Frequently Asked Questions
“Can you run tastings with Social Distancing?”
Yes, we have lots of experience of working with corporate and private clients, and venues, to ensure an event can run with appropriate social distancing. We are also able to run events via Zoom, for which we provide identical wines shipped to participants. For more information see Online Tastings.
“Do you provide everything for the tasting?”
Yes, we bring everything needed, from spotless, professional tasting glasses, through to blind bottle tasting covers, aroma challenge packs, tasting notes, quiz sheets, pens and all the necessary bits and pieces. You don’t need to set up, clear up, or wash up anything.
“Will it be like a lecture?”
Definitely not! Our wine tastings are really relaxed and entertaining as well as informative. There’s always a lot of laughter as people pit their wits against everyone else, and indulge in great wines. It’s all very interactive.
“How long do the tastings last?”
Up to about 2 hours, but we can make it shorter (or longer) if you like. Whatever fits in with your plans.
“Where can I have a wine tasting?”
Wherever you like – we do them anywhere. At your home, in your office, a restaurant, hotel, office, boat, garden – the choice is yours. We love running events in clients’ offices because it helps ensure a good level of attendance, it makes life easy for attendees – and of course it saves the client money! But not every company has a meeting room or space of suitable size, and a good offsite venue can add to an overall experience. Please don’t hesitate to contact us for advice: we can advise you on how to choose a venue, and can recommend specific venues in London to suit different requirements, but we ask clients to book directly with the venue.
“How many people can attend?”
We can design events to suit any number. Large corporate functions of 100 or more are no problem, though we often have groups of between 25-50. Private parties can involve far smaller numbers – we will work with you to create an event that everyone will enjoy.
“Do you sell wine?”
Taste of the Grape is not a wine merchant. We specialise in the tasting and the entertainment and we source the wine we use in tastings through our sister company Tim Syrad Wines, so if someone really loves a wine at one of our tastings we can arrange for them to buy some.
“What about food?”
For events involving food and wine matching we can provide cheese and biscuits, even chocolate! When food is a bigger part of the event, we work with our clients and their caterers to agree food menus to complement our wines, or suitable canapés to be served before or after the event.
“How much does it all cost?”
Prices for corporate events start from £600 + VAT, depending on numbers, wines and any other specific requirements. Travel costs may be charged for locations more than 40 miles from central London. Private events and online events are best quoted for on an individual basis. See our page on pricing and venues.
We’ll always try to accommodate you and fit into your budget, so give us a call or email us and we’ll see what we can sort out.
“What are your wines like?”
We have access to just about every wine on sale in the UK, and many that aren’t widely available. For every event we ensure we present an interesting selection of top quality wines, relevant to the event topic. Most of our events include wines at ‘entry level’ prices, under £10 retail and some seriously top class wines, with prices over £50 retail, enabling people to experience wines they might never otherwise try.
“Will there be enough wine?”
We agree the quantity of wine to be served at the event with the client. In general we find up to half a bottle per person is a good guide, and we believe our events show it’s better to drink less wine of higher quality than loads of cheap stuff. We understand the difficulty of predicting numbers of people on the night so we are happy to agree a minimum amount that we will serve at the start, and to charge for additional bottles to be opened if required.
“Can you run online tastings?”
Yes, we run events via Zoom, for which we provide identical wines shipped to participants, in time for an event enjoyed together. For more information see Online Tastings.