We all have pet peeves, you know, those little things that nag at us that we think we can correct? This is just one of them for me: being presented with a wine list in a restaurant, bar or in an advertisement for an event but the list is vague. Let me explain what I mean.
For the bar or restaurant, with simple one to two page wine lists that include wines by the glass and bottle – the vintage years are usually not listed. I understand that they would have to reprint the list every year or so if they did print the vintage years of each wine. My solution would be to present the wine list as a paper copy in a nice billfold, so the expense would be minimal, and the guest experience would be maximized.
I know that other people that are interested in wine know that a one year old red from anywhere may not taste as great as one with more age. Even more than that, the people that really know wine may avoid certain vintage years – due to a winemaker change, weather, fires, etc.
In the case of an event, wine pairing dinners especially, I want to know the wines varieties and the vintage years of what I’m paying for. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been invited to these tastings and I can’t get the details. I’ve seen their promotional photos showing different wine labels when the wine dinner is expressly serving from just one winery. Or the photo is a generic stock photo, the type with an attractive woman holding a glass of wine.
I’m simply not comfortable paying over $100 at least per person for a wine dinner without knowing what I’m getting. That includes the food menu too. (For larger wine tastings, then I believe it’s up to the guest to look at the bottles being offered for a taste and/or have a conversation with the person serving them.)
As someone that has created events I have always shared everything I can get from the source: the specific bottles (this goes for spirits too) and the food menu. Most recent is when I market the Universal Whisky Experience. I’ve shared screen shots directly from their website showing the different distilleries that will be represented. And I’ve received feedback from guests that they attended the event specifically to try a specific brand that was advertised.
I feel like striving for total transparency in anything we do is valued. So why do it any other way?
Okay, rant over! Now, what’s your pet peeve?
Eve Bushman has a Level Two Intermediate Certification from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET), a “certification in the first globally-recognized course” as an American Wine Specialist ® from the North American Sommelier Association (NASA), Level 1 Sake Award from WSET, was the subject of a 60-minute Wine Immersion video (over 16k views), authored “Wine Etiquette for Everyone” and has served as a judge for the Proof Awards since 2022 (submit via https://proofawards.com) Cellarmasters, LA Wine Competition, Long Beach Grand Cru and the Global Wine Awards. You can email Eve@EveWine101.com to ask a question about wine or spirits. Follow on Instagram and Facebook.
