The detail I changed ten minutes before guests arrived.
Last week I hosted a journalist tasting for around 20 guests at Gemcorp's office in partnership with Rostrum… and ten minutes before anyone arrived, I changed the setup entirely. What I did was small but the difference it made to the event certainly wasn't.
Tom Hughes at Gemcorp was kind enough to share the feedback afterwards: "It was great - feedback from everyone was so good, especially on the way you hosted. I would love to do another in H2."
I've written about the set up change I made on LinkedIn, because I think it applies to almost every client event, however large or small the space. Worth a read if you're planning events for this autumn.
Cook with Michel Roux Jr., and let me take care of the wine
Last month I found myself at Sauce by The Langham, cooking scallops, lamb and a strawberry soufflé alongside Michel Roux Jr. himself. Reader; I cannot cook. And yet by the end of the evening, I had made a three-course Michelin-inspired menu from scratch and sat down to eat every dish I'd prepared, each one paired with a glass of Provence rosé.
It was, genuinely, one of the most memorable evenings I've had in a long time.
And it got me thinking about how well this translates for clients.
The format works for the same reason a great wine tasting does: it gives a group of people something to focus on together. Nobody is standing at a drinks reception wondering what to say. Everyone is slightly out of their comfort zone in the best possible way, laughing, learning, helping each other. The dinner at the end feels like you earned it. The conversation flows easily, because the evening has already done the work.
I'm now able to offer private versions of this experience for corporate groups with the cooking hosted by the Sauce team at The Langham, and the wine pairings hosted by me. Seasonal ingredients where every course is matched to a wine, with a little context on why it works.
It suits client entertainment, leadership evenings, and team celebrations particularly well. If it sounds like it could work for your team or your clients, I'd love to tell you more. Just email me.
Wing Woman Wine Club - Summer Fizz, Prosecco & Spritz Season
The next Wing Woman Wine Club is on Monday 6th July at 7pm, and we're doing something that feels very right for this time of year - Summer Fizz, Prosecco & Spritz Season.
We'll be exploring the differences between Prosecco, Cava and sparkling wines from around the world including one of my absolute favourites, Graham Beck from South Africa, which I think will be a revelation for a lot of people. I'll also share my best supermarket buys for the season and my go-to bottles for Aperol Spritz and summer entertaining.
Before we meet, I'd love to hear from you: what sparkling wine do you reach for most often, and is there a bottle you'd like me to review? Just email me.
You can sign up via Eventbrite, or drop me a message and I'll send a diary invite directly.
Until text time,
Elizabeth
Founder, Elizabeth & Wine
📸 @elizabethwinegirl
Contact:
📞 07850 855818
✉️ elizabeth@elizabethandwine.com
"The wine tasting was genuinely one of the highlights of the day.
We had so many people tell us how much they loved the experience."