Photo of wines and champagne available for purchase?

[Piaa]

Good morning - might anyone have taken a photo showing the cost of wines and champagne available for purchase (I know they might change but just wondering what are available and cost)

 

Thank you if anyone has one 🙂

 

 

[Beamafar]

I’ll see if I can get a list.  You have to request menus on Journey and, last night, I was only concerned with the included wines on the Ultimate package (which we upgraded to).  I’ll have a look through the menu tonight when I get it. 

[federalexpress]

54 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

I’ll see if I can get a list.  You have to request menus on Journey and, last night, I was only concerned with the included wines on the Ultimate package (which we upgraded to).  I’ll have a look through the menu tonight when I get it. 

What do you think of the quality of the wines on the Ultimate package? What were your favourites?

[Beamafar]

7 minutes ago, federalexpress said:

What do you think of the quality of the wines on the Ultimate package? What were your favourites?

So far, I’ve only tried 3.  The merlot (can’t remember the brand - will get more info tonight now that we’re settling in) was good.  I didn’t care for the chianti but DH liked it (the only wine he drinks - and very seldom).  Had The Seekers Chardonnay today.  It was reasonable, but I don’t drink much white wine.  If it gives you an idea of my taste, I very much like Woodbridge Chardonnay. 

[federalexpress]

13 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

So far, I’ve only tried 3.  The merlot (can’t remember the brand - will get more info tonight now that we’re settling in) was good.  I didn’t care for the chianti but DH liked it (the only wine he drinks - and very seldom).  Had The Seekers Chardonnay today.  It was reasonable, but I don’t drink much white wine.  If it gives you an idea of my taste, I very much like Woodbridge Chardonnay. 

Thanks for that be interested in any further feedback you have.

 

Can I also ask, do they have a dessert wine (other than port) on the ultimate package? I think not so I'm considering bringing my own.

[DS]

See post 22 on the board below for the list of all beverages in the 2 packages  ( no desert wines other tha port were listed on the Ultimate package, but the premium ( which is included in ultimate)   had some sherry and grappa, if you consider those desert wines......)

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2865688-current-wine-list-help/#comment-63598342

 

[woodards]

How does ultimate package work just ask for specific wines? How do you know what is available onboard? Assume it varies per sailing vs the list that is published on the Az website. 
 

Thanks in advance!

[Piaa]

3 hours ago, Beamafar said:

I’ll see if I can get a list.  You have to request menus on Journey and, last night, I was only concerned with the included wines on the Ultimate package (which we upgraded to).  I’ll have a look through the menu tonight when I get it. 

 

Awesome - thank you but please enjoy your evening and don't worry about going out of your way xx

[Grandma Cruising]

46 minutes ago, woodards said:

How does ultimate package work just ask for specific wines? How do you know what is available onboard? Assume it varies per sailing vs the list that is published on the Az website. 
 

Thanks in advance!

You ask for a list of what’s available at the bar or dining table.

[Beamafar]

1 hour ago, Piaa said:

 

Awesome - thank you but please enjoy your evening and don't worry about going out of your way xx

Not a problem.  I usually do live reports and try to get any info people request when possible (though I’m used to doing itineraries that repeat). 

[Piaa]

1 hour ago, Beamafar said:

Not a problem.  I usually do live reports and try to get any info people request when possible (though I’m used to doing itineraries that repeat). 

 

Thank you - mainly looking at the champagnes (for a special occasion 🙂 )   Hope you are having a great time

 

[Beamafar]

9 hours ago, Piaa said:

 

Thank you - mainly looking at the champagnes (for a special occasion 🙂 )   Hope you are having a great time

 

Yes - we’re loving it, thank you. 
 

I took some pics of the wine menu from Prime C.  It’s an awkward one to photo so I’m going to see if there’s anything easier in the bars.  Otherwise, I’ll post what I have, though they may not be great.  For now, I will post the champagne page,  which may be of help to you. 
 

[Beamafar]

14 hours ago, federalexpress said:

Thanks for that be interested in any further feedback you have.

 

Can I also ask, do they have a dessert wine (other than port) on the ultimate package? I think not so I'm considering bringing my own.

