How to Organize a Wine Tasting Fundraiser
Wine Tasting Events Make Great Fundraisers
Your nonprofit has decided to host or is considering hosting a wine-tasting fundraiser, and you’ve been asked to help plan it. Great – now what? Here we’ve provided some basic guidelines for you to consider as your organization starts organizing and planning your wine tasting event. This information will help keep your planning process on track and make you look like a pro on the day of your charity event.
We cover the following topics:
- Initial Planning and Research
- Assembling Your Event Planning Committee
- Selecting and Negotiating Wine Tasting Locations
- Food Pairings Make the Event
- Online Registration and Promotion for the Charity Wine Event
- Raising Additional Funds for your Charitable Cause
Wine tasting events are popular social and holiday fundraising events. Wine-related events also work well for corporate fundraising. After all, most people love tasting wines! This makes finding participants for the event pretty easy. If event promotion is done well, you will likely attract people outside your donor base purely on the popularity and appeal of wine-tasting events.
Initial Planning and Research for Wine Tasting Fundraisers
The first step in organizing a charity wine tasting event is establishing fundraising goals. Determine how much money you need to raise and estimate costs, as these will undoubtedly influence your planning. Create a fundraising event budget and project plan that outlines your financial goals and roles and responsibilities.
Decide on an initial format for your wine tasting event. Will it be part of a larger charity gala event, or is it a stand-alone fundraiser? Will the wine tasting be an educational event, a blind tasting, or a judged show? Will you have a theme and specialize in red wines for Valentine’s Day events, summer white wines, or champagnes? How will participating vineyards or wine shops have an opportunity to promote their products?
Contact your local Chamber of Commerce to find out if other charity events are taking place in your area on your proposed dates. Oversaturation of too many fundraisers could lead to low attendance and unattainable financial goals. You’ll want to avoid competing against another charity wine-tasting event or large community charity events if at all possible.
Assembling Your Event Planning Committee
Successful fundraising events hinge on the recruitment and action of a strong leadership team. Ideally, your team should be comprised of individuals with diverse skills and talents who share a common interest in the organization’s success. It is also highly suggested that you get knowledgeable donors and board members on your event planning committee. They may not know about fundraising, but they’ve been to other wine tasting events to know what works and doesn’t.
Working smart at this stage of the game requires delegation. Assign a person or team of people to these project areas.
- Wine Connoisseur: Your committee will need at least one wine connoisseur to be your wine expert and assist with bringing in others in the wine industry. Ideally, the wine connoisseur is also connected to wine merchants, vineyards, sommeliers, restaurants, or wine bars in your area. Wine companies and wineries are constantly looking to promote their wines. The wine connoisseur is responsible for working with these businesses and getting them to sign on for the wine tasting event.
- Corporate Sponsorship and Donations: Corporate sponsors are integral to most wine-tasting for charity events. This team should have sales experience and build partnerships to create sponsorship packages that outline benefits and obligations. They will then raise money for your organization by soliciting event sponsorships from local businesses. In-kind donations can also be solicited for wines, printed materials, silent auction items, raffle prizes, wine-related gifts, and more. The sponsorship coordinator or group will want to work closely with the marketing team to fulfill all sponsor obligations (i.e., signage, logo inclusion on printed materials, and thank you plaques).
- Marketing and Public Relations: It may be beneficial to have someone with a communications background for this role. This person will write press releases and pitch story ideas to the media. They will also create print and promotional materials (i.e., flyers, print ads, event posters, etc.) to help spread the word about the wine tasting throughout the community.
- Hospitality and Day of Event Operations: Event managers organize Day of Event logistics, including table or tent rentals, cash boxes, wine-tasting bar rentals, and event signage. They also plan menus and activities and coordinate entertainment such as live music. Having an on-site photographer to take pictures at the event is a nice gesture. Photos add to your post-event recap on your website and newsletter. Great pictures will also help your general fundraising efforts and recruitment for next year’s event.
- Prize Committee: This team is responsible for finding items for goodie bags or wine gifts each guest receives, such as tasteful promotional items. They also work with the sponsorship coordinator to assist with obtaining donated items for fundraising raffles and silent auctions.
- Volunteer Committee: This vital team organizes staff and volunteers for the day of event activities. This should include friendly, outgoing individuals to welcome guests, set up registration tables, prize tables, serve appetizers, drink tickets, sell raffle tickets, and more.
- Judging Panel: Recruit a few volunteers who are knowledgeable of wines to help keep order on the tasting tables and judge contests such as blind tastings or pairings.
