IDEA #3: A POKER & WINE EXPERIENCE
 Wine parties are a great way to get people together to learn about and enjoy wine with friends. And now with the growing popularity of poker there is an all-new way to have fun with wine. Poker is no longer just about guys trying to get away from their wives for a night of cards, cheap beer and expensive cigars. Instead poker games are becoming more popular with everyone, including men and women of all ages and skill levels. In fact, the same can be said about wine and its growing popularity as a fun social drink. So, whether you’re a wine genius, a poker wizard, or just the opposite, poker is a great way to bring people together to learn about wine and practice bluffing your friends.
Throwing a wine poker party can be both very fun and informative without getting overly complicated. And even if you don’t know how to play poker it’s not difficult to learn. We’ll begin by covering some basic information about the game, including what’s necessary in order to play, along with a few tips and tricks to improve the game. So if you already know the basic rules of poker then skip ahead to the information on wine and organizing the party. If after reading this you would like to learn more about poker then plenty of additional information can be found on the web. But for now let’s prepare you’re A-game for your next home Wine Poker Party!
1. HOW TO PLAY POKER
2. WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO PLAY
3. WHO TO INVITE TO YOUR PARTY
4. HOW TO PULL OFF YOUR POKER PARTY
5. ADDITIONAL THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
THE GAME
When planning your wine poker party the first thing you’ll need to do is choose what kind of poker to play. Texas Hold’em is by far the most popular poker game today. It’s considered to be the staple where most casino and professional poker play is concerned, including what you see on TV and the World Series of Poker. While the game itself is partially based on luck, as most card games are, Hold’em is the “chess” of poker. While it can be simple to learn and play, it can also take a lifetime to master. So don’t think you’re going to read this and then be ready to hit the professional circuit! A lot of Texas Hold’em is designed to be played strategically, but it can also be a very exciting game, which makes for a more entertaining wine party!
1. HOW TO PLAY
Texas Hold’em is played with a typical 52-card deck. It can be played with as little as two players (going "heads up") or up to eleven players per table. Regular poker hand rankings (what beats what) apply to this game. For example, a flush beats a straight, a straight beats three of a kind, and so on. You can review the hand rankings for poker here, listed in order of strength:
Royal Flush
This is the daddy of all hands and even if you play often, you’ll rarely see one. It's made up of Ace, King, Queen, Jack and 10, all of the same suit (e.g.: spades or hearts).
Straight Flush
While not as magical as the royal straight flush, the straight flush still is a rarity. It’s made up of any five-card sequence of the same suit (e.g.: 8, 9, 10, Jack and Queen of clubs; or 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 of diamonds).
Four of a Kind
Pretty self-explanatory. All four cards of the same value (e.g.: 8, 8, 8, 8; or Queen, Queen, Queen, Queen).
Full House (or “Boat”)
Three of a kind combined with a pair (e.g.: 10, 10, 10 with 6, 6; or King, King, King with 5, 5). To determine if one full house higher ranked then another, first look at the three cards of the same kind. The one that is larger wins. If they both are the same then you'll have to compare the two cards.
Flush
Any five cards of the same suit, but not in sequence (e.g.: 4, 5, 7, 10 and King of spades). If there is more then one in a hand, then the person with the highest card in their hand wins.
Straight
Five cards in sequence, but not in the same suit (e.g.: 7 of clubs, 8 of clubs, 9 of diamonds, 10 of spades and Jack of diamonds). Note that an Ace can play both as a high card or a low card.
Three of a Kind
Three cards of the same value (e.g.: 3, 3, 3; or Jack, Jack, Jack).
Two Pair
Two separate pairs (e.g.: 2, 2, Queen, Queen). When comparing two hands both with two pair then the larger one always wins.
Pair
Two cards of the same value (e.g.: 7, 7).
High Card
The highest card on the table (e.g.: an Ace over a King).
Note: Often times, how you bet is more important than the cards you have.
Now that you know what hands win let’s find out how to get those hands…or at least bluff that you have them! When playing, the typical Hold’em game is broken down into five steps, all of which revolve around the bet. These steps have been intentionally simplified as to not over complicate the article.
Preflop – Starting with the dealer each person is dealt one card and then another, with both cards face down. After everyone receives their pocket/hole cards (the two cards just dealt), the first round of betting occurs. This is where most people end up folding, unless you have the potential for a strong hand…or you’ve drank just enough wine to not care!
