Wine by the Bottle or by the Glass?
 

Inspired by PVDProf's post on the sweet wines thread, I started to wonder how many of us order wine by the glass vs. by the bottle when dining out?

Mrs BV and I don't eat out frequently, and it's usually just the two of us. Somehow, a bottle of wine is never the right amount. We never disagree on what to order, it's just the amount - I'd like to find wine that comes in 1.5 bottle sizes on restaurant menus.

Funny enough, we don't have that problem at lunch. A half bottle is almost always just the right size, although that limits selection quite a bit.

We always order by the glass because a single wine rarely pairs well with every course on the table.

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Im not a fan of by the glass unless I know exactly how the wine service works...

really depends on where i'm going, what courses i'm having, the reputation of the restaurant, stuff like that.

A nice surprise recently was the Cheese Shop in Williamsburg, VA. Great sandwiches--shrimp salad on incredible rolls, and classic tiny ham biscuits. But a good day became a great one while choosing among the wine offerings. Half bottles of Sancerre and Chablis. And Champagne. Decisions, decisions!!

Wine by the glass is fine if they have to open a new bottle. :p Or if the place is known for interesting selections. I wish there were more half-bottles on menus.

half-bottles, as noted above, are much less common that most people thing... I always tell winemakers that they need to tell their commercial/marketing folks that more of these small bottles are needed... the market for them it much larger than most think !!!

the glass is really good.

Bottle always. Half-bottles, even better, especially if I'm dining by myself.

A few yrs back, I had ordered by the glass and the house wine was a Merlot. When the glass was served to me, I took a few sips of it and it was obviously not a Merlot (it tasted more like an old Shiraz that was quickly fading). I complained to the waiter and he took it back, took it off my bill and quickly offered me a bottle of something at the same price for a glass. A few days later the waiter called to apologize and told me that when they serve wine by the glass, they usually tell the bartender "red wine" or "white wine". THAT was how they served wine by the glass! It said Merlot and Chardonnay on the menu, whatever was served was up to the restaurant! I was speechless.

After this experience, I have ceased ordering wine by the glass.

I have also been very outspoken about wine pouring and how the etiquette of pouring to the customer and having them OK it, etc. has really faded, even at very formal restaurants. This is one aspect I wish the restaurant industry would take measures to preserve. Wine should not just be a compliment to a meal IMO.

I always order by the glass because my better half doesn't really drink.

It's annoying because wine by the glass has usually been open for a while and is noticeably oxidized frequently. The exception is at a restaurant that takes care of its wine and has invested in the special wine fridges that add inert gas to the bottle as it's emptied. Also, wine by the glass is usually more expensive per unit volume than wine by the bottle.

I had a half bottle the other day; a friend's mom was visiting from Spain and she and I were the only winos at the table. It was a nice amount: about 1.5 glasses each.

It's nearly always by the glass for me, purely because I don't really know many wine drinkers.

If I am out with a wine drinker though, it's a bottle (unless we can't agree on which one to order!).

If I am ordering a wine by the glass (as I did on Saturday at lunch) I am far more likely to order something sparkling, like a Prosecco, than a still wine - it is much harder to try and fob off a long-ago opened bubbly than it is still wine.

If I'm with a large party, I will order a bottle of a wine we can all agree on. Otherwise, I will order by the glass, but only if I can specify a particular vineyard.

here in usa, wine by the glass places have very fancy equipment to keep the 60 or 90 different bottles they have open fresh. too bad it does not work. if one strays from a generic merlot, or chard, the wine is usually very tired.

i have not found that to be the case in france or italy. no fancy equipment, and less than a dozen bottles open. sometimes only 3 or 4. when one bottle dies, another of different flavor is open. in most, one can even choose what will be opened next.

Next time you order a glass of wine, ask the server to open a new bottle. Some bottles may have been open for a while, and you know what that means. :p

I've never personally bought wine by bottle. Not much of a wine drinker so 2-3 glasses max suffice for me.