Archive for Wine And Champagne
Waiter Training & Wine Service Part 1 – Taking the Order
Posted by: | Commentsby Richard Saporito
Wine service is an extremely integral part of a restaurant’s reputation and bottom line that must be included in every waiter training program. If wine service is performed in an impeccable manner, it will add great value to the customer’s dining experience along with increased revenue for the restaurant and waiter.
There are many components to delivering excellent wine service not only for a four star restaurant, but also for the casual dining restaurant. In this article, we will discuss how to take the wine order professionally which is the first basic step.
First of all, the waiter must know the wine list inside and out meaning the names of the wines, the regions where they are produced, the vintages, and how to describe the wines using superlatives to entice the customers. There are so many different facets to making wines today that it is really an enjoyable experience in simply picking out and discussing the perfect wine to match a meal.
The waiter must know how to pair the wines with all of the food menu items. The more confidence a customer has in the waiter when asking questions about the wines, the more likely a purchase will be made. If the waiter cannot answer even the simplest of questions about the wine list, then the customer will hesitate to make a purchase. This lack of knowledge on the waiter’s part will translate into the customer thinking about how poor the wine service will be delivered in the future. Upselling wines has everything to do with “customer perception”.
To begin, the waiter must approach and greet the table with enthusiasm and charm while making eye contact. When taking the order, the waiter must be certain as to the exact wine which is being ordered. If there is any discrepancy, the customer should be asked to physically point out the wine on the list. After understanding the exact order, the waiter must repeat it back to the customer and get the nod of approval. Once the order is taken, it must be subsequently ordered from the bartender correctly. Often times, a wine list will contain many of the same types of wines, but from different regions, vintages, and prices, so the waiter must double check to see if the correct wine was delivered by the bartender. This kind of clarification always prevents future problems form occurring. It looks terrible, when it is discovered “at the table”, that the wrong wine was delivered from the bar. As a result, service time and energy will be lost, not to mention how unprofessional it looks.
Taking a wine order may not seem like a difficult process, but if done incorrectly, it will be subtracting from excellent restaurant customer service in an immense way that includes the restaurant’s reputation and bottom line. Remember, wine service is in reality a performance. If wine service is done professionally, then an excellent tone will be set for the rest of the meal. The customers are more likely to order more food (more expensive food at that), and leave a bigger tip because they had a great time.
Click here to improve restaurant service reputation and increase sales immediately:
How to Improve Dining Room Service
About the Author:
Richard Saporito is the Founder of Topserve Restaurant Consulting, author of "How To Improve Dining Room Service." If you'd like to improve your restaurants' reputation and increase sales, contact Richard today for a Free Initial Restaurant Consultation by calling (888) 276-4808 or visiting his Contact Page.
Cork Versus Screwcap Debate
Posted by: | CommentsFor a very long time, cork was the preferred method to seal a bottle of wine. There has been much debate over the past few years as to what the best method is for sealing off a bottle, cork, plastic cork or screw caps.
Current estimates predict that roughly 6 percent of all wine bottled with a traditional cork will fall victim to TCA (2,4,6-Trichloroanisole), a bacteria that thrives in cork. Some of you might have even had a spoilt bottle of wine and not really noticed it. Even a very small amount of TCA in a bottle of wine can ruin it. Most become aware of TCA in quantities as small as 5 parts per trillion. When TCA is present in quantities high enough to be evident to a person, it comes across as ‘musty’ aromas and flavors. TCA in wine is not toxic, but the taste and aromas can be quite unsettling.
Another issue that seems to have people leaning away from traditional cork is the fact that cork can dry out and allow air to oxidize a bottle of wine. This can happen if a bottle is not stored correctly. Storing a bottle of wine on its side helps a cork remain moist and a moist cork expands better to seal the inside of the bottle. A dry cork shrinks allowing air to enter spoiling the wine. Read More→
Why Australia For Fine Wines?
Posted by: | CommentsAustralia, the land DownUnder, has become a major and exciting force in international wines. Australian wine is taking the world by storm, due to the quality of the grape stock combined with the skill and experience of its winemakers. This enables it to produce a superb and wide range of Australian wine styles.
- Image by John Niedermeyer via Flickr
This island continent features wines as varied as its terrain. Most people know of Australian Shiraz – that fruit-forward wine now known and enjoyed around the world. These fabulous ‘fruit bombs’ represent but a small part of the overall Australian winemaking scene.
Australia is sometimes described as the perfect wine producing country. It has a land mass as great as the United States or Western Europe, with a diverse climate from cold to cool to warm, and a wide variety of soil types, including the famous Coonawarra terra rossa. These natural advantages coupled with the irrepressible free-spirited character of the Australian people, has encouraged Australian winemakers to build on the great traditions of winemaking, to create delicious wines of stunning quality, diversity and uniqueness.
Wines from Australia are usually denoted by their grape variety. Aside from Shiraz, Australia also produces fine Chardonnay, Semillon, Riesling, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and plenty of Cab-Shiraz blends plus some distinct Aussie wines. And don’t forget the Australian sparking whites and reds – just the wines to keep your taste buds tingling.
Delicious concentrated ripe fruit, harvested at the peak of perfection is easier to obtain in Australia than almost anywhere else in the world. Australian wines are a delight on your palette with their different aromas, flavours and taste sensations crafted from each of the different grapes, blends and regions.
Go and visit DownUnder, you won’t be disappointed. If you don’t have the time just now, you can take a Wine Tour around this amazing country through the AussieWinesOnline.com website and experience the people, places and those incomparable Aussie wines.
