There was a time when wine knowledge was the exclusive provenance of the elite, when interacting with sommeliers and servers meant intimidation and immediate capitulation.
But these days, when you can’t throw a chardonnay box without hitting someone who has taken a wine class, the average diner is smarter about vino and the proper way to serve it.
So, naturally, more folks are whining about wine.
One colleague recently dined at Kevin (9 W. Hubbard St.; 312-595-0055) and enjoyed a $12 glass of wine. When it came time to fill the glass a third time, he asked for a half glass.
“No,” replied the server immediately.
We called Kevin to find out if this is restaurant policy, and manager Sean Murphy confirmed that indeed it is.
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“It is kind of like going to McDonald’s and asking for half of an order of French fries,” he said. “There are some variables you have to keep constant in any business to keep it under control and know what is going in and out. I don’t know too many restaurants that do it.”
Off the top of our heads we can think of Trio, Bin 36, Meritage, Mon Ami Gabi (for refills) and New York’s Gramercy Tavern.
Andrew Bell, New York-based president and CEO of the American Sommelier Asssociation, said that a host of restaurants in New York offer tasting portions of wine (that are about the size of a half pour) as part of their regular wine program. But official menu aside, he said, “I would think that the ownership at an upscale restaurant would first and foremost want the customer to be pleased and then think about the financial repercussions.”
Another colleague complained of being served too-warm red wine at Bad Dog Tavern (4535 N. Lincoln Ave.; 773-334-4040).
A call to Bad Dog confirmed that many of the reds are served at room temperature but anything “$9 or up by the glass we try to chill,” said manager Nick Resanovich. “It mostly just a matter of not having the room.”
While it sounds like Bad Dog is doing it more for space reasons, Pat Dailey of Restaurants & Institutions magazine says many establishments just need to become better educated about proper serving temperatures.
“Sometimes you tell a server that you want a little chill on your red, they look at you like `Oh my gosh I am so embarrassed for you’ and they want to get you some Lancers or something,” she said.
Our wine expert Bill Daley says reds should be served at 60-65 degrees: “Think room temperature before central heating.”
Things we do like about restaurant wine programs:
– When servers suggest a taste of something you might like and offer to take it back if you don’t, as they do at Avec.
– When menus offer vivid, but not chatty descriptions of the wine and present pairings by the glass with particular dishes, as they do at places such as Bin 36 and Zealous, to name a few.
A reason to go on living
The perfect cortadito (intense espresso with a squirt of milk) at Cafe Iberico (739 N. LaSalle St.; 312-573-1510), which consistently makes us forgive any flaws in the meal that preceded it.