Complimentary Wine List

[frantic36]

1 hour ago, RetiredandTravel said:

I think he's (she's) pulling our leg.  Just makes no sense.

 

these wine glasses look ok.

 

https://www.seabourn.com/en_US/experience/dining/earth-and-ocean.html

 

https://www.theglassmagazine.com/glass-experiences-pure-glamour-at-sea-with-seabourn-ovation/

 

Don't worry, this is what saminina does. Most of us regulars just scroll past. 

 

They do have regular wine glasses for the included pour, exactly as you see in the first picture in the article for earth and ocean. The wine tastes fine and for reds allow it to breathe and give it a swirl to release the aroma. For the revenue pour they use bigger glasses. 

 

 

 

 

[saminina]

I agree, the wine glasses in the pictures look fine.   But those are not the glasses being used in the common bars and restaurants .   I said earlier, it's not a big deal.  But selling people on a concept that that does not exist is not right.    Pictures and words in ship's advertisements.   I'm still searching for the people photographed for their brochures.  

[frantic36]

6 minutes ago, saminina said:

I agree, the wine glasses in the pictures look fine.   But those are not the glasses being used in the common bars and restaurants .

 

The wine glasses on the table in earth & ocean and the MDR in the glass article are like what I remember for regular wine pour. The photo of the glasses in the first article for in-suite dining are what I remember for red wine revenue pour. The white wine revenue pour are larger and more bulbous.

[saminina]

I would say you are correct about the revenue glass.   I'll stick with the mini glass opinion,  at least compared to offerings by other lines.

[RetiredandTravel]

12 hours ago, Asquare said:

Quick question…what (if any) is the going tip for the transfer driver from the airport to hotel and the bellmen at hotel per bag?  In Euros or $$?  

 

I go with 5 euro for the driver and 2 euros per bag. We usually have 4 bags I just give 10, 5 is probably ok.  Euro <>$$ pretty close these days.

Edited April 29, 2022 by RetiredandTravel

[rkacruiser]

23 hours ago, RetiredandTravel said:

these wine glasses look ok.

 

The wine glasses shown in that link do not look like my Riedel wine glass recommended for my Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc.  

[frantic36]

50 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

The wine glasses shown in that link do not look like my Riedel wine glass recommended for my Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc.  

 

To be honest I don't have Riedel glasses but enjoy very good wine. When I just googled what is recommended the most common is a Vinum which looks similar to the ordinary pour glasses. But then I also see they recommend Veritas and also one for an extreme oak chardonnay which looks similar to what they use for the revenue pour white wine. My point is there is so many different Riedel glasses recommended for different varietals so how is any cruise line or restaurant for that matter going to stock and store them?

 

Now about Ukraine?

[rkacruiser]

1 hour ago, frantic36 said:

My point is there is so many different Riedel glasses recommended for different varietals so how is any cruise line or restaurant for that matter going to stock and store them?

 

Well said and I really don't expect that kind of experience.  But, I do expect sailing on a luxury cruise line would provide glassware that is the best possible and reasonable to do.   I expect a crystal beverage glass will contain whatever adult beverage that I request.  

Edited April 30, 2022 by rkacruiser

[hampshirelad]

Having just been on Encore in March we found that requesting a particular bottle from complimentary wine list  resulted in push back or a longer wait. The policy seemed to be to have two or three bottles available and push these on the basis that they had been paired with the menu. Having looked at the list in advance we were disappointed to have to stand our ground on a number of occasions 

[RetiredandTravel]

32 minutes ago, hampshirelad said:

Having just been on Encore in March we found that requesting a particular bottle from complimentary wine list  resulted in push back or a longer wait. The policy seemed to be to have two or three bottles available and push these on the basis that they had been paired with the menu. Having looked at the list in advance we were disappointed to have to stand our ground on a number of occasions 

 

 

Very disappointing.

[SLSD]

1 hour ago, hampshirelad said:

Having just been on Encore in March we found that requesting a particular bottle from complimentary wine list  resulted in push back or a longer wait. The policy seemed to be to have two or three bottles available and push these on the basis that they had been paired with the menu. Having looked at the list in advance we were disappointed to have to stand our ground on a number of occasions 

I'm very sorry to hear this report.  This has only happened to us once in the past on SB--and it was while dining in the TK Grill.  I am in the habit of finding my favorite complimentary wine and requesting it at most meals.  

[2SailingNomads]

We did not have any problem in any venue, on our March Ovation cruise, in getting whatever wine we wanted.  Even at the Sky Bar if we wanted something they did not have, they always managed to get it for us.  The first night in Sushi the waiter had disappeared for 7-8 minutes as he had to go to another venue to get a couple of bottles.  Next time we dined there, they had it waiting.  In the MDR and TK we usually buy revenue wine at dinner and the MDR at lunch always has everything available.

[MBP&O2/O]

I must admit I am confused as to how a restaurant can pair a wine with a menu?

Silversea did the same ...a recommended wine for your meal when they don't know what you are  eating and what you may prefer with any one dish.

