Current Lists of Wine on Board (2022/23)

[Grand Cru]

Having just got off on a on a 37day cruise on the western coast and east coast of South of South Africa I have to say that Azamara included wines are not good the French Sauvignon Blanc is so acidic, they are buying cheap and putting there logo on the bottle, Avoid.

[KevintheIrishDJ]

At Tony's (HD) Q&A last week, he said the current policy is 12 bottles at all times. He hopes for 8 bottles of better quality.

[Vineyard View]

1 hour ago, Grand Cru said:

Having just got off on a on a 37day cruise on the western coast and east coast of South of South Africa I have to say that Azamara included wines are not good the French Sauvignon Blanc is so acidic, they are buying cheap and putting there logo on the bottle, Avoid.

I hope you had an opportunity to pick up some So African wines to supplement. We spent a few days in their wine country post safaris and they have some excellent wines. But that said, what a shame to have only cheap wines available for 37 days!

[Host Jazzbeau]

5 minutes ago, Vineyard View said:

I hope you had an opportunity to pick up some So African wines to supplement. We spent a few days in their wine country post safaris and they have some excellent wines. But that said, what a shame to have only cheap wines available for 37 days!

You can always get better wine if it's important to you.  The wine cellar has many good choices, available by the bottle (and the Connoisseur Wine Package gives a good discount on the medium-range ones).

 

Meanwhile, Oceania doesn't have any free alcohol – and their forum is in an uproar about massive increases in the prices of their drinks packages.  My take is: if wine is important to you, take charge of your wine by bringing or buying it instead of relying on pre-chosen packages.

[lisiamc]

1 hour ago, KevintheIrishDJ said:

At Tony's (HD) Q&A last week, he said the current policy is 12 bottles at all times. He hopes for 8 bottles of better quality.

I will add that when Onward ran out of the included Pinotage, they substituted one from the Ultimate package, the very satisfactory MAN Pinotage.

[KevintheIrishDJ]

15 hours ago, lisiamc said:

I will add that when Onward ran out of the included Pinotage, they substituted one from the Ultimate package, the very satisfactory MAN Pinotage.

Our waitress recommended Pinotage and we enjoyed it.

[uktog]

Nice idea to drop from 12 to 8 wines but he’s not thought that one through. Unless I’m mistaken they operate with 10/11 4 white (Riesling Chardonnay Pinot and Sauvignon Blanc), 4 red (pinotage, cab sauv, merlot and a Zinfandel or equivalent, 1 sometimes 2 rose and one sparkling. If they drop the types down some guests will be unhappy and understandably so. 

Im not sure what cutting the selection achieves if as is implied they might pay more for a bottle. Given the rate of consumption they should be able to manage wastage so reducing choice only (adversely) impacts the guests. . (One way they can save a little to contribute to better wind is that at dessert time instead of automatically opening a fresh bottle before approaching a guest to offer a top up check first they want one. If open wine is not kept overnight I’m sure they could save a little each night and guests wouldn’t notice). 

[federalexpress]

I think what Jazzbeau says is probably right. All cruise lines are in recovery mode post Covid, many with extreme levels of debt. Not a good recipe given monetary tightening. So they need to focus on margin which means revenue improvement, including onboard, and cost control. On largely inclusive ships like AZ, it has to be towards the latter, or raise your base cruise price.

 

Some of this can I think be accommodated without too much harm on the core offering. For example some lines are cutting the stateroom servicing from twice a day to once a day. Frankly that is something I'd barely notice.

 

For AZ, cutting from 12 wines to 8 implies the possibility of increasing order size by up to 50%, presumably with the expectation of bulk discounts. I don't believe they would have problems with supply, they are after all buying mass produced bulk wines. It might save a little, especially on labelling and bottle runs given the relatively small order quantities but I'd be surprised if it was more than 5-10%. Can't see it being possible to increase quality and margin at the same time.

 

The same will apply on the Ultimate package. Unless they put the price of that up(which I suspect they will do in the next 6 months or so), they have to cut the quality of the offering, which seems to be what they are doing at present. In the end, the Ultimate package might be the real base if you want to have even remotely palatable wines. Maybe that is what they actually want people to do.

 

Note to uktog, I would hope and assume they have bottle closures, if only a cheap vacuvin. That will keep even basic wines fresh enough overnight, especially chilled whites and rose. Sparkling wine- that's trickier. I'll bet that's where most of their wastage cost is...

[Vineyard View]

18 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

You can always get better wine if it's important to you.  The wine cellar has many good choices, available by the bottle (and the Connoisseur Wine Package gives a good discount on the medium-range ones).