Flop – The dealer turns over three cards in the middle of the table (called "the flop"). These arecommunity cards that each of the remaining players can use to create the best hand possible out of 5 cards total. Once again betting occurs. Now’s the time to bet if you’ve got something…or if you don’t take another drink, bet anyway and hope you come out lucky!
Turn – The dealer turns over another card making four community cards. This fourth card is called "the turn" or sometimes "fourth street". Betting occurs again. You should have a pretty solid hand at this point…unless you’ve let the wine dictate things to this point. This is what we call a “wine bluff”!
River – The dealer turns over the fifth and last community card. This is called "the river" or "fifth street". Betting occurs for the last time. So, by this point you should feel pretty confident that the hand is yours…or you’re actually just looking for an excuse to lose all your chips in order to concentrate all efforts on the wine. Because it’s the wine that really matters now!
Showdown – The remaining players in the hand show their cards in order from the person who bet first. Each player uses his two cards, and the five community cards to create the best hand (5 cards total). A player can use any combination, so even if one card from his pocket cards and four of the community cards creates the best hand, that works. When all five of the cards in the community make the best hand then everyone splits the pot. This is called "the board plays". Now is time to celebrate…slam your wine, stand up and pump your fist in the air. You are a Master of Wine Poker!
Note: Any time during the game a player can fold and get out of the hand. All bets will be forfeited at that point…and your friends will think you’re a big sissy.
General Play:
 The rules can very slightly, but we’ll use a simplified version to make things less complicated, allowing for the real focus to be put on the wine itself. Begin the game by designating someone as dealer. That person will distribute the cards clockwise around the table as well as turning over the Flop, Turn and River cards. After the hand is over the person on the dealer’s immediate left will become the new dealer for the next hand.
Instead of messing around with “blinds” (small and large initial payments put up by the two players left of the dealer) we recommend using “antes”. An ante is an initial payment that everyone makes in order to play the hand. The ante should start small but then periodically increase (eg. double every 30 minutes) throughout the game in order to speed up play. This periodic increase of the ante is also a good opportunity to pause and take time to serve and discuss each wine, which we will get into later. Other than that it’s just about working with a good/bad hand and knowing when to bluff, or when someone else is bluffing you!
2. WHAT YOU’LL NEED
To play a game of Texas Hold’em you will need the following items:
A Table – You don’t need an actual poker table with green felt to play the game. Your normal kitchen or dining room table will do. But if you would prefer the real thing, poker tables or tabletops can be rented locally or purchased online to give your party a more professional feel.
52-Card Deck – Provide at least two standard decks of cards for each table (in the case of a multiple table game). If you would like to get creative there are Suited
Washington Wine Playing Cards
 available for purchase from our online store.
Automated Card Shuffler – This is not required but definitely comes in very handy in order to keep up the flow of the game.
Chips – A good rule of thumb is to have approximately 80-100 chips per person. So if your poker party will include 5 people then we recommend a set of at least 500 chips. Poker chips can be purchased separately online or as a set, which includes chips, a couple decks and dice, all in a handy aluminum case,. We recommend getting 11.5g composite chips due to their affordability and professional feel.
2-11 Players – This is the min and max number of players that can play poker at one table. If you have more than 11 players another table will be necessary.
Because of the growing popularity of poker many of these items should be available from local retailers. However, one of our favorite online resources for poker supplies and information is www.PokerShopping.com.
YOUR PARTY
Now that you’ve learned how the game of poker is played and established what gaming supplies you’ll need, let’s take a look at organizing your party.
3. WHO TO INVITE
Who to invite to your wine poker party is completely up to you. But, obviously they should have some interest in wine and desire to play poker. Previous poker experience should not be required, depending on the seriousness of the game, but having someone on hand that knows the rules and how to play poker is always good. That way your guests can walk away not only learning about wine but also the game of poker itself.
Invite a reasonable number of people based on the size of your house and amount of playing/tasting table space you’ll have available. Remember that no more than 11 people should be placed at each table. A more manageable number is usually 6 to 8 per table, especially when there will be wine glasses around (Note: Wine tumblers usually work the best in order to avoid untimely spills).
Formal invites are a good idea. Use them to layout some preliminary guidelines for the night including the wine, buy-in amount for the game and any other rules or information that might be necessary. You can either send out invites via paper notes, email or we recommend using evite.com, a very handy FREE online invitation service.
