This party is great because all of the guests can enjoy learning about wine and cheese. You can also personalize the party by featuring wine and cheese from a particular region, for example Italy, Germany or California.

When preparing for the event, consider purchasing wine glasses that are on the bride's registry. Make wine glass charms and give the guests a set as a favor when they leave. You can also purchase small mini-bottles of wine or champagne to share with guests.

If you live close to wine country, consider hosting the event at a winery. Other good location ideas are a restaurant with a wine cellar, a friend who has a large wine cellar in their house, or a beautiful garden.

The Wine and Cheese Tasting
Select a variety of wine, usually three reds, three whites and a dessert wine to finish.

Create a tasting card that tells your guests the type of wine, the vineyard, the year and a brief description of the wine. This is usually found on the wine bottle's label.

For the wine tasting, follow the pattern for white wines first (sweet to dry), then move on to red wine (light to full-bodied). For beginners, liken the "body" of the wine to the various kinds of milk - skim (light), whole milk (medium) and cream (full-bodied).

Your guests will taste each wine and enjoy the smells, flavors and color of the wine. The color of white wine will be various degrees of pale to yellow gold. Red wine will range from dark pink to dark purple. The wine should not be brownish in color, as that may indicate oxidation.

The wine should smell like wine and wine that is in good condition. If many attending your party are new to wine tasting, they should be guided to look for a smell that is not vinegary or musty. It should be pleasant smelling.

Then have guests try the wine as they sample the accompanying cheese, noting any flavor differences.

Give guests bread between each wine to help cleanse their pallets.

Finish with the sweet dessert wine, which will taste incredible when paired with a slice of cheesecake.

Recommended Cheese Pairings
Chardonnay with Baked Brie
Riesling with Gouda
Gewurztraminer with Swiss

Italian Chianti with Gruyere
Zinfandel with Muenster
Cabernet Sauvingnon with Blue Cheese

Muscat with Cheesecake

Other Tips
You'll also need an area to discard leftover wine from the guest glasses and water to rinse glasses with before the next pour.