Corkage Week: Some Dos and Don’ts…
These tips are based on bringing a bottle to a restaurant that serves alcohol and has its own wine list (and do not apply necessarily to bringing wine to restaurants without a license):
Do take a special bottle - special doesn’t mean expensive, but it should be something you’ve put thought into.
Do call ahead or look online to confirm that the restaurant doesn’t sell the same bottle you’re planning on bringing.
Do ask the waiter or sommelier if they’d like to taste the wine.
Do consider ordering a glass off the wine list (bubbly perhaps?) as a gesture of good faith (but this is not necessary).
Don’t bring a bottle that’s on the restaurant’s wine list (yes, a repeat of the first “do” above!).
Don’t bring the cheapest bottle you can find.
Insulting to the restaurant, and not worth it to you from a savings perspective ($15 corkage on a $5 bottle retail means you’re paying at least 500% mark-up from wholesale, greater than most wine lists charge.
Don’t bring too many bottles with you!
Many restaurants have a 2 bottle limit for corkage…if you want to bring a wine tasting group into a restaurant for a special occasion and bring more, call ahead to discuss with the wine director and they’ll likely figure out an arrangement that works for both your group and the restaurant.
Don’t feel awkward, or feel like you have to somehow justify bringing your own. You’ll be paying in many cases for the right, and that’s that.
4 Responses to “Corkage Week: Some Dos and Don’ts…”
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September 14th, 2008 at 8:07 am
Good stuff!
Funny thing, I always ask if the staff wants a taste, because I tend to bring out some seriously good sh*t to my local BYOBs. They almost always refuse.
And I’m like… “people! you don’t know what you’re *missing*!”
September 17th, 2008 at 7:04 am
Great post Jill, and I would add that beyond offering a sip to the staff (as they will refuse generally out of professionalism - unless they know you personally), leave some remaining wine in the bottle. I learned this cool trick from a few customers, who always brought their own wines and left a half-glass remaining in the bottle for me to enjoy. Very cool gesture, and won’t get the server in trouble with management!
September 19th, 2008 at 2:13 pm
Jill,
The repeat is actually the second “Do.” Just thought I’d mention the new restaurant “Park” on sunset by Dodger Stadium. A good restaurant and no corkage.
September 22nd, 2008 at 8:53 am
[…] Nicole wrote us with a question after our Corkage Week post on dos and don’ts: if one is going to a restaurant that features a geographic-based wine list (in her example, she […]