Can You Have a Wine-Tasting Shower?

Les amis du vin shower (pronounced: layz zam mee doo van) literally translates to "the friends of wine." And you don't have to be a connoisseur of the grape to enjoy a good year. Ask your guests to bring two selections of wine -- one to enjoy at the party and one to add to the collection you're establishing for the happy couple.

Think of your les amis du vin shower as an intimate, elegant wine tasting for good friends. Select a timeless invitation, evocative of an elegant, refined mood. If you decide to hold your soiree at home, serve a fresh fruit plate complete with pears, grapes, and the bride's other favorites. Set out boards of chevre, Camembert, Jarlsberg, and other delicious cheeses, accompanied by crostini, focaccia, and other rustic breads. If you like, try your hand at a savory cheesecake -- the dessert you eat as an entree. For a quick and easy delicacy, bake a wheel of Brie. Sit back, relax, and enjoy a sumptuous afternoon with good friends.