About the Author: Lindsay Lewis is the Marketing Director of AussieWinesOnline.com an Australian company providing Worldwide home delivery of the finest, estate-grown Australian wines from specialty Australian Wineries.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=2076491b-dbed-4ca6-b99c-34e7faa0be36)
Méthode Champenoise, The Art Of Champagne
Posted by: | CommentsAs touched upon in my article “Making Red, Rose and Sparkling” wine, there are three different ways to create the bubbles in sparkling wine or Champagne. The first method was carbonation, the same method used to make a can of soda fizzy and also the cheapest method for making sparkling wine. Method number two was called the transfer method in which a sweetened base has yeast added to it and is allowed to ferment a second time in an enclosed tank so the building carbon dioxide cannot escape. After fermentation, the wine is then clarified and re-sweetened if necessary before being bottled under pressure. This method is used to produce medium price range sparkling wine. The last method and most complex is méthode champenoise, used in creating the best quality wines. But what exactly is méthode champenoise?
The méthode champenoise starts with the first fermentation held in either small oak barrels or large steel vats with temperature controls. The use of oak barrels is less common, however. After this first fermentation is complete, the wine is put through malolactic fermentation. This is when the wine maker takes hundreds of different fermented batches of wine from different vintages and grapes and blends them together. This new mixture is then sealed in bottles with a wine-sugar liqueur called “liqueur de tirage” and yeast. Fermentation happens inside the sealed bottles from one to three years typically and creates a build up of carbon dioxide. Read More→
I Love French Wine And Food – A White Beaujolais
Posted by: | CommentsIf you are looking for fine French wine and food, consider the Beaujolais region of southeastern France. You may find a bargain, and I hope that you’ll have fun on this fact-filled wine education tour in which we review a local white Beaujolais wine.
Among France’s eleven wine-growing regions Beaujolais perhaps surprisingly ranks number eight in total acreage devoted to the grape. However, it is one of the best-known wine regions to a large degree because of the enormously successful Beaujolais Nouveau marketing campaign. I review Beaujolais Nouveau wine in a companion article in this series.
Beaujolais wine is usually, but not always, red. Beaujolais white wine comes from a variety of grapes including Chardonnay as in the wine reviewed below, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, and Aligoté.
There are no cities in the entire region so tourists will have to be satisfied with the 14 mile (23 kilometer) Beaujolais wine route and its villages. Most of them are. This wine route is home to nine of the Beaujolais grands crus including Chiroubles, reviewed in a companion article.
Not far from the wine route is Villars-les-Dombes (population four thousand) with an excellent bird sanctuary, including four hundred species of birds. Continue south to the medieval walled town of Pérouges (population about one thousand) on a hilltop. This town was the setting for the movie The Three Musketeers.
Before reviewing the Beaujolais wine and imported cheeses that we were lucky enough to purchase at a local wine store and a local Italian food store, here are a few suggestions of what to eat with indigenous wines when touring this beautiful region. Start with Cuisses de Grenouilles (Frogs Legs). For your second course savor Quenelles de Brochet (Poached Fish Dumplings). And as dessert indulge yourself with Galettes de Pérouges (Pérouges Pancakes).
OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review are purchased at the full retail price.
Wine Reviewed Pisse-Dru Beaujolais Blanc 2004 12.9% alcohol about $10.00
Let’s start by quoting the marketing materials. The name “Pisse-Dru” comes from an amusing French vintners expression: when an old vigneron says with a smile of satisfaction on his face, “ça pisse dru”, it means that the vintage he has just tasted is to his liking and that the fresh juice of the grape will grow into a perfect and delicious bottle of wine.
Yellow-green color with hints of gold. Fine and fruity on the nose, this wine shows aromas of quince and small yellow plum with some floral nuances. A very pleasant wine with a long finish. Serve chilled with hors d’oeuvres, grilled seafood, cold-cuts, poultry with light cream sauce and cold pasta salads. And now for the review.
My first meal consisted of barbecued chicken with potatoes cooked in chicken fat and green beans in tomato sauce. The wine had a nice tingling taste and was refreshingly acidic. It really cut the grease of this quite greasy meal.
My next pairing was with a commercial chicken pot pie perked up by a Chinese hot sauce. This Beaujolais Blanc was once again refreshingly acidic, light and fruity. But it was fairly short and overpowered by a hot sauce that wasn’t very hot. The wine had no such problem with poppy seed cake.
My final meal was an omelet with brown mushrooms, local provolone cheese, and the fixings. I was surprised and somewhat disappointed that the wine was quite light when paired with a mild-tasting omelet.
I next tried this wine with an Italian Bel Paese, a mild buttery cheese that people suggest to accompany fruity wines or to be eaten alone as a snack or a dessert. This pairing was a relative success; the cheese seemed to soften the wine’s acid and bring out its fruit.
My last tasting was with a French Saint-Aubin, a soft cow’s milk cheese traditionally packed in a wooden box. This cheese has a creamy brie-like texture and a stronger taste. The cheese was a little strong for the wine.
Final verdict. Like most people I know, I have a limited budget. This wine was fine for the price. It doesn’t go well with everything, most wines don’t. But it goes very well with food that I really like (barbecued chicken and greasy potatoes), and I am planning to buy it again.
Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on computers and the Internet, but to be honest, he would rather just drink fine Italian or other wine, accompanied by the right foods. He teaches classes in computers at an Ontario French-language community college. Presently his wine websites are http://www.theworldwidewine.com and http://www.theitalianwineconnection.com
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Levi_Reiss