I had a dessert wine - it was a Sauvignon blanc.  It was quite nice (notice I’m not exactly raving about the wines.  Had 3!!! favourite reds on MSC).   It wasn’t as sweet as Sauternes.  It’s the first on the list in the photo.  The Sauternes isn’t included and I don’t think any of the others are, either;  just the SB. 
 

[federalexpress]

2 hours ago, Beamafar said:

I had a dessert wine - it was a Sauvignon blanc.  It was quite nice (notice I’m not exactly raving about the wines.  Had 3!!! favourite reds on MSC).   It wasn’t as sweet as Sauternes.  It’s the first on the list in the photo.  The Sauternes isn’t included and I don’t think any of the others are, either;  just the SB. 
 

So you got the SB dessert wine with the Ultimate package? That's good to hear. I know that wine, it's not bad, as you say a little less sweet than Sauternes ( probably because it lacks the Semillon in it).

 

Sad to hear none of the reds are taking your fancy. Without wishing you to disturb your holiday too much, I'd appreciate it if you can advise if the 3 wines I've seen on the website for the Ultimate package are still offered. They are Matanzas Creek Merlot, Penley Phoenix Cab Sauv and Sokol Blosser Pinot Noir. They're decent enough wines I'd be happy enough with.

 

Hope you're enjoying your cruise.

[Beamafar]

15 minutes ago, federalexpress said:

So you got the SB dessert wine with the Ultimate package? That's good to hear. I know that wine, it's not bad, as you say a little less sweet than Sauternes ( probably because it lacks the Semillon in it).

 

Sad to hear none of the reds are taking your fancy. Without wishing you to disturb your holiday too much, I'd appreciate it if you can advise if the 3 wines I've seen on the website for the Ultimate package are still offered. They are Matanzas Creek Merlot, Penley Phoenix Cab Sauv and Sokol Blosser Pinot Noir. They're decent enough wines I'd be happy enough with.

 

Hope you're enjoying your cruise.

Our friend ordered the Pinot Noir that was listed on the menu but was told it wasn’t available, so it was substituted with another.  I wasn’t paying too much attention as we stuck with the champagne last night., so didn’t see what it was.  (This was in Prime C). I want to try the PN so I’ll report back when I do. 
 

The following is the Merlot I had yesterday in The Patio:

 

Here’s a photo of the wines by the glass, but it would seem that some of the brands are being switched (the Merlot and PN, anyway, so far, according to our experience)

 

 

Whispering Angel is available (for those who wish to know). 

Edited August 8, 2022 by Beamafar

[federalexpress]

8 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

Our friend ordered the Pinot Noir that was listed on the menu but was told it wasn’t available, so it was substituted with another.  I wasn’t paying too much attention as we stuck with the champagne last night., so didn’t see what it was.  (This was in Prime C). I want to try the PN so I’ll report back when I do. 
 

The following is the Merlot I had yesterday in The Patio:

 

Here’s a photo of the wines by the glass, but it would seem that some of the brands are being switched (the Merlot and PN, anyway, so far, according to our experience)

 

 

Whispering Angel is available (for those who wish to know). 

 

Thanks, very helpful. That Merlot is decent enough but it is a definite step down in quality- or price at least- from the Matanzas Creek. But then the Patio is more informal I think? So maybe the MC wine is offered in the other restaurants.

 

If you can bear all the posting, I'd be interested in any other comments and feedback on the wines provided during your cruise partly because I'm weighing up whether to bring my own stuff onboard and how much of it. So if they have a dessert wine on the package, at least I won't need to bring much if any of that on with me.

[Beamafar]

3 hours ago, federalexpress said:

 

Thanks, very helpful. That Merlot is decent enough but it is a definite step down in quality- or price at least- from the Matanzas Creek. But then the Patio is more informal I think? So maybe the MC wine is offered in the other restaurants.

 

If you can bear all the posting, I'd be interested in any other comments and feedback on the wines provided during your cruise partly because I'm weighing up whether to bring my own stuff onboard and how much of it. So if they have a dessert wine on the package, at least I won't need to bring much if any of that on with me.

You may be pleased to hear that Oremus (dessert wine) is also included.  I had it in Windows at lunch.   I very much enjoyed it.  Nicer than the SB, but still not as sickly sweet as Sauternes. Even DH enjoyed a glass (and he’d never normally touch the stuff). 
 

