Quaff My Bluff Wine Tasting Derby

Published on July 22, 2018

Quaff My Bluff Wine Tasting Derby

“Call My Bluff” was a popular BBC panel game show that ran from 1965 to 2005. The format of the game was straightforward – competing teams gained points by identifying the correct definition of an obscure word after hearing three possible options. Here’s an example from the show:-

Is “Queach” a malicious caricature, a cross between a quince and a peach, or a mini-jungle of mixed vegetation?  

It’s a mini-jungle of mixed vegetation or – in normal speak – a thicket.

Hopefully, you got the right answer and aren’t now feeling like a bit of a thicket! Either way, I hope you’ll agree, when you’ve heard how it works, that my vino version of “Call My Bluff” is a fun filled variation on the classic game. Known as “Quaff My Bluff,” it’s a firm favourite with clients because it involves quite a bit of drinking, a certain amount of skill and lots of good natured competition.

In “Quaff My Bluff”, the currency of the game is wine not words and the aim, for the competing teams, is the correct identification of a succession of wines. The wines are poured blind (hidden in bags) and the teams, having been giving ample time to taste and consider, must decide which of three accounts of the wine is true. Here’s an example from a recent corporate event:-

I’ll appeal to all the Rhône Rangers out there. That’s to say, those who appreciate wines from the Rhône Valley in France.

I believe the Rhône Valley is France’s best value wine region and that I’m a cut above most Rhône wines because I’m comprised entirely of grapes sourced from a single village named Cairanne in the Southern Rhône.

As with most Southern Rhône wines, I’m a blend of different grape varieties. To be precise, I’m made from Grenache, Syrah and Carignan.

I’m a serious, restrained and complex wine with many years ahead of me before I reach my peak. On the nose, I have aromas of cherry and sweet spice. On the palate, I’m fully flavoured with ripe berries, liquorice, chocolate, summer pudding and cinnamon. I’m best enjoyed with red meat dishes or rich stews.

I’m Boutinot ‘La Côte Sauvage’ Cairanne and I cost £ 14.00

Our “Quaff My Bluff” events are particularly popular with companies looking to entertain groups of 20 or more, and over the years we’ve played host to guests from all corners of the globe. Most memorable, was a hugely amusing woman from Japan who, when it was her turn to read a clue, delighted us all by trying on accents appropriate to the wines she was describing. Believe me, in the hilarity stakes, a diminutive Japanese woman’s take on the, imagined, macho patter of a full bodied South African wine takes some beating.

However, there’s isn’t a consensus on favourite “Quaff My Bluff” attendees and if asked, my teenage sons would undoubtedly nominate Yuri, the hungry Russian. Let me explain. More often than not, guests at our “Quaff My Bluff” evenings require a meal and we offer three courses which includes home-made pizzas cooked in our wood fired oven. Anyway, cooking and serving pizzas is pretty hard work, especially when you’re pouring and talking about wine at the same time. So my sons help me out and they couldn’t believe their luck the evening they encountered Yuri and were tipped very generously to make sure the pizzas went straight from the oven to his end of the table.

Ever since then, there have been militant mutterings from the lads about wages and the like. Surely, half a Margherita pizza and the joy of working with their beloved father is more than enough?