A waiter opens a $130 bottle of wine, pours your glass, and you don't like it. What would you honestly do?

Answer 1

fall on the floor and pretend it killed me. I don't drink so it just may.

Answer 2

Michael C and the guy above him answered correctly. The point of having you taste it after the server opens it is in order to ensure that the wine has not been tainted. The use of natural corks can cause a chemical reaction with the wine that causes it to taste bad. If it tastes "corky" then the wine is useless and damaged and must be tossed. At that point, the server would bring you a new bottle of the same wine. If you just don't like the taste, it would be rude to send it back (if you're ordering a $130 bottle, I would hope you knew what you were talking about by asking for it in the first place).

If you are going to order a glass or bottle of wine you've never had before and you're unsure, you can always ask for a small sample of the wine before hand. The restaurant I worked at for a couple of years was big on offering samples...it gives the guests a chance to be sure they like the taste of the particular wine, and many times it ensures a sale for us!!

Answer 3

If the wine has a bad smell or is tainted and is not good anymore then I would tell the waiter and ask for another bottle.

While TCA is not the only peril leading to tainted wine, it is the most frequent culprit. Other problems causing off odors and tastes include brettanomyces, oxidation and maderization. Brettanomyces comes from wild yeasts in wineries. A little of this "brett" may be a characteristic of many esteemed Bordeaux. A lot of it will remind you of the smell of a barnyard on a warm day. Oxidation happens when too much air gets into the bottle. The result is a Sherry-like flavor. Maderization happens when the bottle of wine is exposed to too much heat and results in a flat flavor. While any of these conditions can spoil a bottle of wine, none of them causes health problems.

The musty TCA taint, sometimes known as "corkiness," is inconvenient, but the restaurant diner recognizing it can send the waiter for a new bottle.

If I don't like the taste but there is nothing wrong with the wine I would simply accept it and try to drink it. I think that if one orders wine they either know what they are getting because they have tried it before or are willing to try something new at their own risk.

Answer 4

When the waiter pours a glass for you to taste, the intention is so that you can check that the wine is not faulty. If it is faulty, then it should be exchanged for another bottle of the same wine.

If you order a wine and decide you do not like it, then you have no right of exchange if it is not faulty. (although some restuarants will do so just to keep acustomer happy). But a customer who orders a $130 bottle ought to know what that wine should taste like.

The only exception is when you put yourself in the waiters hands and ask them to recommend a wine and the wine they bring doesn't match your requirements -- say you ask for a very dry wine and they bring a sweet wine -- you taste it and say 'thats not dry, not what I asked for'. But then there is the posibility of disagreement about what is sweet and what is dry as peoples perceptions differ.

Answer 5

If the wine is tainted in some way, then the waiter should take the bottle back and bring a new one. If you just don't like it, but there is nothing wrong with the wine, then proper etiquette is to pay for the wine.

The purpose of the first sample glass is for you to determine whether the wine is in satisfactory condition and free of flaws, not whether you like it or not.

The take home message is, if one is to order an expensive bottle of wine like that, one should have a pretty good idea what they are ordering. Experimentation with new wines should happen at a much safer price point.

A good wine waiter or sommelier should also be able to get a good sense of the style of wine that you would like and that would go well with your meal.

Answer 6

The whole ritual around opening a wine and having you approve is not to make sure you LIKE it, it is to ensure that the wine has NOT TURNED.

Although it is quite rare these days, wines not stored properly (in too hot conditions, cork allowed to dry out, etc.) can turn to a nasty vinegar. That's why the waiter hands you the cork to inspect (squeeze it and sniff it to make sure it's still pliable and has a pleasant aroma) then pours a small portion.

Decorum insist that you pay for what you ordered. The law may back that up as well.

Answer 7

I have often wondered that myself. Although I am not a drinker I see people order and taste the wine and wonder---what if the wine taste like crap, then what do they do? I think it comes down to being familiar with what your ordered wine should taste like. If it taste foul then the wine may have not been stored properly and has gone bad. Do sour grapes go bad? I would think so. I know that my red wine vinegar will sometimes go rancid if I have not used it in a timely manner. So I think wine may also go bad. If it taste foul, tell the waiter that it does not meet your approval. Then either order another bottle or order something else to drink. If it is an unfamiliar wine order by the glass to begin with. If you do not like the taste ask the waiter if it should taste like---well, whatever it taste like.

Answer 8

If there is someone else with you have them try it also. If the location has wines of that value then they will have a staff that knows about wine. Ask for the senior person on staff to try and see what they think. There is no harm is asking for another opinion.

Answer 9

tell them to get another bottle i am paying $130 for it

Answer 10

i'm not sure if you can really send it back to them since the same thing happend to me before.
no it was not a $130 bottle of wine but it was a 8$ lunch at a local vietnamees restaurant.
it's a pork chop and came with rice.
the rice tasted like as if someone sprinkled cinnamon on top and the pork chop was full of fat.
i talked with a manager and asked him to bring me another dish but he refused to refund.
i explained but he strogly refused to refund.
i gave up and had to pay $8 plus tax for nothing.
it was horrible.

Answer 11

If you are at a fancy place that charges that kind of money for a bottle of wine, you'de want ensure you are paying for something you would drink. They will have to take it back and get you another one.