Wine Teasers Wine Game

Wine Teasers is an educational trivia game that teaches people about wine. It is designed for small groups of two or more players and uses questions, answers, and hints to foster wine-related discussion.

Wine Teasers is published by Fine Wine Games, Inc. Two versions have been released. The first version was created and written by Stefan A. Smith, an academic librarian and was released in 2003. In 2007, the first edition was taken off the market when it was replaced by Cork Jester’s Wine Teasers, which was written in partnership with Jennifer Rosen, wine writer and educator.

Cork Jester's Wine Teasers received positive reviews and endorsements from The New York Sun, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Wine Enthusiast Magazine, and others.

Overview

Wine Teasers is a learning game. No alcohol needs to be consumed during play, and no questions encourage alcohol consumption. However, because it is a social learning activity closely related to wine, it is usually played in settings where wine is being consumed. It is used to enhance wine tastings or other gatherings in which wine is a focal point. In addition, people use it for personal reference.

Topics covered in the game include:

• Types of wines, grape varieties, qualities of wines, etc.
• Techniques for drinking, serving, storing, restaurant etiquette, and more.
• Food and wine pairings for at home and at restaurants.
• Humorous, unusual, or quirky wine topics.

The game uses a combination of trivia and other game play elements. One such element is the use of thirty "Bottle Cards," each representing one real-life wine. These cards were sponsored by major wine producers, including Mondavi, Ruffino, Taittinger, and others, and include images of the wine label, descriptions of the wine, food pairings, and tasting notes. These cards form the basis of players' virtual wine cellars, which are an integral part of the game.

Rules

Wine Teasers employs what the creators call “gentle trivia” or “friendly trivia.” Unlike traditional trivia, in which and those with the most knowledge win, Wine Teasers uses trivia as a prop to lead to discussion. It is a non-competitive game that encourages lighthearted interaction rather than one-upmanship. This is accomplished through use of hints and chance. Each question has a hint, which often gives away the answer, and each question has a Cellar Step, which involves chance. Though the game does have winners and losers, all players understand that prior knowledge is not the main determining factor in the game’s outcome.

Rules synopsis for Cork Jester’s Wine Teasers

1. Teams take turns reading questions to each other.
2. If a team can not answer the question on the first try, it gets a hint.
3. If a team answers without using the hint, it advances a little faster than if it had needed the hint.
4. Once a team answers a question correctly, it follows the Cellar Step (each question has its own cellar step).
5. Cellar Steps lead teams to select, exchange, or loot Bottle Cards from the central stack of cards or from other teams’ wine cellars.
6. The first team to collect 6 Bottle Cards (one in each of 6 categories), wins the game.

The original Wine Teasers wine game had similar rules, but used dice instead of Cellar Steps.

Equipment

The Cork Jester’s version of Wine Teasers consists entirely of paper products. It measures 6 x 4 x 1 inches and ways 9 oz. The game parts include:

• Cards that contain 100 questions, each with a hint and discussion point.
• Thirty wine Bottle Cards for team wine cellars. Each card describes a wine, why it would be a good addition to a wine cellar, and includes food/wine pairings.
• Four hint credits (to keep track of if a team needed a hint to answer a question)
• A two-sided quick-start rules card
• A folding complete rules sheet
• A two-sided pronunciation card that includes wine terms used in the game

The original version of Wine Teasers included similar parts as above, but also included dice, which were used instead of cellar steps to provide the element of chance.

References

“ [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3652/is_200510/ai_n15746006 Know your wine?] ” by Steve Cahalan. "La Crosse Tribune". Retrieved on 2008-07-25.

" [http://www.wineaccess.ca/resources/item/cork-jester Cork Jester] " by Stephanie Bourgeois. "Wine Access - Canada’s Wine & Food Magazine". Retrieved on 2008-07-25.

“ [http://www.nysun.com/food-drink/oenophiles-holiday-wish-list/67553/ Urban Vintage] ” by Peter Hellman. "The New York Sun". Retrieved on 2008-07-25.

External Links

[http://www.wineteasers.com Official Wine Teasers web site]

[http://www.corkjester.com Official Jennifer Rosen “Cork Jester” web site]