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Free Wine

Written By: Romany Reagan on Monday, April 7, 2008

Romany's guide to getting free vino the right way.

I'm sure a lot of you worldly, outgoing wine people have encountered a chance to host an event. Whether it be a convention of sorts for work or an event to raise charity: where you have people, you must have wine and yummy edibles. The yummy edibles your cousin Franz might be able to whip up on the cheap, but you've probably set aside quite a bit of your budget for the wine. However for an affair on a shoestring (even if it's a chubby shoestring) you want the money to go towards your organization or charity, not the bill for the party.

What a lot of people don't know is donations for events are not purely favors. People have trouble asking for favors from strangers or asking for a "hand out." Also, people have a fear of rejection -- even the written kind! So the first thing I'd like to point out to you is this is not a favor or a hand out, it is a mutual exchange for mutual benefit.

Having now worked both sides of the donation request scenario, I have a fairly good idea how it feels to be on either end. I worked at the Horton Grand Theatre, which housed Triple Espresso, in San Diego for over five years -- after over a 10-year run, the show sadly now has closed. During that time I fielded the many donation requests we got, which were upwards of 100 a month. During that time I learned what I preferred from requesters -- and what got your letter in the trash.

I am currently working the Tishman International Bulgarian Film Festival and was recently brought on board to help organize their premiere gala. The first thing I noticed was they did not have a wine or alcohol sponsor. This is a large, prestigious, international event co-hosted by the Bulgaria America Cultural Exchange and the Bulgarian Ministry of Culture. They didn't have a sponsor? If any event deserves free booze it's this one. Wineries should be lining up and AUDITIONING to have a chance to be in their program, but alas, the powers that be had bigger issues on which they were focusing. Therefore, I made it my job.

Having a background on the other end helped me immensely in understanding how these things work, and they do! One of the cardinal rules of requests is TIME. I knew I was pushing the envelope on my own rule for this one, thus I was unfortunately unable to get a sponsor lined up in time. But it might not be too late for your event! So here are…

Romany's Cardinal Rules for Gettin' Free Vino (or tchotchke of your choice):

1. TIME. You must make your request on average at least two months before your event. The reason for the two-month notice is two-fold. Yes, it may seem a simple thing to just pick up your requested donation, but you're not taking into account the person handling this on the other end is sifting through many letters, most likely has other full-time duties as well, and only gets to these letters once a week -- if that! There were many letters at Triple Espresso whose event had come and gone by the time I read their request. Giving them a two-month window is not only realistic, but also respectful of the person's time on the other end. It lends them the importance they feel they are due as the benefactor.

2. WRITTEN. Your request must be in writing via either mail or fax. Sometimes email is acceptable, but most places prefer a hard copy on letterhead. This is better for their records and lets them know you are a real human being with a real event, not a lush with an idea.

3. EXCHANGE. In your request clearly state what you will be offering in return. This is the part where you make it clear you are not asking for a hand out. If your event has any sort of turn out at all, that's a lot of publicity for the winery. In exchange for about four to six cases for an event, they should get their logo in your program and posters and pamphlets at the pouring area. If the winery is small, or for some other reason doesn't have the ability to donate cases, have them donate gift certificates for tastings, tours and wine in a gift basket, which can then be auctioned at your event. Auctions are great for Mom and Pop requests; they can put together something beautiful for one person, instead of trying to satisfy 200 plus people. All of which works best if you also follow Rule 4...

4. GO LOCAL. Not only has it become practically your civic duty to do so in these warming times, but you're also going to get a much better response from smaller wineries that really want their name out. Plus, local wineries will benefit in multiple ways from this exchange. Not only will they get more direct wine sales from patrons that have been exposed to and enjoyed their product, but if they're nearby, patrons will come up to visit for tastings, dinner (if they offer it) and if the place is lovely, as most wineries are, they may plan to host THEIR next event there.

So fear not, go forth and ask! Good luck with your next event, and if it's in the New York metropolitan area, I do accept all invitations.

Cheers!

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