Selecting and Negotiating Wine Tasting Locations
A critical step in the planning process of wine tasting events and charity galas is the location selection. Your organization will want to find a desirable private location, such as a country club or vineyard. If your organization is hosting a gala in conjunction with the wine tasting, you will need to have sufficient room for seating. If the event is less formal, it can happen in a tasting room where participants roam around and go to tasting tables.
Forging a strong partnership with a winery or vineyard can help establish a strong foundation for successful wine-tasting charity events. You might also find a restaurant that gives back a percentage to your charity.
Once you’ve identified the location that meets your needs, you’ll want to iron out the details with the staff and proprietors. Putting everything into writing and signing an agreement can alleviate confusion on the day of the wine tasting.
Here are some things you’ll want to include in your contract:
- Date and time: Be flexible, as vineyards may offer discounts for off-season or mid-week wine tasting events. Still, Friday night or Saturday afternoon events will draw the largest crowd.
- Description of wine tasting services: Are you selling one ticket or tickets per tasting? Are you adding a registration fee? How are you managing meal tickets or appetizer prices?
- The number of guests per table: When is the attendee list due? Are there penalties if the estimated number of guests is reduced?
- Total costs: Costs per guest, costs for food, beverage, services, etc., and due dates for deposit and final payment.
- Cancellation: The cancellation terms and weather policy should not be overlooked.
In summary, ensure you are prepared with a list of questions before starting negotiations with a preferred wine-tasting or charity gala location or vineyard. You may want to compare costs and services between a few locations to ensure you get a fair deal and put everything in writing to protect your organization. Most importantly, make sure you feel comfortable with the terms and the vineyard or location staff, as you want to ensure they’ll treat your guests to a great day of hospitality.
Food Pairings Make the Event
Be sure to include food with your wine tasting. You certainly don’t want people leaving after tasting all of your wines without eating anything. Wine and cheese are a classic pairing. Adding fruit, olives, crackers, and bread makes your hors d’oeuvres gourmet. Many charity wine tastings also pair olive oil tastings or wood-fired pizza. Ensure that your venue has a kitchen and can assist with food preparation or will allow you to bring your own hors d’oeuvres, perhaps catered by participating restaurant sponsors.
Here are the favorite food items to pair with a wine tasting event:
- Cheese and olives
- All kinds of fruit
- Crackers and artisan bread
- Pizza or flat-breads
- Chocolates and delicacies
Online Registration and Promotion for Wine Tasting Events
You will undoubtedly want to promote your fundraiser and sell tickets online. DoJiggy provides donor-friendly fundraising websites for managing wine-tasting fundraising events, including functions to:
- Manage secure online ticketing for guests
- Sell sponsorship packages
- Promote sponsors and participating vineyards or businesses on your website
- Add social media sharing links for easy sharing and event promotion
- Sell wine-related products and accept secure online donations
- Offer detailed financial reporting for your event
Raising Additional Funds for your Charitable Cause
One of the most essential considerations in your event planning will be to look at ways to bring in additional revenue. Below are some fundraising ideas to consider as part of your wine tasting planning:
- Reach out to local businesses for charity sponsorships. What a great way to start out on the right financial footing and raise money early in the event planning process. Promoting cash and in-kind sponsorship packages should be easy by hosting a charity gala wine tasting that draws in businesses and influential community members. Sponsorship benefits can be outlined, and packages can be sold on your event ticketing website.
- Host an online auction of fine wines or donated items such as art and antique wine glasses. Add a trip for two to a romantic, wine-country weekend.
- Sell tickets to a Wine Pull Raffle where organizers wrap wine bottles in brown paper. Some are expensive, and some are more low-end wines. Either way, the winners go home with a bottle of wine.
- Sell wine bottles and products related to wine to boost revenues.
- Run a fundraising raffle with wines and wine-related prizes.
- Wine tasting contests add excitement to your tasting and offer an opportunity to win money and prizes. They also allow your organization to raise more money for your cause by collecting participation fees. How about a chef’s competition of hors d’œuvres and wine pairings? And a contest for the best Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, and trendy Rose.
Other Resources for Wine Fundraisers and Tasting Events
We offer 100+ unique fundraising ideas to help your organization earn more money before, at the wine tasting, and after your charity gala event.
DoJiggy provides event planners with a complete set of fundraising resources to help make your charity gala wine tasting successful. Visit our free resources for additional information and sample documents that can easily be modified for your fundraising needs, including checklists, budgets, sample fundraising letters, and more.
