BYO or not?

First, decide whether your party will be a BYO affair or you'll be providing the drinks. If it's BYO, try to be clear on what guests should bring – name a wine colour, variety or theme. If you're providing the wine, do your research. Go to tastings at bottle shops or note the name of a wine you enjoyed at a restaurant, bar or friend's house.

To save time and money, head to bulk-buy specialists like Dan Murphy's or a trusted online source such as http://www.thewinesociety.com.au.

Setting the menu

Next, decide what dishes you're serving and which wines complement them. Australia's leading sommelier, est. restaurant's Franck Moreau, recommends these combinations: pair pinot gris with Asian-style dishes; dry riesling with sashimi; a cool-climate chardonnay with poultry; or a pinot noir with light meats and dark fish (such as tuna). For an international flavour, try grenache with barbecued meats, and sangiovese with Italian pastas. Zesty whites go well with fish.

Choose a theme

Try to set a theme for your party, and build your drinks selection around it – for example, a Spanish fiesta featuring sangria, or a formal do which showcases nothing but bubbles. Try the gold medal-winning Yellowglen Perle.

Serving

Make sure you have enough glasses for everyone – there's nothing worse than fine wine served in plastic tumblers. Try a second-hand shop to source mismatched glasses – not only are they cheap, but you won't mind if they break. Look out for odd colours and sizes, such as '20s-style champagne bowl glasses. Alternatively, look up a glass hire service. Vintage Cellars drops off, picks up and does the washing-up.

Preparing

If you're serving a variety of wines, it helps to group them by varietal. Often, guests are left fumbling around ice-filled tubs searching out the elusive sauvignon blanc. Consider chilling or presenting like-minded bottles in separate, colour-coded storage boxes.

Drinks party etiquette

Once the guests begin to arrive, start pouring, and always serve the best stuff first. Your guests will be so impressed with the first glass, they probably won't realise you’ve moved on to the cheaper stuff later.

Be adventurous

Parties are a great place to experiment with new varietals, regions and wines. To encourage the adventure, serve guests a flight (or selection) of wine. Put out three glasses, with a small serving of different but like-minded wines in each, then you can compare a particular varietal by year or region. For example, for a chardonnay flight, each glass would feature a chardonnay from Chablis (France), Margaret River (Western Australia) and the Napa Valley (US). The flight provides a talking point, as well as a memorable way to try new wines.