for kids, pasta making, healthy desserts and all kinds. So, with that in mind, why not go ahead with hosting your own virtual wine tasting event for National Wine Day, from the comfort of your own home?  

Hosting a virtual wine tasting event can be a super easy to do from your own home and can actually be one of the most fun ways to make staying in the new going out. Want to have a go at hosting your own? Read on for some tips on how to plan and execute your own virtual tasting session: 

Train Yourself with the Basics 

In an ideal world, you’ll have been to a wine tasting event before or perhaps have hosted on in person. That way, you have an idea of how these events go. However, if you haven’t, do your research first! Watch YouTube videos and read up on wine tasting events that have taken place, and get an idea of how they run.  

Remember that as a host, you’ll be pouring the wine and talking through the bottles, so it’s also beneficial to swot up on your vino knowledge. Start by getting clued up on wine from different regions, the knowledge behind grapes, wine strengths and the different types of flavours and description words that wine connoisseurs use to describe the taste.  

Double check your internet connection! 

Of course, a virtual wine tasting event needs to be flowing the whole time. Any interruptions due to poor wifi or internet connection will completely ruin the virtual event.  

Make sure you fully test the connection beforehand, so you’re confident it won’t play up once your live.  

Offer a wide array of wines 

If you host a virtual wine tasting event with friends and family, you can reach out to them during the week running up to the event and ask them what wine types they prefer. Perhaps they like a good old Argentinian Malbec, or a light and crisp Sauvignon. When you have an idea of what they prefer, you can make sure you try out a selection of wines they usually love (but different brands so it’s sharing something new!). 

If you’re hosting a virtual wine tasting event and opening it up to wider audiences, and people you don’t know, then you have much more freedom. You could try out a selection of whites by different region, then perhaps a number of dessert wines, or even move onto focusing on the wines that go well with certain foods (be prepared to stock up on these foods too, so you can share them on video!).  

Ensure you get everyone’s full attention 

When you’re hosting a wine tasting event via a computer or phone screen, you’re going to need to make sure everyone is giving their full attention. Before the event, email all participants a break down of the agenda. This can run something like: 10 minute introduction to yourself, the wines, and introductions for the people watching, a session on red wines, moving on to rose wine… etc etc. If all else fails, have a bell to hand or a glass to strike with a spoon to alert everyone if they all start talking at once!  

Create a Facebook community 

If you’re looking at running virtual wine tasting events regularly or you’d like to promote certain wines to a engaged audience, look at setting up a Facebook community. Within this, you can post all events, share links to the wines, share food pairing advice, and start to build up a real community group of wine enthusiasts like yourself. It’s such a lot of fun and a great way to bring likeminded wine fans together. 

During these tougher times in the UK right now due to lockdown, virtual events are the way forward. You can reach out to more people by turning your entertainment online, have a giggle, try to make some sales, teach people, and really challenge yourself too! So, are you ready to give it a try?