 

Meanwhile, Oceania doesn't have any free alcohol – and their forum is in an uproar about massive increases in the prices of their drinks packages.  My take is: if wine is important to you, take charge of your wine by bringing or buying it instead of relying on pre-chosen packages.

Thank you for the information on the cellar and Connoisseur Package. I have not seen any of these lists, nor examples with prices. I would be interested in knowing more about these offerings. 
 

We usually do bring some of our own wine on board, regardless of whom we sail on. We have not experienced Oceania, but on Viking their package ( which is going up from $19.99/pp/day to $23.99) has had a wide range of acceptable wines, that combines with spirits of good quality,  has made it attractive.  They also charge no corkage fee. 

[luv2travel90266]

I have to agree that the Ultimate package should be the baseline and not the included wines. I suppose that by cutting the costs of the including wines might make the cruise fare more competitive, especially for the cruisers who don't drink alcohol or don't notice the differences. While I have made my comments regarding their wines choices public on this board I love everything else about the cruise line hence sailing with them again. The $10 corkage is a bargain and I'm happy to find wines to bring aboard in the ports. 

[federalexpress]

On 1/7/2023 at 4:53 PM, Vineyard View said:

Thank you for the information on the cellar and Connoisseur Package. I have not seen any of these lists, nor examples with prices. I would be interested in knowing more about these offerings. 
 

We usually do bring some of our own wine on board, regardless of whom we sail on. We have not experienced Oceania, but on Viking their package ( which is going up from $19.99/pp/day to $23.99) has had a wide range of acceptable wines, that combines with spirits of good quality,  has made it attractive.  They also charge no corkage fee. 

 

I've not sailed on Viking but I did research them as an option for my forthcoming cruise, including wine choice. If I recall, the Silver Spirits included any wine with an additional $6 per glass charge (correct me if I'm mistaken). I quite like the idea of a large range of wines by the glass priced at a level that level that reflects inclusion of a basic wine in your cruise price for those who just want to buy by the glass. I don't believe AZ do this, you have to get the package or just buy by the bottle or get a bottle package. Here's the link to drinks packages:

 

https://www.azamara.co.uk/booked-guests/onboard-packages/beverage-packages

 

One of the challenges of the Ultimate package is it seems you never know what you are going to get. There is an example selection on the AZ website but I think it's miles out of date. For example, I'd be surprised if they served Matanzas Creek Merlot as listed, which is quite a decent wine and arguably better than anything on Viking's $6 list. On the other hand they do include champagne, which I think Viking don't. Their rose is far better than anything on Viking- Whispering Angel-assuming they serve it. Overall, the quality is probably roughly similar for the two packages however the AZ choice is quite a lot narrower than Viking.

 

There is a wine list also on the website for bottle prices and details of the packages by the bottle (I think there is one covering bottles between $50 and $75). The above link shows details and the ability to download the list. But again, that list looks totally out of date to me, the file name suggests around 2014! Which means it's not much use showing you the quality of bottle you might expect. Your best bet is probably to post on the 'Anyone onboard' thread and ask if someone would post the most recent list, if you need up to date details.

[JM0115]

39 minutes ago, federalexpress said:

 

I've not sailed on Viking but I did research them as an option for my forthcoming cruise, including wine choice. If I recall, the Silver Spirits included any wine with an additional $6 per glass charge (correct me if I'm mistaken). I quite like the idea of a large range of wines by the glass priced at a level that level that reflects inclusion of a basic wine in your cruise price for those who just want to buy by the glass. I don't believe AZ do this, you have to get the package or just buy by the bottle or get a bottle package. Here's the link to drinks packages:

 

https://www.azamara.co.uk/booked-guests/onboard-packages/beverage-packages

 

One of the challenges of the Ultimate package is it seems you never know what you are going to get. There is an example selection on the AZ website but I think it's miles out of date. For example, I'd be surprised if they served Matanzas Creek Merlot as listed, which is quite a decent wine and arguably better than anything on Viking's $6 list. On the other hand they do include champagne, which I think Viking don't. Their rose is far better than anything on Viking- Whispering Angel-assuming they serve it. Overall, the quality is probably roughly similar for the two packages however the AZ choice is quite a lot narrower than Viking.

 

There is a wine list also on the website for bottle prices and details of the packages by the bottle (I think there is one covering bottles between $50 and $75). The above link shows details and the ability to download the list. But again, that list looks totally out of date to me, the file name suggests around 2014! Which means it's not much use showing you the quality of bottle you might expect. Your best bet is probably to post on the 'Anyone onboard' thread and ask if someone would post the most recent list, if you need up to date details.

