Planning a retail wine tasting: what to put in the brief
Bring the wines, venue arrangements and responsibilities into one clear brief before planning your retail tasting event.
In this article
To plan a wine tasting in a shop, start with its purpose, timing, wines and customer arrangements. The brief should explain the assignment clearly enough to prepare a quotation. This template from Nadwine is for wine shop managers, retailers and brands planning an event in France. Adapt it to your space, customers and team.
State what the event should help customers do
You might be introducing a new range, explaining an appellation, supporting a seasonal promotion or helping customers discover selected wines. Choose one priority. “Taste wine on Saturday” leaves many decisions open. “Introduce these three wines to customers and help them choose a bottle for their meal” gives preparation a clear direction.
Explain the scope too. Will the host work at a dedicated station or move around the wine section? Is the event for one brand or several producers? Who handles sales and payment? Agree with the store team how tasting, advice and commercial tasks will be divided.
Describe your customers and how they will join
A drop-in tasting and a booked workshop need different arrangements. At a drop-in station, customers may arrive halfway through a presentation and stay for just a few minutes. In a workshop, one group follows a shared programme. Describe the format you want and the space available for customers to stop.
- The date, event hours and access times before and afterwards.
- The exact location, customer circulation and storage space.
- Your expected audience: regular customers, passing visitors or a booked group.
- The languages needed, including any English-speaking customers.
- The on-site contact and the person authorised to make decisions during the event.
Nadine Rosier hosts in French and English. If you need both languages, mention this in your enquiry alongside the event format. The preparation and arrangements can then be planned for the customers you expect.
Prepare the wine list and stock together
Send a short, precise list with the producer, cuvée, appellation, colour, vintage, bottle size and retail price. Include the producer’s technical sheets and the commercial information you want presented. If a similar bottle has a different vintage, check the details rather than treating it as an automatic substitute.
Distinguish the bottles available for tasting from those available to buy. Explain who can authorise opening another bottle, where reserve stock is kept and which wine to offer if a reference runs out. If there is a promotion, provide its exact terms and dates.
Allocate equipment and set-up tasks
Review the tasting station with the person who will welcome the host. Equipment listed as available in the shop needs to be easy to find and ready at the agreed time. Assign each task to a person, including clearing the station when the customers have left.
| What to prepare | What the brief should allocate |
|---|---|
| Bottles and reserve stock | Supply, transport, opening bottles and replenishment. |
| Tasting station | Table, glasses, water, spittoons and consumables. |
| Service | Chilled storage, access to water and cleaning. |
| Display | Visible prices, wine sheets and approved materials. |
| Customer arrangements | Location, access, store instructions and an available contact. |
| End of the event | Stock check, opened bottles, waste and clearing away. |
Discuss any food, extra furniture and venue-specific constraints at this stage. Ask the shop to share the conditions that apply to welcoming customers and offering tastings on its premises. The quotation can then reflect the resources actually planned for the event.
Agree on a report that fits your aim
Decide what feedback you need before the event. A short report could cover the questions customers asked, wines they requested, any stock problems and practical points to improve. We recommend recording concrete observations rather than relying on a general impression that the day went well.
If you want to track sales, agree on the period, wines and data the shop will provide. Sales recorded during the event do not, on their own, establish the effect of the tasting. A clear reporting plan is more useful than a result promised before the conditions of the assignment are understood.
Your ready-to-complete brief
- Our main aim is: [aim].
- The event is at [address] on [date], from [time] to [time], with access from [time].
- We plan a [drop-in tasting or booked workshop] for [customers], in [language].
- The wines are [list]; technical sheets, prices and stock information are attached.
- The shop will provide [equipment]; the host is asked to provide [items to confirm].
- The on-site contact is [name and role]; the feedback required is [format].
- Our proposed budget is [amount]; travel and expenses need to be confirmed.
Nadwine is based in Belcodène, with a priority focus on Marseille, Aix-en-Provence and the wider Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region. Events elsewhere in France can be discussed through a tailored quotation. Send your completed brief and questions to develop the scope, schedule and arrangements for your event.
Ready to plan?
