Queen Mary 2 - Wine List at 11th June 2022

[Host Hattie]

This latest one looks similar to what we had on Queen Victoria last cruise, only 2 NZ Sauvignon Blanc though, no Cloudy Bay.

[starquake]

Has anyone tested availability of Sake on board recently out of interest.   A disapointment on QM2 earlier in year was that several of the Sake were unavailable at time ... 

[GonzoWCS]

Thanks for this information.

 

Cheers

[jeanlyon]

Was thinking about trying a Cunard cruise, but these wines seem unbelievably expensive.  £49 a bottle for a white wine?  Or am I misreading it.

[Host Hattie]

13 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

Was thinking about trying a Cunard cruise, but these wines seem unbelievably expensive.  £49 a bottle for a white wine?  Or am I misreading it.

Have you taken into account prices are in US dollars? Don't forget there is 15% service charge added.

[PORT ROYAL]

8 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

Was thinking about trying a Cunard cruise, but these wines seem unbelievably expensive.  £49 a bottle for a white wine?  Or am I misreading it.

Don’t judge, then dismiss, a Cunard Voyage on the price of a bottle wine.  
There is so much more to enjoy, but remember having experienced the service, ambiance, dining, lectures etc., plus the Cunarders, there will be no going back.  

Also, Cunard treat their guests as responsible adults with their unenforced generous alcohol boarding allowances.

Book and enjoy one’s first Voyage.  With regard negative thoughts regarding dining room Wine prices, do consider taking a boarded bottle to the dining room and pay the $25 corkage.

[LittleFish1976]

17 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

Was thinking about trying a Cunard cruise, but these wines seem unbelievably expensive.  £49 a bottle for a white wine?  Or am I misreading it.

You don't have to spend that much - I can see lots of bottles of white in the $30's. They also serve very good wines by the glass. There's quite a lot of choice as well as the ability to bring your own wine on board.

[exlondoner]

32 minutes ago, LittleFish1976 said:

You don't have to spend that much - I can see lots of bottles of white in the $30's. They also serve very good wines by the glass. There's quite a lot of choice as well as the ability to bring your own wine on board.

The house wines come to just about the same as those in the family hotel we stay in in Devon, more than Aldi obviously, but hardly unbelievably expensive.

[jeanlyon]

15 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

The house wines come to just about the same as those in the family hotel we stay in in Devon, more than Aldi obviously, but hardly unbelievably expensive.

In our local places in Devon, wine is about £21.  Even taking into account dollars, it's still very pricey.  And then 15% on top?

[D&N]

@jeanlyon

I believe prices on P&O are cheaper. I note you frequently contribute on their forums.

The only direct comparison I've found at an initial glance is a Romanian Pinot Grigio.

On P&O it seems to sell at £19.95, on Cunard it is $28 + 15%. Today I would get $1.24 to the pound using my usual foreign exchange site, so about £26. I don't know if P&O have a bar service charge.

Cunard are obviously more expensive than P&O.

I wouldn't be sailing on P&O since they don't have an ocean liner or regularly do Transatlantic, but the choice of wine on P&O seems very restrictive. I'd consider drinking less than a third of the wines on the 2 page menu I found, and there is nothing I would drink with a decent red meat dish.

[NE John]

The waiter will also seal and hold the  bottle of unused wine until the next evening  to further encourage buying wine by the bottle. 
Everything on Cunard is priced in dollars, not pounds. 

[PORT ROYAL]

43 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

In our local places in Devon, wine is about £21.  Even taking into account dollars, it's still very pricey.  And then 15% on top?

One appears to be fixated on the price of Cunard Wines as a reason not to book.   The Cunard experience is more than just the price of wine, as one will discover when taking a Voyage.

[D&N]

I found a slightly more extensive P&O drinks list, and a few more direct comparisons.

On average Cunard are probably about 70% more expensive on exact same bottles.

But like others have questioned; is that a reason not to book? You could just drink the cheaper wines, which are generally light and quaffable. If you drink 6 to 8 150ml glasses a day, the drinks package would probably save money as well. Most of the wines by glass are in the $34-$40/bottle group.

 

[rakkor]

This is a discussion I had with my Father in Law on a previous cruise when he was shocked at the cost of the wines as part of the Commodore's Wine Package - I pointed out to him that although he could get a bottle of Cloudy Bay in Majestic (a UK Wine Warehouse) for £26 per bottle if he ordered it in Gaucho's (a UK Steakhouse chain) it was £80 on their wine menu, significantly more than £48 we paid on Cunard

 

.Brochure Wine Package Cunard.pdf

[exlondoner]

12 minutes ago, rakkor said:

This is a discussion I had with my Father in Law on a previous cruise when he was shocked at the cost of the wines as part of the Commodore's Wine Package - I pointed out to him that although he could get a bottle of Cloudy Bay in Majestic (a UK Wine Warehouse) for £26 per bottle if he ordered it in Gaucho's (a UK Steakhouse chain) it was £80 on their wine menu, significantly more than £48 we paid on Cunard

 

.Brochure Wine Package Cunard.pdf

Which does give rise to the question of which steak you might eat with Cloudy Bay. 😀

[jeanlyon]

No it wasn't just the price of the wine, it was the 15% service charge, then the gratuities, and then on top of that the price of the cruise itself.  Guess I will stick with what I know.

