Of costs and corkage
Like many in our local wine consuming community I read a letter to the editor in this week's "Press" regarding corkage fees at restaurants with great interest. It generated quite the buzz too as I was asked about it by more than a handful of folks. I do not know the gentleman that wrote the letter nor have I spoken to him and also don't know where he experienced this unfortunate situation. It did however generate enough questions that it should be addressed.
Before we opened the dinner party Mary and I had the opportunity in our first careers to travel a bit, and we lived in a number of major metropolitan areas around the States. We have never encountered in all of our dining experience a restaurant that charged a corkage fee for wine purchased there. It is customary however for most restaurants to charge a corkage fee for wine that a customer brings in to the restaurant. The logic for this fee is pretty straightforward.
The restaurant is providing glassware for your wine, which in most cases in nicer restaurants is Riedel or other crystal stemware. In addition to the occasional breakage cost of the stemware there is also labor to polish the crystal stemware when it comes out of the dishwasher. Also a server or if the restaurant has a sommelier there is the labor for the service of pouring wine that was not purchased there. Most everywhere we have dined the corkage policy is clearly printed on the menu, the wine list or both, so folks know what they are in for.
Corkage rates and policies vary greatly, from very inexpensive to quite expensive and there are exceptions to the policies as well. The most common one is that if you buy a bottle off the restaurant list in addition to the one you bring in the corkage fee is waived. In addition the larger irritant in many cases for restaurant staff is when a customer brings in the exact same bottle that is already on the restaurant's wine list right down to varietal and vintage. On the other hand most all eateries understand when a customer brings in a very special bottle for a special occasion and many times will again waive the corkage fee when it is an older and difficult to find bottle. The offer by the customer of a small taste to the sommelier is always greatly appreciated.
The pricing of wine on a restaurant list is different than pricing for a retail establishment. In Idaho the state's liquor laws are structured so that all of us, restaurants, retailers, and grocery stores pay the same wholesale cost. With the exception of the "post off" regulations there are no volume discounts or secret deals for larger orders or special businesses. The economies are different for each type of business though. In addition to the labor cost that restaurants have in serving you wine, they also must carry a larger inventory to have all of the wines available in sufficient quantities that they list. They must also print the wine list and have staff to keep it updated, glassware and other wine service items must be factored in too. So while retail wine markup runs around 30% give or take over wholesale, for restaurants they typically double the wholesale cost to allow for their increased overhead. So when a customer brings in their own wine the corkage fee is applied to help cover those additional costs.
The trouble seems to start when you have a restaurant that also has a retail wine program. In many cases they price the wine differently usually lower for those bottles sold retail versus those sold to customers sitting in the restaurant. This can and frequently does create some confusion and at times consternation for the wine consumer. Without firsthand knowledge of what occurred for the editorial page letter writer I am guessing this might be what he ran into. This misunderstanding on different wine prices for the same bottle purchased retail or ordered table side at the same business is why I have always felt that the best concept is to have restaurants be restaurants, and retailers be retailers.
I agree that to pay corkage on a bottle purchased from the restaurant is highly unusual and unacceptable. I also know as a wine professional that restaurants here like everywhere strive to provide great professional service and clearly communicate their pricing policies including corkage. I understand the reasons for corkage fees and support them however the case described by the letter writer is indeed going too far.
If there is a topic you would like to read about or questions on wine you can email George@thedinnerpartyshop.com or make suggestions by contacting the Healthy Community section at the Coeur d'Alene Press.
George Balling is co-owner with his wife Mary Lancaster of the dinner party - a wine and table top decor shop in Coeur d'Alene by Costco. George is also the managing judge of The North Idaho Wine Rodeo and is the wine editor for Coeur d'Alene Magazine (www.cdamagazine.com). You can learn more about the dinner party at www.thedinnerpartyshop.com. You can get all of these articles as well as other great wine tips by friending us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/#!/dinnerpartyshop.