Girlfriend Getaways

As CEO of New York City's Swirl Events, Anu Karwa designs home wine tastings for a variety of clients. Here, she shares three ways to transform the ole swirl, sniff, and sip into an evening of discovery.

in vino vacation
To try a travel-themed tasting, select a country or region known for its wine. Create invites by scouring flea markets for vintage postcards of the place, and customize them by dipping the base of a wineglass in red wine and stamping the back. Ask each guest to bring a bottle from the area (coordinating whites, rosés, and reds).

drink in your dream trip
Prefer to globe-trot? Have each guest bring a bottle from her dream travel destination. "You'd be surprised: You can get wine from India, from Egypt, from all over the world," says Karwa. As you open each bottle, ask the guest who brought it to share why that country intrigues her.

grown in the u.s.a.
With vineyards in all 50 states, now is the ideal time to sample domestic vintages. Have each guest bring a bottle from her home state. "I don't know that they'll all taste equally great," Karwa says, laughing. "But it's a fun way to get to know each other better."