The Southwest Voice

Today I want to address one of the most frequently asked questions from novices in the wine world. However worded, they’re all asking for help in ordering wine in restaurants.

“I don’t want to make a fool of myself, or look like an idiot in front of my date, can you please give me some tips on ordering wine out?”

Sure, we’ve all been there. This is one of the first big problems confronting beginners. Take heart, the rewards are worth the effort. Wine is an integral part of fine dining and most restaurants know that. There will be someone there to assist you, if you need it, but I’m betting you won’t.

Tip numero uno: Gird your loins! Or, in this case, your pocketbook or wallet. Getting into the wine game is going to cost! Ordering wine in a fine restaurant usually costs more than the food (at least for one person).

Don’t ever think about what you could get it for in a wineshop or store. Remember there are overheads in the restaurant business such as the mere act of making it available to you at that moment, i.e. buying, storage, glasses, washing, printing and changing wine lists, corkscrews, serving, etc. Add to that the knowledge required to make and keep a good wine list, to train a wait staff to be good servers and to have the right answers to your questions, then you can agree that there has been a considerable expenditure made to make it a memorable evening. So, what is it going to cost? Generally twice the retail price although the cost of doing business varies greatly from location to location. There is no set formula, so you decide what you want to pay and choose accordingly.

Tip No. 2: Peruse the wine list. It should be presented to you along with the menus, if the restaurant is on top of its game. There should be order to the list. Whites, reds, varietals grouped together, lesser priced to most expensive, etc. If you are going to have wine before dinner, order it now. A lot of places have wine by the glass and should be noted so on the wine list.

To order the wine to accompany dinner, check with your companions for their choices from the dinner menu. The old adage “White wine with fish and fowl, red wine with beef” will hold you in good stead until you are more comfortable ordering wine with dinner.

Tip No. 3: Do not be afraid to ask the server for suggestions. A phrase such as “Do you or the chef have any recommendations for the filet or the salmon or the sea bass?” should bring suggestions from the wine server, or sommelier (some-mull-yay), to your assistance. They shouldn’t suggest the most expensive wines, but should be prepared in advance to recommend several that will pair well with your food choices. Don’t fret. It won’t be long until you’ll hear, “Excellent choice, sir.”

There’s much more to say and I’ll save that for another day. Stay tuned.

— Wine questions? E-mail acierley@etcrier.net