AmericanWinery.com

We are still building our holiday traditions here at AmericanWinery.com, the current dilemma is whether or not to hold a White Elephant gift exchange.  Although most people understand the purpose of the game, many hate getting stuck with a horrible gift.

To get a little more comfortable with the idea of this type of exchange, I decided to explore its roots and shed some light on the controversial White Elephant.

Image via Ryan McCullah

By definition, White Elephant “refers to a gift whose cost exceeds it’s usefulness.”  This is important to remember, the intent of this game is not to get a gift you’d really like to have because even if you do, it will most likely get stolen and spoil your mood.  The game takes its rules from the once popular Yankee Gift Swap.  Some people argue that you can open a gift and then trade it away, but today, most people insist that when it’s your turn, you can only choose a new gift, or a gift that has already been opened.  If someone takes your opened gift you can choose another.

While gag gifts are fun, why not create our own Christmas tradition with a few friends and some different rules?  I call it Wine Elephant.

1. Set a price range  -  ie:  $20 and under or $35-$50 (you could even insist on reds or whites, sparkling, and desserts)
2. Everybody (or each couple) brings a great bottle of wine – in a sealed wine gift bag
3. Draw numbers to decide who goes first
4. Each subsequent turn can either steal an already opened wine, or open a new bottle.  (No choosing your own wine!)
5. After the bottle has exchanged hands two times, it’s frozen.  (The third person with the wine gets to keep it.)
6. After everyone has had a turn, number 1 gets one more chance to trade their gift (if they are unhappy with theirs).
7. Everyone’s special bottle is theirs to keep!

The tasting set-up.

Jeff mentioned in his Wine Tasting Traditions post that we at AmericanWinery.com partake in a weekly tradition known affectionately around the office as “Tasting Tuesday.” Every Tuesday at 4:15, a group of AW Staffers gather to taste wine and expand our palates.

We were recently treated to a blind Syrah tasting hosted by our marketing director, Denise Slattery. Denise is also one of the winemakers for Trio Vintners, so she really knows her stuff.

We were given very simple, but strict, instructions.

1. Smell through
2. Taste through
3. Take notes
4. No talking*

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Via Crystal Bradley

There are a number of wine tasting traditions that happen both on and offline.

On the third Thursday of every month we have Gary Vaynerchuck’s appropriately titled Third Thirsty Thursday where you grab a bottle and a group of friends and taste your wines together.  There is the College Kid Crew, frequent participators and lurkers of Gary V’s wine program.  Here at AmericanWinery.com we have Tuesday Tasting’s where we rate and review wines which, obviously, take place each Tuesday.

So what about you?  What wine tasting traditions do you have or participate in?