4. HOW TO PULL IT OFF
Now it’s time to focus on the important part of the evening – the wine. You may be asking yourself, “how exactly will the wine and poker go together?” Well, this can be done in a couple different ways, or any combination in-between. Below you’ll find two examples representing each end of the spectrum from casual to well-planned. We’ll leave it up you to determine which combination of things will work best for your party.
Casual Option:
Bring a few people together to play poker and drink wine. That’s it! Don’t worry about organizing any kind of formal tasting or wine education, just have each person in the game bring a bottle of wine to drink throughout the game. This is better served for small groups 3-6 people who already know how to play poker.
Well-Planned Option:
Invite a group of people, 5 or more, for a night of poker and wine education. Each person should be instructed to bring a bottle of wine within a certain price range. $15 to $30 usually works pretty well. Have them research the wine and be prepared to talk about it during the game, including the wine’s varietal, growing region, winery and/or winemaker.
Upon arrival at the party each guest should hand over their bottle of wine to the host, along with their buy-in for the game. A buy-in is the amount of money that you initially exchange for your stack of chips. In this party scenario you will not be playing for money but instead wine. So, the buy-in money collected by the host will be put toward the final prizes, as well as to help pay for any additional food or beverage costs. A few select bottles of premium wine, or wine accessories, usually makes for some pretty good prizes. Your buy-in for this event is $20, with a chip breakdown as follows:
White: $.05 per chip x 40 chips = $2
Red/Blue: $.10 per chip x 30 chips = $3
Green: $.25 per chip x 20 = $5
Black: $1 per chip x 10 chips = $10
Note: If you would prefer to play for the money and/or have the bottle prizes be worth more then you can always increase your buy-in.
Before play begins open at least one bottle of wine for every 6 people and poor your guests a 4 oz (approximately) glass. For each bottle of wine opened the person who brought that particular bottle should talk about the wine. Begin play while continuing your discussion about the wine, including flavors and/or aromas, finish and likes/dislikes. Periodically stop every 30 minutes or so to open up some more wine and continue your discussion. With each stop don’t forget to increase your predetermined ante (see above). An increasing ante should make the game short enough so that it doesn’t drag on. Hopefully you’ll have tried most of the wine by the time the game comes to an end.
As people lose all of their chips and fall out of the game make sure to include them on the periodic wine tasting. Once the game is over and a champion is crowned, the host of the party should present the top finishers with their prize. A good idea for prizes are higher cost wines, above what you asked your guests to bring, or hard to find premium wines. As a rule of thumb it is good to offer one prize for every 3 players, so if your party has 6 people then the top two finishers would each claim a prize, with the best prize going to the winner. The cost of these prizes should be covered by everyone’s initial buy-in.
5. ADDITIONAL THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
Now that you have a good idea as to how you’ll organize your party there are just a few additional things to keep in mind:
Food – Of course any good wine party needs some kind of food. Whether you decide to have casual munchies on hand or serve heavy appetizers, just remember that everything should be easy to handle finger foods. You don’t want a bunch of plates scattered around taking up space on your poker table. The key to food at any poker party is to keep it simple.
Music – Poker is a game of concentration and nerves so you won’t want to have music that is too distracting. Also, you won’t want to talk over loud music while discussing each wine. Some good background music at a low volume will accompany the party nicely.
Other Distractions – Try to keep any additional distractions to a minimum while playing. Don’t have the TV going or a computer game on that might draw people from the table. This just slows down the game. Also, cigars have long been a staple of successful poker nights, but unless you’re not worried about tasting the wine and keeping things very casual then don’t smoke. Even if people were to smoke outside the smell on their clothing would severely mask the aromas of the wine.
Keep the Game Short – The structure that we have laid out with periodically increasing antes (or blinds if you choose to use them) should keep the game relatively short. But, if things do end up running a little long then be prepared to end the game early, divvying up the prizes based on each player’s chip stack. At that point you can focus on the wine/party.
In the end, just have fun! Don’t take the game to seriously or invite people that will. This is one reason why playing for prizes is better than money. Poker is a fun game but if someone starts getting worked up over a bad draw or a disappointing flop then the vibe can become negative very quickly. Keep the mood light and focus on the wine as opposed to who’s winning or loosing.
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