[PORT ROYAL]

21 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

No it wasn't just the price of the wine, it was the 15% service charge, then the gratuities, and then on top of that the price of the cruise itself.  Guess I will stick with what I know.

Understand now, as one’s objection to Cunard is the exceeding of various price points.  
Hope one will take a future voyage to judge the benefits of Cunard without having any negative price constraint thoughts.  Think one will enjoy.

Edited April 24, 2023 by PORT ROYAL
Typo

[Cathygh]

On 4/24/2023 at 1:59 PM, jeanlyon said:

No it wasn't just the price of the wine, it was the 15% service charge, then the gratuities, and then on top of that the price of the cruise itself.  Guess I will stick with what I know.

The service charge is something most cruise lines add on. On some it's 18%. I have sailed on P&O and Cunard and it does annoy me that you have to pay more for an identical drink on Cunard than you would with P&O especially as both lines buy from the same wholesaler. However the Cunard experience is superior and you are paying for a 5 star service, so why not try it and see? 

[jeanlyon]

On 4/26/2023 at 4:23 PM, Cathygh said:

The service charge is something most cruise lines add on. On some it's 18%. I have sailed on P&O and Cunard and it does annoy me that you have to pay more for an identical drink on Cunard than you would with P&O especially as both lines buy from the same wholesaler. However the Cunard experience is superior and you are paying for a 5 star service, so why not try it and see? 

No, I couldn't justify that kind of money when I don't have to.  P&O and Fred will do.  It was only a thought.  Last sailed on a Cunard ship in 1969 (QE2)

[PORT ROYAL]

4 hours ago, jeanlyon said:

No, I couldn't justify that kind of money when I don't have to.  P&O and Fred will do.  It was only a thought.  Last sailed on a Cunard ship in 1969 (QE2)

Hopefully, some day in the future, one will think “I know I will not spend if I don’t have to, but I now wish to, and experience all that Cunard offers”.

[2Oldpeopleinlove]

On 4/29/2023 at 9:05 AM, PORT ROYAL said:

Hopefully, some day in the future, one will think “I know I will not spend if I don’t have to, but I now wish to, and experience all that Cunard offers”.

The “problem” with that, Port Royal, is that once one DOES try Cunard, esp QM2, other lines no longer exist (at least for us).

[Winifred 22]

I agreed.I started with P &O took a Cunard cruise and that was it. Smitten . First choice for me now. Having said that I was booked on the cancelled QM2 in April, all I could get on  was P&O Britannia and I must admit I had a good time. Of course it wasn’t the same but it was a good second. Couldn’t fault the value and to be honest the food was as good as Britannia restaurant. Few differences.

[Lord Haw Haw]

On 5/16/2023 at 6:11 AM, Winifred 22 said:

I agreed.I started with P &O took a Cunard cruise and that was it. Smitten . First choice for me now. Having said that I was booked on the cancelled QM2 in April, all I could get on  was P&O Britannia and I must admit I had a good time. Of course it wasn’t the same but it was a good second. Couldn’t fault the value and to be honest the food was as good as Britannia restaurant. Few differences.

Wow, wait till you try a luxury cruise line. I started with Crunard which was lovely but then got serious.

 

I really don't want to burst anyones bubble but horses for courses.

[Winifred 22]

10 minutes ago, Lord Haw Haw said:

Wow, wait till you try a luxury cruise line. I started with Crunard which was lovely but then got serious.

 

I really don't want to burst anyones bubble but horses for courses.

No courses for me.Cunard is at the top of my price range. No desire to cruise less often by spending more on upscaling. I’ve known some people spend more per night than I do on my whole cruise !! 100% their choice but not mine. Can’t see the point . Cunard ticks all my boxes so that’s a no from me. 😀🚢

 

[Lord Haw Haw]

4 minutes ago, Winifred 22 said:

No courses for me.Cunard is at the top of my price range. No desire to cruise less often by spending more on upscaling. I’ve known some people spend more per night than I do on my whole cruise !! 100% their choice but not mine. Can’t see the point . Cunard ticks all my boxes so that’s a no from me. 😀🚢

 

As I said horses for course, best of luck and keep on sailing...I just like to keep an open mind.