Hosting a beer tasting party is such a fun way to add an activity into your gathering! Enjoy tasty brews surrounded by friends and make it a memorable experience for all with these tips.
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Planning your beer tasting party
When it comes to hosting a beer tasting party, you can truly choose your own adventure. It can be as laid back or elaborate as you prefer, following a theme or just for fun.
This kind of party is perfect for summer entertaining, Oktoberfest, or really any occasion for beer lovers. I even hosted a beer-thirty party for my husband’s birthday that was a total hit! The idea is simple: pick a theme, ask guests to bring a six-pack, and taste through them together.
Before you get the party started, you’ll want to consider a few things:
- How many beers to include. Having a nice variety without overwhelming your guests is ideal. I’d shoot for no more than 4-5 different beers and adjust the amount you’re pouring accordingly so nobody is consuming too much at once.
- Whether to do an open tasting or opt for blind instead. A blind tasting means you won’t know what you’re drinking until the end, so you can focus on the taste rather than any potential outside influences. An open tasting will let you see which beer you’re enjoying as you go.
- Decide on a theme or flight structure. If you have a them in mind, you can build your tasting from there. Otherwise, plan out how the beers will flow, starting from the lightest and working your way up to preserve your taste buds.
- Have your guests help. Assign a style of beer, a letter to follow (for example, those with an S name bring a saison) or theme parameters to pick from so they know what kind of 6-pack to bring. This helps you with the cost of entertaining and offers a larger variety of beers.
Beer tasting themes and ideas
You can go as big or small with the theme as you want. Some beer tasting parties I’ve been to are like a casual cookout, sharing tastes throughout the afternoon as everyone hangs out on the patio. Some have been more elaborate, but all of them have been fun!
If you want to do a style flight, that keeps options narrowed down. Consider the season to drive your style — for example, something light like a lager, saison or IPA is great for warmer weather while a stout or porter flight would be better for cool weather gatherings. Each of the beers you choose to serve will fall into the same type of beer, but can have different flavor profiles or breweries to give differentiation.
For those of you that live near a regional or local brewery, you can focus on their beers for the tasting. Choose different beers from their tap list that you think everyone will enjoy and go from there. Since the beers will all be different styles, you’ll have more of a variety than a style flight tasting would. You could do it at the brewery or bring home cans, bottles, growlers or even kegs.
A fun way to taste test is to make it into a blind test with a bracket or scoring sheet. Don’t tell guests what they’re tasting — they should rely on their taste buds to decide which beers they like best. At the end of the tasting, tally the scores or complete the bracket and reveal the beers to find out which one comes out on top.
You can let the season drive the tasting, coming up with a theme based on the timing of your event. Think summer sippers, winter warmers, Oktoberfest, a beer-themed birthday… you get the picture. You’ll want to be sure to give guests good parameters (i.e. bring your favorite fruity summer beer) if you’re asking them to bring the beer so they know what to pick up at the store.
Don’t miss Beer 101 where you can learn more about which bottles to buy.
Setting up your space
Your tasting setup doesn’t have to be fancy! Grab a card table covered with craft paper, set up spots at a kitchen island or set up a station guests can visit while they mingle.
If you’re not doing a blind tasting, you can set out your beer in the order it will be tasted. Light to dark is typical for tastings so your taste buds don’t get overwhelmed. If you’re using one specific style of beer, you can be more flexible in the order.
Don’t forget to have palate cleansers on hand! Water is a must, along with crackers or bread. Having bites in between tastes allows everyone to reset their taste buds and will give you a better sense of what you’re sipping.
For a less formal tasting that has people using the same glass for different beers, make sure they have a place to rinse their glass. If you’re outside, a pitcher of water will work well (you can designate a dumping zone so your plants get a drink, too). For inside events, offer easy access to the sink.
What to serve
Obviously beer will be the star of the show, but having other options available for those who aren’t fans or may want something non-alcoholic is always a good idea. You can find non-alcoholic beer, or craft a mocktail for those who may be underage or choose not to imbibe. The citrus ginger beer mocktail is a good combination of spicy and sweet that is a crowd-pleaser, or try a cucumber mocktail for something more mellow.
Anytime you’re serving alcohol, you’ll want to consider hydration. Water or sparkling water are easy options, or you can set up a hydration station with an infused water that looks impressive (but is totally easy).
A beer cocktail is a fun addition if you want to offer something a little different. Since they use beer as their boozy element, they will fit right in and may be more palatable for some of your guests. You can always end the night with mini beer shots.
Don’t forget the ice! Even though you won’t be adding ice to your beer like you would a cocktail, you’ll want to keep it cool so it has the best flavor. If you’re entertaining outside, ensure you have extra in case things melt too quickly.
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Essential tools & glassware
If you’ve ever had a flight of beers at a brewery, you’ve probably seen the small tasting glasses they use that hold 3-6 ounces of beer. Often these are tulip glasses, which would be a great way to serve at your tasting. However, you can truly use anything you want.
The thing you’ll want to be mindful of is the size of the pour. Depending on your glass, you’ll want to shoot for 2-4 ounces of beer like a true tasting glass would hold. It’s also great to have something on hand to mark glasses so everyone can keep track of their own. You can use wine glass markers *, erasable markers or even permanent markers for plastic cups.
For any tastings where you’re ranking beers, or simply want to keep track of what you’re drinking, provide your guests with scorecards or a place to take notes. You can get my printable here [printable TK] if you want something that’s more formal and ready to go.
Don’t forget your tools! While beers don’t need as many tools as some other cocktails, there are a few beer-related things that help to have on hand. Bottle openers are a big one — probably more than one. There’s nothing worse than having a great bottle of beer ready to enjoy, only to find you can’t open it!
As always for entertaining, you can never have too many napkins. Bonus points if you can find some fun ones that match your theme!
favorite beer glasses
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Food menu
When it comes to beer, it really isn’t fussy. You can lean into salty bar snacks, like chex mix, soft pretzels and beer cheese dip or a charcuterie board (as simple or elaborate as you like), or opt for heartier fare like chicken wings that always hit the spot with a crowd. If you’re working with a theme, you can help craft your menu around it to give guests a more immersive experience.
For a casual affair, try something snackable like chips and salsa. You can go with store-bought to keep things simple or make your own chips to dip into a bowl of blender salsa. The only thing I would avoid is anything overly sweet or spicy at the beginning of the tasting, because that can throw off the taste of the beer itself.
Tips & safety considerations
As with any party, make sure you have some precautions in place to ensure everyone has a good time and can make it home safely.
- Size matters. Keep pours small (2-4 ounces per beer) and limit the number of beers that are being served since even small quantities can sneak up on you. You’ll also want to be mindful of the alcohol content of the beers you’re serving and adjust accordingly.
- Designate drivers. Make sure that everyone has a sober ride home, whether that’s a designated driver, encouraging carpooling or letting them leave their vehicles with you so they can catch a rideshare.
- Hydration is key. Don’t rush your tasting — instead, take a leisurely pace so that everyone can sip some water in between beers.
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