In today’s busy culture, who has the time and energy necessary to plan an elaborate dinner party?  Culinary educator Dina Cheney, recognizing the need for a 21st century way to entertain at home, has come up with an alternative that’s fast, easy, and fun—the tasting party.  Melding the luscious experience of a wine tasting with the casual ambiance of a book club, Dina presents the next generation in at-home entertaining in her first book, Tasting Club: Gathering Together to Share and Savor Your Favorite Tastes.

Tasting Club takes the principle behind a wine tasting nine steps further and features step-by-step instructions for hosting 10 different types of tastings: wine, chocolate, tea, honey, balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, cheese, apples, beer and cured meats.  In the first chapter, Dina explains her unique concept of “deep tasting,” opening up the palate by slowly savoring a food or drink in a structured fashion.  As tasters use the grids in each of the 10 tasting chapters to record the appearance, aroma, flavor, texture, and finish of their samples, the conversation soon open up to comments like, “Did that piece of dark chocolate taste like dirt to you?” and “That cheese smelled like ammonia!” Tasting Club also includes easy-to-read classification grids with background information on each food and drink category.

Just like book clubs, a tasting party, or regularly scheduled tasting club meetings, provides a wonderful reason for people to gather together and have a great time.  Each chapter features uncomplicated recipes for suggested accompaniments, but you can always throw a successful tasting party without cooking and with minimal clean up.  Best of all, there’s a tasting party for every budget, from inexpensive apple tastings to high-end balsamic vinegar tastings.

Look to Tasting Club by Dina Cheney for more great ideas on tasting parties!