Wine Lies…
Wine Lies…
Don't panic
4 rounds of wine tasting mixed with copious amounts of deceit, strategy and insane fun.
The basics
The Host prepares the game. Randomly selects a character to be The Liar. Prepares the wine glasses (The Liar gets a different wine). All wine glasses are labeled with a character. Each character also gets a secret task to complete in each round.
The players take a glass. Any glass. At this point only The Host knows who the Liar is. Even the Liar does not know. All players including The Liar read their secret tasks.
The Host starts the game by getting the group to describe their wine. They guide the players, to give them openings to fulfill their tasks, and try to cause chaos where possible.
At the end of each round, players vote for who they think The Liar is AND what the wine is. Win the last round to win the game!
The Host
The Host needs to prepare the wines (best if other guests don't see them). 1 for each round and extra for the Liar*.
Print the character stickers for the glasses. Prepare envelopes and tasks, or use our app to secretly distribute the tasks.
Don't be stingy. Prepare some nibbles!
Welcome your guests, and explain the rules to any new players.
Also… it's a good idea to read up on the wines and countries, so you can be a good host!
* — if you don't want to splurge for extra wines for the Liar, you can serve them wines from different rounds.
How to win
Each round is a chance to find the Liar — the one person tasting a different wine. Use your observation skills, and your tasting skills to flush them out. Whose wine doesn't sound right? Who is uncomfortable or openly disagreeing with the table? Maybe it's you!
Complete the secret task for more voting power, or for protection if you hold the Liar seat.
Survive all four rounds as the Liar or steal the role for yourself if you are a normal player, to win the game!
To steal the role, you must achieve the Perfect Round first! Guess the wine AND the Liar for the Perfect Round and make sure you do it faster than anyone else.
At the end of every round, the Host opens the voting, which is confidential. Tell the group you are voting for The Scientist, but secretly you know it's The Doctor. Play the team game and your own! Because at the end, there can only be one winner!
Strategy
Classic is the full night: extra vote power and Liar shields. Simple keeps every vote at 1. The Host picks one when they set the table.
| What | Score | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Vote | 1 | 1 character — 1 vote. |
| Complete your task | 1.5 | Tip the scales with more power. |
| Liar's vote | 0 | Their vote gets discarded. |
| You skip the task | 0 | The vote is thrown out. The night continues. The Liar is already discarded, so this is for everyone else. |
| Liar completes task | 2 | 2 shield votes, to give them a fighting chance. |
| Liar fails task | 1 | 1 vote against the Liar. |
| Liar's grape shield | 1 | 1 shield vote if they guess the grape of the group. |
| Perfect Round | — | Guess the wine characteristics AND the Liar, to steal the position for yourself. Fastest Perfect Round becomes the new Liar. Perfect Round is more powerful than a vote-out or a funk-out. |
| 4 players | — | Because a Liar can shield themselves, they can survive a unanimous vote with only 4 players, so make sure they fail their task! |
| Vote out | — | When the Liar is voted out, a random new character becomes the Liar. If the vote out happens in the last round, the group wins! |
Be aggressive
Once per game, you can smell something FUNKY. You think you found the Liar AND their secret task? Call them out and their task to expose them!
But get it wrong, and it will cost you and the table! Your vote gets discarded, potentially saving the Liar's ass, and the table loses one Host question from the night's pool of six. The table gets one funky call per round, so be careful.
P.s.: The Liar can neutralize a vote by correctly calling something funky on another player too! Play your strategy right, and you just might survive another round!
Host questions
The table has six prepared Host questions for the whole night — hints about the wine or the Liar. Invoke them when you like. A spent hint is gone.
Do not ask directly what is in the glass. The Host reads the hint the table chooses.
A missed FUNK costs the table one Host question. If you run out, you run out.
Anything else?
No. Only the Host always knows. The Liar has to notice that their glass does not match the table.
Perfect. The Host asks apple or peach, not “describe the wine.” On Casual, a Perfect Round is country plus the Liar.
Not at all. Play the game as you wish. Feel free to change the rules to your liking.
The Host opens it. Some open it right away, some announce it at the end of the round.
Skip it and your vote is thrown out. You do not have to finish it. The Host still opens the vote — the night does not wait.
Every required answer and the Liar are correct. Earliest submission wins a tie.
Yes. Choose Host-only mode.
The Host shares the link or reads out the six-digit table code.
Yes. Print the analog kit and let the Host run the night on paper.
Choose the Host or the app during setup. Reveal the winning character, not the real name.
The game is for people legally allowed to drink alcohol where they play.
Related, not the same. A typical blind tasting gives everyone the same mystery wine and asks for grape or price. In Wine Lies most glasses match, one is different, and secret tasks hide clues. Catching the Liar is the game. Naming the wine is the second payoff.
No. Trivia works without a pour. Wine Lies needs wine in the glass, a Host who does not play, and a table hunting the Liar.
They do not take a seat. They know the wines, the tasks, and the Liar. They may drink along. It is the best job if you like running the night.