I had the Wairau River SB (I’m assuming - I didn’t see the bottle;  just asked for an SB) today, also.  I found it better than the Chardonnay.  I’ll try the Pino Grigio next.  

[Piaa]

9 hours ago, Beamafar said:

Yes - we’re loving it, thank you. 
 

I took some pics of the wine menu from Prime C.  It’s an awkward one to photo so I’m going to see if there’s anything easier in the bars.  Otherwise, I’ll post what I have, though they may not be great.  For now, I will post the champagne page,  which may be of help to you. 
 

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to post this - very much appreciated.  Have a fabulous rest of your cruise 

[Beamafar]

26 minutes ago, Piaa said:

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to post this - very much appreciated.  Have a fabulous rest of your cruise 

I will post what I’ve got for now.  You can let me know if they’re not legible enough. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[federalexpress]

3 hours ago, Beamafar said:

You may be pleased to hear that Oremus (dessert wine) is also included.  I had it in Windows at lunch.   I very much enjoyed it.  Nicer than the SB, but still not as sickly sweet as Sauternes. Even DH enjoyed a glass (and he’d never normally touch the stuff). 
 

I had the Wairau River SB (I’m assuming - I didn’t see the bottle;  just asked for an SB) today, also.  I found it better than the Chardonnay.  I’ll try the Pino Grigio next.  

 

Yes that is very good to know, it is a pretty decent quality dessert wine. The lists you kindly post are interesting. I doubt I'll need to indulge if I'm already on a package (unless there is a deep discount) but it's quite eclectic. As far as I can tell, with a few exceptions, they seem to apply roughly a flat £20 mark up on retail making the more expensive wines very fair value. The Caymus wines for example. Or at the ultra high end, the Ornellaia and Inglenook wines are actually not far above retail, if indeed at all above it, as are the two flagship champagnes, Dom P and Cristal. The problem is, you need to find 200 bucks plus to access this value! It also means at the cheaper end, say around $30-40, you are basically paying the normal 2.5 to 3 times mark up.

 

Still, if all stays the same, it looks like I'll have some decent reds and dessert wines to choose from. The whites, a little less so, The Wairau River SB being the best of the bunch. And I guess there is always the champagne...

[Miss_Confused]

This is super helpful! Methinks I'll need to stop by a wine store before boarding haha as I clearly don't have the same tastes as the sommelier in regards to whites. Very shocked there is not a single Chablis, Cremant, Cava.... 

[Beamafar]

@federalexpress  It turns out that Omerus was not included in the UP - one of the sommeliers okayed it for me to have early on in the cruise as I had asked for an alternative to the Sauvignon Blanc dessert wine on offer.  (He always knew where I was dining as he would receive a call to verify that I wasn’t to be charged for it each time I ordered it).  

[federalexpress]

19 hours ago, Beamafar said:

@federalexpress  It turns out that Omerus was not included in the UP - one of the sommeliers okayed it for me to have early on in the cruise as I had asked for an alternative to the Sauvignon Blanc dessert wine on offer.  (He always knew where I was dining as he would receive a call to verify that I wasn’t to be charged for it each time I ordered it).  

Handy to know. I'll try that myself. Might have a go with the Ornellaia as well......

Edited August 19, 2022 by federalexpress

[lisiamc]

On 8/8/2022 at 9:22 AM, federalexpress said:

 

Thanks, very helpful. That Merlot is decent enough but it is a definite step down in quality- or price at least- from the Matanzas Creek. But then the Patio is more informal I think? So maybe the MC wine is offered in the other restaurants.

 

If you can bear all the posting, I'd be interested in any other comments and feedback on the wines provided during your cruise partly because I'm weighing up whether to bring my own stuff onboard and how much of it. So if they have a dessert wine on the package, at least I won't need to bring much if any of that on with me.

You can have the same wines at the Patio that you can have at Prime C, Aqualina, Discoveries, or Windows if you want to. So if you find some that you like, you’re good everywhere. If you’re buying a special bottle, or brought one on board, and didn't finish it, it can follow you to your next meal, or trip to a bar.

[Beamafar]

I agree.  I was able to have the wines I preferred in all venues - including The Patio.  The ones I stuck with were Honig and the Chilean merlot:

 

NF was scarce and was replaced by Montaudon regularly.  For us it was more enjoyable than NF.