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Our final Toast of the Town event this year is this Friday, September 23rd in Miami, and the enthusiasm is off-the-charts! Whether a new attendee or a seasoned veteran, we’ve compiled 10 helpful tips to make your night memorable. Cheers!

10. Arrive early.
When possible, it’s best to give yourself plenty of time to enjoy all of the spectacular wine and food—and beat everyone else to it! Being “fashionably late” will not do you any good. The event begins at 6:00 for VIP ticket holders and 7:00 for Grand ticket holders.

9. Be comfortable.
You will be on your feet for a few hours, tasting wine and food from all corners of the world. The last thing you want ruining a delectable tuna tartare is foot pain. Look nice, but comfort is key.

8. Blaze your own trail.
Groups of people will typically crowd around certain dishes and wines. A kobe beef burger or a 2004 Brunello will surely be popular, but wait for your moment to get a taste. Blaze your own trail to the hamachi with chive oil and return to the kobe beef once everyone has moved on.

7. Be Social.
People from all areas come to Toast of the Town for a chance to taste exotic treats. Why not mix and mingle over some of your favorite dishes? Chat up wineries and restaurateurs as well, they may have their own interesting stories.

6. Make it memorable.
After tasting a multitude of wines, things may start to get fuzzy. Take every opportunity you can to take business cards and menus from restaurants that you particularly enjoy. These will be useful devices in the morning, when you’re trying to recall who made the oyster shooters or which Riesling was your #1 choice. Jot down tasting notes in your booklet for your favorite sips.

5. Be Daring.
It’s a tasting event after all, so taste something new! Go outside of your comfort zone by seeking out unique wines like Gruner Veltliner or maybe a Pinot Noir from Chile. This is a great chance to broaden your horizons, so take advantage of it.

4. Bring A Novice.
One of the joys of wine is being able to share your knowledge with friends so that they may appreciate it as much as you. Use a wine/food tasting event as an opportunity to introduce someone you love to the world of wine.

3. Bring Accessories.
This wine glass holder necklace may look unorthodox, but it can make a world of difference. (Just read the customer reviews.) Rather than juggling a plate and glass, you can be hands-free while enjoying your food. Can’t beat that!

2. Don’t Miss a Thing!
A guide to the Miami event is available for you to download at the bottom of the page here. Preview all the wine and food before Friday and make sure you hit all the tables on your wish list!

1. Be Responsible.
Nobody wants to be remembered as the guy/gal who fell asleep in the guacamole. It’s great to return for more of your favorite wines, but remember that this is a “tasting” event, not a drinking spree.
I’m sure many of you have honed in on your own tricks of the trade. If you have anything to add, please share with the rest of us!

The world of wine storage has seen significant advances over the past few years. One of those advances has been a dramatic increase in the number of smaller Wine Coolers. While variety is the spice of life, it can be tough to navigate through the maze of wine refrigerators and wine cellars, especially for the novice collector.

Selecting a Bottle Count

The most popular question  I come across from people just starting their wine collection is “How much capacity do I need?” Deciding what size unit, or what bottle count, is dependent on many factors, including:

• the amount of space you have
• where in your house you plan to keep it i.e. under-counter or on top of a counter
• how large your collection is and how much you anticipate it growing

If you are planning on keeping it on a counter top, then one of the 12 Bottle Silent Units is the way to go. There are 1 temp and 2 temp options (the 2 temp allows you to serve white wines from the unit), and like all Silent Wine Refrigerators they need around 2-3” clearance in the back, top and sides. You can use a 16 Bottle as a Countertop Unit as well, but standard cabinet height usually makes that a little difficult when taking the clearance into consideration.

If you are going to put your wine cooler under the counter, the silent units can work as well as long as it is set up in a “recessed” fashion and given the same clearance as mentioned above, but a true built-in unit may function a little better. Typically you want to get a unit with at least 25-50% more capacity than the amount of bottles you already have. If I have learned anything over the years helping customers with their wine storage needs it’s that it’s always better to have more capacity available and not need it, than to need more capacity and not have it! Plus if you entertain often or have certain family members that dig into your wine collection at will, it’s advantageous to keep a few extra bottles on hand to oblige.

Long or Short-Term Storage

Another thing to keep in mind is that all of these thermoelectric Silent units are meant for shorter term storage, and to a degree the same goes for the N’Finity units.  So if your goal from the start is to age your wine for the long-term, than you probably want to look at an actual wine cellar, such as a Vinotheque or EuroCave. Because they are created to provide the optimal storage climate for proper long term aging, going with even an entry level, smaller wine cellar unit will be a much smarter investment for your future wine collection.

The bottom line is this; you don’t have to spend a fortune to get a unit that will store your wine properly. But you should be considering how much you are spending on wine to help decide what quality level of unit you should use to store it. If you tend to just keep a couple of cases of $20-50 wine and none of it lasts more than a year or so, than one of the Silent Refrigerators or N’Finity Wine Cellars are perfect. However, if you have even a few top quality wines that you are expecting to last for the long haul, you may want to consider going with a wine cellar worthy of your collection.

As always, if you need any guidance or advice I urge you to contact one of our experienced Wine Storage Consultants at 800-377-3330 for a full consultation.