The Real Housewives of Charlotte

Given the success of Wine Night 1.0, the OG girls and I decided to bring it to some more local gals. The invite got extended to about 6 lovely ladies. 

For the occasion, we slightly evolved the game.

Each attendee would be responsible for a wine and a dish, taking the full burden off of the host.

We workshopped the wine varietals and the menu over a group text, which would soon be named “The Real Housewives of Charlotte” (cringe, I know. But sue me, I love me some bravo). 

We would then each submit our tasting notes, 3 real + 2 fake, directly to the host for them to either print or hand write to place on a surface in their home. Usually a coffee table or kitchen island. 

As predicted, the game was a hit among the new participants – so much so that we made it a monthly appointment with rotating hosts and assigned a theme per month. This keeps the menu interesting and the vibes high.

The Real Housewives of Charlotte and Wine Night have taught me something about people. 

When you give people a sense of belonging with an equal investment in the success of an event, it tears down any reluctance to speak up or speak out. It levels the playing field for the outgoing, the shy, the timid, the boisterous, the cliques, the whomever. 

This fosters an environment for sharing, kindness and gassing each other up.

Wine Night gives each participant “the floor” to introduce their wine and their dish each round. 

The wine might be something someone may have discovered on vacation or something they just liked the label at Harris Teeter. The dish might be a sacred family recipe or something someone was just dying for an excuse to give a try.

“The floor” or “The Presentation” is my personal favorite part. You might learn something about someone, what they like or how they think. You may inadvertently discover where they vacation, what new restaurant they’ve experienced or something about their family, which in turn lends itself to more vibrant conversations. 

Like I mentioned before: there’s something really special here.