Premium Package and Cellar Masters

[mdv31616]

We are on the Eclipse in November. This is the first time we have had a beverage package and upgraded from classic to premium. I have heard on CC that you can not have wine from Cellar Masters. However on a Silhouette sailing in Nov 2011, I remember friends with the bev package saying they got wine from there every night and took it to the dining room. I know that Cellar Masters has some pours that are not via the machines. Anyone have information on this?

 

Also... on the Eclipse, what is the beer/malt bev selections like? Do you have all the options in Michael's or somewhere else that they do on the Silhouette? The ciders, lambics?

[Lsimon]

The packages are not good at the wine vending machines but are honored for the beverages served by the waiters

[CruisersTimesThree]

As LSimon stated above, you can use CellarMasters like any other bar, except for the wine machines.

On the Summit it is right opposite the entrance to the Select dining room and was a great place to have a drink before dinner while waiting for our friends to arrive to meet us.

[cruisecatmama]

Who is running Cellar Masters on the Reflection?

[themutis]

Each night before we would head into dinner, we would stop by Cellar Masters and get a nice glass of wine to bring to dinner.

 

We found wine service to be somewhat slow in BLU and the specialty restaurants at the start, so this way we were covered.

 

We had the premium package and were able to get whatever wine by the glass (except for the machines) that we wanted.

[JRWLOBO]

We, too, would stop by Cellar Masters prior to dinner for a glass of wine. Many times we took the wine with us to dinner, however they would not let us take the glass. They poured it into a normal wine glass such are served in the dining room. You can get any glass of wine up to $10. I would sometimes get a more expensive glass and would be charged the difference in price. Great way to try many different wines.

Have fun!

[NickfromNJ]

The Select Dining has a separate dining room?

[RL1180]

The Select Dining has a separate dining room?

 

Select Dining is typically on the top floor or the dining room, whereas traditional dining is on the lower floor. Same dining room, just different floors and different entrances.

[UniPac]

We, too, would stop by Cellar Masters prior to dinner for a glass of wine. Many times we took the wine with us to dinner, however they would not let us take the glass. They poured it into a normal wine glass such are served in the dining room. You can get any glass of wine up to $10. I would sometimes get a more expensive glass and would be charged the difference in price. Great way to try many different wines.

Have fun!

 

Can you explain the difference of the glasses and what they did so you could take it with you to the dining room?

 

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[Lsimon]

Can you explain the difference of the glasses and what they did so you could take it with you to the dining room?

 

They often serve wine in the premium quality Riedel wine glasses at Cellar Masters. These are much more expensive than the standard quality glassware used in most places throughout the ship so they probably don't like them taken out of the lounge just for inventory control. If you're taking a glass of wine out of the lounge they'll just pour it into a standard quality glass of the type used in the dining room and most lounges around the ship.

 

A lot of people claim that the Riedel glassware enhances the taste of wine and then even make glasses tailored to specific varieties of wine. You can Google the name and read more about them. Celebrity also offers a seminar on board about the Reidel glasses for a fee which includes a set of sample glasses to take home.

[Kikimeister]

They often serve wine in the premium quality Riedel wine glasses at Cellar Masters. These are much more expensive than the standard quality glassware used in most places throughout the ship so they probably don't like them taken out of the lounge just for inventory control. If you're taking a glass of wine out of the lounge they'll just pour it into a standard quality glass of the type used in the dining room and most lounges around the ship.

 

.

 

This is very interesting! Also, when we were on Summit we often took wines from CM into dinner and they never switched out our wine glasses... Maybe because we often went from CM to dinner and then back to CM??!! LOL

 

Loved the wines at CM and Merril the bartender...the selection was amazing and Merril was fantastic!

[justcrusn]

This is a little off topic, it doesn't relate to cellar masters, but the different wine glasses.

Last year on reflection we had dinner in BLU and with about a half a glass of wine left we walked back to our cabin with the glass. No one noticed or seemed to care. The next night we thought we should return their glass, and upon entering BLU we were scolded for having the glass! WHERE DID YOU GET THAT GLASS????

[Hobbsey]

They often serve wine in the premium quality Riedel wine glasses at Cellar Masters. These are much more expensive than the standard quality glassware used in most places throughout the ship so they probably don't like them taken out of the lounge just for inventory control. If you're taking a glass of wine out of the lounge they'll just pour it into a standard quality glass of the type used in the dining room and most lounges around the ship.

