Going out for a meal shouldn’t be an occasion for stress; other than first dates or tricky business lunches of course. Yet often, simply being handed the wine list can cause your palms to sweat and pulse to race — and not in a good way.
The problem is two-fold. Those of us with limited wine knowledge feel overwhelmed by the range of options on even the shortest of lists. As a result, the temptation is either to opt for the second-cheapest wine on offer — you wouldn’t want to look stingy, after all — or to buy something flash and spend the rest of the meal wondering whether you’ve paid over the odds. On the other hand, if you have even a limited wine education you’ll find yourself burdened by your co-diners’ expectations that you’ll choose a wine to please everyone’s palate.
So just how do you negotiate a wine list? Your best bet is to follow a few rules. First, remember that you’ll rarely find a bargain at the very bottom end of a wine list. Even restaurants that soft-pedal their profits at the top end will apply the full financial whack to their cheapest wines. By the time you’ve factored in a profit margin, taxes, the middleman’s cut and shipping costs, the chances are that the liquid in a bottle listed at £20 will be worth less than a quid. Broadly speaking, the best value-for-money ratio on most lists is to be found in wines selling for £30 to £45. Competition in this price bracket is intense, so the chances are you’ll end up with an interesting bottle of well-made wine.
As ever, there’s a caveat. In order to net a bargain, you need to steer clear of prestigious wine regions such as Chablis, Bordeaux or Rioja; after all, you wouldn’t go to Cartier to buy a cheap watch. Look for less renowned alternatives: a Sauvignon de Touraine is often a perfectly good stand-in for Sancerre, while a Chilean Pinot Noir usually provides better value than one from Central Otago. Up-and-coming regions, such as Spain’s Montsant or New Zealand’s Hawke’s Bay, can also be a good source of value, as are undervalued appellations such as the Beaujolais Crus and pretty much anywhere in south-west France. If you’re not confident about picking out such a wine yourself, ask the waiters.
Asking for advice isn’t a bad idea in any case. Explain what kinds of wine you enjoy and what you’re eating and, if the circumstances are right, give them a budget (it’s worth noting that communicating a budget carries a risk when you’re on a date — especially if it’s very low). Most sommeliers are genuinely keen to help customers explore the less well charted regions of their list. Finally, remember that, while it’s part of a sommelier’s job to try to ‘upsell’ his or her wine list, don’t feel you have to succumb to pressure and opt for a more expensive wine than you would otherwise have ordered.
Natasha still can’t believe she gets paid to do the kinds of things she’d happily do for nothing.
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