Ah, direct sales parties. We’ve all been invited to one (or fifteen). We’ve all uttered the obligatory, “Yay! It’ll be so much fun…” while secretly promising ourselves not to purchase anything only to find, four hours later, that we’re handing over our credit card for a necklace that’s worth a quarter of the price.
I am no stranger to direct sales parties. I’ve bought jewelry, makeup and facial cleanser. I’ve been harassed by vitamin-pushers who swear that my skin will glow if only I’ll take a different supplement. I’ve seen (clothed) demonstrations of sex toys and passed around ointment that “brings out your natural pheromones to attract the opposite sex.”
I’ve sworn off direct sales parties.
So naturally, and with very little convincing, I hosted a WineShop at Home tasting last month and invited all of my friends.
No One Needs Convincing When It’s Wine
There’s a difference between throwing a makeup/jewelry/facial cleanser/TupperWare party and a wine party. The difference goes a little something like this:
Scenario 1
Me: Hey, [Friend’s Name], want to come over next week for a jewelry party?
Friend: …Is it one of those parties where they sell you stuff?
Me: Yeah.
Friend: …um, well, maybe, I mean, it depends on the which day because I think my cat needs to have surgery…
Scenario 2
Me: Hey, [Friend’s Name], want to come over next week for a wine tasting?
Friend: YES. Can I buy it if I like it?
There’s something deeply satisfying about knowing that you’re hosting a party that people actually want to attend. When wine is involved – especially high-end, quality wine that demands to be “tasted” because it’s so fancy – people want to show up.
In fact, one of the biggest mistakes I made with this party was that I naively invited too many people. Conventional wedding wisdom says to expect roughly 85% of your guests to turn up. In this case, I also had to factor in three things: I live in Los Angeles, this wasn’t in fact a wedding, and most of my friends are actors – a spontaneous bunch to say the least. I estimated that less than 50% would turn up.
Panic ensued when one person after the other streamed through my front door – one even bringing her own wine glass with her first initial engraved on it – ready to swirl, sip and slosh.
Thank God I had spent the day scrubbing the house.
In the end, we had 15 people attend and my living room was cozy. With all the chatting, laughing and drinking, I’m sure the neighbors were jealous (or at least annoyed at our ebullience).
My First Introduction to McKenna
Diane Nozik (“my wine lady” as I came to call her when I told people about the party) expertly led us through a series of wines. We tasted, we discussed, we squeezed lime into our blush. Somehow, none of the wine was spilled on my artisan Target carpet. When drinking wine at a tasting, it seems everyone becomes all the more respectable than in regular life.
I liked all the wines, but the moment Diane’s assistant, Chat, poured the McKenna 2014 California Sauvignon Blanc into my glass I knew she was the one. McKenna had something special about her: a clarity, a smoothness… an affordable price point. I loved her. So I winked at my fiancé (who was already smitten with the Petit Cadeau Semi-Seco) and made a note on my order form.
We were both lost in the lovey-fuzzy feeling that comes over you when you sip the finest wines. Maybe it was the alcohol. Maybe it was McKenna herself who had me in her clutches. Who’s to say? I was on my own lustrous wine journey through the great vineyards of Napa Valley in my own living room, and I was in love with a wonderful McKenna.
At the end of the night, I ordered two wines: the McKenna Sauvignon Blanc and the McKenna Trilogy. When everyone had left, we were amazed that the house was still clean. Even actors, a rowdy, sing-song, precarious group, seem to become their most refined selves when presented with the opportunity to officially taste wine.
The next day, as I eagerly waited for my McKennas to arrive in the post, I emailed Diane:
“I have another group of friends,” I wrote. “Will you be back in October?”
She said yes.
Betty Kaufman says
What a great write up. It motivates me to ask one of my hosts to do the same. Thanks!