Guidelines for Hosting Wine Tasting Events

1. General recruitment for participants should be limited to seniors only (i.e., via listserves, emails, flyers, etc.). Juniors who are 21 may participate. Advertising cannot be targeted to students under 21.
   
2. Participants must pre-register. A list of approved participants should be provided to Julie Lyzinski in advance of the event so that birthdates can be checked with the Registrar’s Office.
   
3. Participants must bring appropriate identification (Driver’s License, Passport, state-issued ID) with them to the event to be double-checked against the approved list. A Penn ID card is not sufficient.
   
4. Abundant food and water must be served during the event. Efforts should be made to pair wine with appropriate food selections. Bread or crackers should be served as well. Ideally, water should be provided in individual bottles at the place of each participant.
   
5. The amount of alcohol provided should not exceed the limit of one standard glass (4 oz.) of wine per hour. For example, if four different wines are to be tasted in one hour, no more than one ounce of each wine should be poured for each participant. If four wines will be tasted in two hours, no more than two ounces of each wine should be poured for each participant.
   
6. The wine expert should be well qualified. The wine expert and the sponsoring organization should make every effort to cultivate an educational and cultural atmosphere for the event.
   
7. The wine expert should be in control of the pouring of wine. Participants should not be allowed to pour their own wine. A University Approved Bartender can be used for on-campus wine tasting events (contact Julie Lyzinski for the list: lyzinski@upenn.edu).
   
8. The wine expert cannot “sell” wine to the organization. Therefore, the wine expert should provide a list of preferred wines to the organization leadership. The organization leadership will then purchase the specified wines from a state store. Student organization funds cannot be used to purchase alcohol. Therefore, students may “pass the hat” to collect money for the purchase of wine or each student may purchase a designated bottle of wine from the state store.
   
9. Event hosts should be aware of risks associated with consumption of alcohol. Hosts should monitor the consumption of alcohol by guests and should take appropriate action if any guest displays signs of intoxication.
   
10. Remaining wine must be disposed of properly.

Questions should be directed to Julie Lyzinski, Interim Director of the Office of Alcohol & Other Drug Program Initiatives, 215.573.3525 or lyzinski@upenn.edu