 

A lot of people claim that the Riedel glassware enhances the taste of wine and then even make glasses tailored to specific varieties of wine. You can Google the name and read more about them. Celebrity also offers a seminar on board about the Reidel glasses for a fee which includes a set of sample glasses to take home.

 

The cyrstal qualityas well as the shape, size and density of the stemware will affect how the wine aerates - affecting the bouquet and thus the taste of the wine.

[Hobbsey]

This is a little off topic, it doesn't relate to cellar masters, but the different wine glasses.

Last year on reflection we had dinner in BLU and with about a half a glass of wine left we walked back to our cabin with the glass. No one noticed or seemed to care. The next night we thought we should return their glass, and upon entering BLU we were scolded for having the glass! WHERE DID YOU GET THAT GLASS????

 

Now there is a Premium Quality cruise experience. A guest being scolded for enjoying their drink across venues should not be in the service manual. The cabin steward could easily retrieve the glass and get it back to the galley the next morning if they are in such short supply.

[ZsaZsaZoom]

Because I enjoy my wine, I feared not being able to get a good selection on the classic drink package. Just last night I upgraded to the premium, so hoping for the best.

 

I'm not a wine expert by any means, but I do enjoy my reds. I have discovered over the last few years that the right glass really does make a big difference. I'm not sure what it is about it, but it certainly has become something I have noticed.

 

We are cruising Oct 26th on the Summit, and thanks to this thread, am looking forward to the Cellar Masters.:)

[Johnny Heedless]

The cyrstal qualityas well as the shape, size and density of the stemware will affect how the wine aerates - affecting the bouquet and thus the taste of the wine.

 

You really should listen to the Freakonomics podcast on wine. All their podcasts are free and fantastic. Here's the link (if I'm allowed to post it):

 

http://freakonomics.com/2010/12/16/freakonomics-radio-do-more-expensive-wines-taste-better/

 

If not, just Google "Freakonomics and Wine."

 

I'm sure the conclusions drawn in the research can be extrapolated to include glassware as well.

[CruisersTimesThree]

 

Loved the wines at CM and Merril the bartender...the selection was amazing and Merril was fantastic!

 

We LOVED Merril! We met him when sailed in June 2012 and then was so happy to see him once again on our last trip, June 2013! Such a nice young man!

[chrisnay]

We air contemplating taking the premium package, so can I take it we can go Into CM as part of the package.

 

Thanks

[UniPac]

They often serve wine in the premium quality Riedel wine glasses at Cellar Masters. These are much more expensive than the standard quality glassware used in most places throughout the ship so they probably don't like them taken out of the lounge just for inventory control. If you're taking a glass of wine out of the lounge they'll just pour it into a standard quality glass of the type used in the dining room and most lounges around the ship.

 

A lot of people claim that the Riedel glassware enhances the taste of wine and then even make glasses tailored to specific varieties of wine. You can Google the name and read more about them. Celebrity also offers a seminar on board about the Reidel glasses for a fee which includes a set of sample glasses to take home.

 

Thanks again for this comprehensive answer!

 

So you tell them you want the "wine-to-go" and get a different glas then.

 

On my last cruise I upgraded to the premium package... but didn't go to Cellar Masters because I thought nothing will be covered with my package...

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

We, too, would stop by Cellar Masters prior to dinner for a glass of wine. Many times we took the wine with us to dinner, however they would not let us take the glass. They poured it into a normal wine glass such are served in the dining room. You can get any glass of wine up to $10. I would sometimes get a more expensive glass and would be charged the difference in price. Great way to try many different wines.

Have fun!

 

I seem to recall that $12 is the point at which you'd pay the difference for more expensive drinks.

 

Tom

[chicagopaul]

Yovan is running Cellar Masters on the reflection. We put $120 on a card just to try it. Not sure if we'd do it again in the future as we always have a premium drink package but it was an enjoyable experience. FYI Yovan is awesome. Extremely friendly and takes great pride in his bar. We did do one of the premium wine pairing dinners ($95pp) in Tuscan Grill. They also have them in Qsine as well as a progressive wine paring that visits 4 of the specialty restaurants. We enjoyed it, got to meet some people and learn about different wines.

 

Regarding the extra charge for drinks, yes $12 is where the premium cuts off and you pay the difference. However many times we would order wine at $13 or $16 a glass in MDR and not get charged.