Viking's Silver Spirits package, only $25 per day per person (recently up from $20) includes all drinks under $15 (which may be going up to $18 according to some reports). Pretty much the only thing you cannot get on board is the Champagne although they have a pretty good Prosecco. The wines are okay, typically can find something I like. For warm weather, we really liked the Rosés.

[federalexpress]

14 minutes ago, JM0115 said:

Viking's Silver Spirits package, only $25 per day per person (recently up from $20) includes all drinks under $15 (which may be going up to $18 according to some reports). Pretty much the only thing you cannot get on board is the Champagne although they have a pretty good Prosecco. The wines are okay, typically can find something I like. For warm weather, we really liked the Rosés.

 

How odd. I saw a list of wines from Viking showing a large range of bottles for $25 and by the glass for $6.  It had the Nederburg Pinotage and Brazin Zinfandel along with for example CVNE Crianza, Penfolds Koonunga Hill.

 

https://sandinmysuitcase.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Viking-OC-Wine-List-2021.pdf

 

All the stuff on there is on a par with AZ Ultimate, albeit Viking offers a lot more choice. The one  exception is the Caymus Mer Soleil which is a step above any white on AZ. Maybe the blog has got it wrong?

 

 

[JM0115]

1 hour ago, federalexpress said:

 

How odd. I saw a list of wines from Viking showing a large range of bottles for $25 and by the glass for $6.  It had the Nederburg Pinotage and Brazin Zinfandel along with for example CVNE Crianza, Penfolds Koonunga Hill.

 

https://sandinmysuitcase.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Viking-OC-Wine-List-2021.pdf

 

All the stuff on there is on a par with AZ Ultimate, albeit Viking offers a lot more choice. The one  exception is the Caymus Mer Soleil which is a step above any white on AZ. Maybe the blog has got it wrong?

 

 

Did I say something that is different from the blog? Sorry if I did! Wines are $6 maybe going up to $8 but are covered in the Silver Spirits Package.

[federalexpress]

1 hour ago, JM0115 said:

Did I say something that is different from the blog? Sorry if I did! Wines are $6 maybe going up to $8 but are covered in the Silver Spirits Package.

 

No problem, it may be that I misunderstood you.

 

That being so, is your impression the same as mine, very roughly the same quality as AZ Ultimate, but with a lot more choice? Maybe I've been a bit hard on AZ- so long as they don't drop the quality level much if any further...

 

PS how tight of Viking to be a buck short of a glass of champagne- $16 instead of $15. I hope they allow you to just pay the extra dollar....

 

PPS One thing I did note on ultimate is a couple of seriously expensive whiskies available, like £70-80 per bottle. Good package for the spirit connoisseurs...

[JM0115]

14 minutes ago, federalexpress said:

 

No problem, it may be that I misunderstood you.

 

That being so, is your impression the same as mine, very roughly the same quality as AZ Ultimate, but with a lot more choice? Maybe I've been a bit hard on AZ- so long as they don't drop the quality level much if any further...

 

PS how tight of Viking to be a buck short of a glass of champagne- $16 instead of $15. I hope they allow you to just pay the extra dollar....

 

PPS One thing I did note on ultimate is a couple of seriously expensive whiskies available, like £70-80 per bottle. Good package for the spirit connoisseurs...

We were on the Viking World Cruise last year during Covid. They had a lot of supply problems but we never went thirsty! 😀 we are sailing Azamara for the first time in the spring. Viking is very generous and tries to have good selections. Maybe they have a wider selection than AZ. They are probably not really great wines but I enjoyed them. Often we would finish a bottle at the buffet for dinner and sometimes at lunch too!

 

I look forward to comparing AZ to Viking and reporting my findings!

 

yes, it is a bit unfortunate that they make Champagne $1 over the limit and no you cannot just pay the difference. 🥵

[Host Jazzbeau]

People on Silversea right now are complaining about particular wines and liquors running short in the middle of every cruise.  Supply chain problems are real!

[AOUA]

Btw, how many bottles of wine are allowed from the ports? Are there any limits now?

[lisiamc]

28 minutes ago, AOUA said:

Btw, how many bottles of wine are allowed from the ports? Are there any limits now?

You’re only limited by how much you want to carry, as far as I know.

[federalexpress]

A partial update on Ultimate selection choice. On my first night I was given the wine list from which all by the glass options are included in the package. Very happy to note all the original wines promoted on the website. