Grapevine: Decisions, Decisions: Wine By the Glass or Buy the Bottle?
“May I offer you a drink?”
“Yes, I’d like a glass of (white, red, sparkling) wine.”
This seemingly innocuous interchange with a waiter or bartender can be fraught with indecision, or worse, a hurried choice that yields a mediocre result.
In today’s dining environment, we’ve gravitated to watching our wallets as much as our waistlines. (They seem to be heading in opposite directions.) Restaurants, bars and wine bars understand this. Offerings of wines by the glass at reasonable prices have increased multifold into broader and deeper selections of wines from around the world. But, “I’ll have the house wine” is still the typical response when ordering a glass of wine.
Let’s change that behavior pattern. Be adventurous. Order wine by the glass with the goal of finding a new “favorite” wine. Better yet, why order a bottle when you can pick and choose multiple wines from the by-the-glass list?
As with most adventures, caution is paramount. Be aware of the pitfalls that lurk as you navigate through this process. Here are my guidelines for how and when to order a glass of wine, whether seated at your restaurant table or waiting to be seated at the restaurant’s bar. Whether meeting friends at your local watering hole or socializing at a wine bar.
First, the benefits.
- When dining with the special person in our life, we tend to order one bottle for the evening, trying to find a middle ground to satisfy differing food preferences as well as the competing flavors of our first and second courses. We rarely succeed. This situation cries out for a glass (or glasses) of wine perfectly paired with individual dishes.
- When socializing with friends at a local bar, it’s too easy to order generically. Be inquisitive. “Which red (white) wines are you offering this evening?” Ask the server to describe each – the country of origin and the style of wine. “The Chilean Cabernet sounds appealing. May I sample it?” Your server has been trained to lower the barriers of selection; multiple choices usually lead to multiple glasses.
- If you’re like me, you have a life list of wines to enjoy before you kick the (ice) bucket. Today many restaurants and wine bars offer high-end wines by the glass. Are they expensive? Yes. Would you otherwise have the opportunity to check them off your life list? Probably not. Besides, $25 for one glass is an extravagance I can better psychologically rationalize than $200 for a bottle.
Now, the pitfalls.
- Financially, wines by the glass yield a low return on investment for you and an extraordinarily high return for restaurants and bars. Here’s the math: the typical restaurant or bar pour is four to five ounces, which equates to five to six glasses per bottle. The average price to you for a glass of wine is $8 to $12. The average cost of that bottle, at wholesale, is $8 to $12. The restaurant or bar typically needs to sell one glass to recover their cost of the bottle, not including overhead. The remaining pours from the bottle are profit.
- “I’ll have a glass of the house wine.” My advice: never order the house wine. It may be convenient to do so in the midst of conversation, but by spending a few minutes being more selective, you will most likely experience a new wine and expand your knowledge and palate, for only $1 to $2 more than the house wine.
- Make sure the wine being poured into your glass is the wine you ordered. Reputable establishments will always present the bottle as they are pouring; this helps you prevent any bait-and-switch tactic.
Ordering wine by the glass is an excellent way to experiment with new wines. Employing a financial analysis can result in a cost-efficient experience. Find the right balance and you’ve created a win-win experience.
Nick Antonaccio is a 40-year Pleasantville resident. For over 20 years he has conducted wine tastings and lectures. He also offers personalized wine tastings and wine travel services. Nick’s credo: continuous experimenting results in instinctive behavior. You can reach him at nantonaccio@theexaminernews.com or on Twitter @sharingwine.
