Chelmsford, Essex and this one was a bit different. End of year team thank you, but instead of doing the usual big Christmas party, Tom, who is the Managing Director of his accountancy firm, decided to do something a bit more personal for his team.
Twelve of them in total, mix of ages, mix of personalities, all people who spend most of their time being fairly professional with each other. And the setting was their own office, just after hours. Desks pushed back, pizzas ordered in, and the team had put together their own cheese and charcuterie boards. Straight away it felt relaxed. No corporate feel to it at all.
Tom kept the brief simple. Four reds, four whites, just pick good wines and make it a proper experience. He didn’t want anything overcomplicated, just something that showed he’d actually thought about it and wanted to do something different for the team.
When everyone arrived, it had that slightly unsure start you sometimes get with work groups. People chatting in small pockets, not quite sure how it’s going to go. But once the first glasses were poured and we got going, it loosened up quickly.
The format does the work for you. People start comparing what they’re tasting, backing their opinions, disagreeing with each other, and suddenly it’s not work anymore. It’s just a group of people having a good time.
About halfway through we ran a blind tasting round, and this is where it really kicked off.
One of the younger members of the team, Olivia, had spent the first part of the evening saying she didn’t really drink wine. Wasn’t that into it, just there for the night. Then she absolutely nailed the blind tasting. Got it spot on and won the round outright.
The reaction from the rest of the team was massive. Proper laughter, people shouting, bit of disbelief. Tom said afterwards it was the most he’d heard the office laugh all year.
From that point on, everyone was fully into it. More competitive, more relaxed, just enjoying it. The pizza and the DIY cheese boards helped as well. It kept everything informal. People could eat when they wanted, move around, not stuck in seats like a formal dinner.
By the end of the night, Tom said it was the best team event he’d ever organised, which says a lot considering he wasn’t even sure at the start if a wine tasting would work in an office.
The following week he got in touch to order cases of wine for a few members of the team as Christmas gifts, and he’s already asked about doing it again next year.
If you’re thinking about doing something different for your team, find out more about hosting a wine tasting in Chelmsford.