[rucrazy]

53 minutes ago, MBP&amp;O2/O said:

a recommended wine for your meal when they don't know what you are  eating and what you may prefer with any one dish

I don't get it either.. My husband is more flexible than I when it comes to wine.. I only drink Chardonnay and if I don't like the vintage served, I tend to leave it un drank and ask for water or Ice tea.  Hey I know I can not be alone here.. I like what I like!

[frantic36]

2 hours ago, rucrazy said:

I don't get it either.. My husband is more flexible than I when it comes to wine.. I only drink Chardonnay and if I don't like the vintage served, I tend to leave it un drank and ask for water or Ice tea.  Hey I know I can not be alone here.. I like what I like!

 

If you are very particular about a certain vintage and none of the included is to your liking then you are right, your only options to ask for some other included beverage or buy from the revenue list. 

 

3 hours ago, MBP&O2/O said:

I must admit I am confused as to how a restaurant can pair a wine with a menu?

Silversea did the same ...a recommended wine for your meal when they don't know what you are  eating and what you may prefer with any one dish.

 I don't understand the problem. Sure they may recommend a wine for the night but you don't have to drink  that wine you can ask for other recommendations from the included wines that will suit you food choice. I have done that before with no problem, on Seabourn and Silversea.

 

 

[MBP&O2/O]

There is no problem.

You miss the point  ... i said I could not understand how a restaurant can recommended a 'generic' wine for a menu as a whole ... not a meal. A recommendation for a particular dish is fine but not for an unknown dish.

Would they recommend one wine for a wine pairing meal? 

No ... the wine would not match the food.

Same scenario.

 

[cruiseej]

On 4/28/2022 at 1:11 PM, saminina said:

A mini wine glass is......that's a good question.   You will see once on board.   It's not a big deal.   It's kind of comical watching adults drinking wine out of a glass designed for children.

 

All I can say is I don't agree at all with this description.

 

Yes, when you order a premium wine, they do bring out higher-end (and larger) stemware — the type of red wine glass which could hold most or all of a bottle of wine if poured to the top. (Fine Reidl red wine glasses, for instance, are typically in the 650-800+ ml range.) The "everyday" wine glasses in the Seabourn restaurants are a bit smaller, but are certainly not "mini" nor "designed for children". They're plenty large to give a poured wine sample a nice swirl and sniff, to hold a nice pour and have plenty of room for the wine to breathe, and to drink more than a few sips before the glass needs to be refilled. 

[Mahogany]

I’m currently on Odyssey and drinking out of a wine glass size that is just fine. Didn’t know they made wine glasses “for children “ 😁. But I hope when one recommends Reidel glasses, you don’t mean the stemless ones. Whose idea was that? White wine too cold and you want to warm it up in your hand?

[cruiseej]

2 hours ago, Mahogany said:

But I hope when one recommends Reidel glasses, you don’t mean the stemless ones.

Not to worry; Reidl still makes a full suite of traditional stemware.

 

Stemless is just the recent "innovation", which of course mirrors wine glasses and goblets which go back centuries. Bars need new wrinkles; glass makers benefit from getting consumers and bars/restaurants to buy new sets of glasses. They're less expensive to make, fare better in dishwashers, are easier to dry, are more compact to store, etc. They were introduced (by Reidl to start) to be more casual, but stemless glasses have taken off as a modern trend. Whether this will be a short-lived fad or will live on side-by-side with stemmed glassware is something only time will tell. 

[RetiredandTravel]

12 hours ago, Mahogany said:

I’m currently on Odyssey and drinking out of a wine glass size that is just fine. Didn’t know they made wine glasses “for children “ 😁. But I hope when one recommends Reidel glasses, you don’t mean the stemless ones. Whose idea was that? White wine too cold and you want to warm it up in your hand?

 

 

It appears that the entire mini "children size" wine glass concept was a ruse.

 

Agree on stemless wine glasses, not a fan

 

 

[rkacruiser]

On 5/2/2022 at 5:45 PM, Mahogany said:

But I hope when one recommends Reidel glasses, you don’t mean the stemless ones. Whose idea was that? White wine too cold and you want to warm it up in your hand?

 

12 hours ago, RetiredandTravel said:

Agree on stemless wine glasses, not a fan

 

Agree.  If the wine is too cold, then, where the responsibility for that lie?  

[Asquare]

On Encore now.  The wine glass in question is what I would describe as “petite”, it is a slim version of a flat bottomed wine glass. It is a thin glass, not Riedl, but nice quality.  We have not made it to The Restaurant yet but it is being used at the casual venues and bars.  We haven’t really asked for the complimentary wine list but their “suggested” selections have been adequate.  For example, tonight was Australian night in the Colonnade, and the red suggested was a 2012 Shiraz from the MacLaren Valley, very drinkable with lamb or fish, which were the featured entrees. 
 

There are only 250 guests on board and we are being spoiled.  There will never be a time to sail like this again.  All the fuss and worry about nothing!  The staff is bending over backwards to make this an amazing experience, let’s enjoy it and not sweat the small stuff!