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Five great wine games for Christmas

Need some entertainment ideas for the festive period? Try out one of these great games for wine lovers...

Wine IQ

Wine IQ

Who has the highest Wine IQ? This wine quiz has 400 multiple choice questions on the cards, which should see you through a few games.

In the second round, questions are then read out with only a few of the words, making this more than your regular q&a game.

Teams score positive or negative IQ points and scores are marked on the ‘IQ charts’. Although this is a game for teams, rules can also be adapted for groups of just two to three players.

Questions include, ‘Which country has the highest rate of wine consumption per capita?’, and, ‘Why is there no Chianti in the cellar of the Elysée Palace?’.

The wine Game

The wine game

Credit: Laurence King

Next up on this list of wine games is one simply called ‘the wine game’. It involves two decks of cards – one for red wines and one for white wines – both beautifully illustrated. They cover the major wine-producing regions, plus a few lesser-known ones.

Almost like the ‘Happy Families’ card game, the aim is to get four cards of a ‘wine family’, such as from the same country or region. The winner is the one with the most ‘families’ at the end.

The accompanying booklet gives descriptions of wines and regions, helping you learn more as you play.

Somm Blinders

Somm blinders wine game

Credit: Somm

Of the wine games listed here, this is the one that involves blind tasting wine and it is from the makers of the SOMM films.

A reference list is provided to help you buy the right bottles, although the game’s inventors advise pouring small measures and using spittoons.

The main aim is to collect cards that correctly describe the wine, although its identity is hidden to everyone except the dealer for that round. Things are kept interesting with elements like ‘Steal cards’, which can be used to take a random card from another player.

Choose from the original deck, or versions focused on white or red wines. This could be a good game for anyone who has tasting exams coming up. It’s also another game with beautiful illustrations, which you can also buy as prints or other gifts. 

World of Wine trivia game

World of Wine Game

You could be a fount of wine knowledge after playing this trivia game. There are more than 320 cards, with questions on  wine styles, key grapes and regions, plus other interesting wine facts.

If you get through all of the questions, you can buy an additional card pack with even more questions. Test your knowledge with some of its questions in our quiz. 

Corks

Corks wine game

It’s not a wine game as such, and wine doesn’t even have to be mentioned, but Corks is described as ‘fast and furious’ and looks more than capable of adding a bit of fun to your afternoon or evening.

Players must try to get a set of four matching cork cards, and then can grab a cork from the middle of the table. Other players must also then try to take a cork from the middle, but there won’t be enough for everyone…


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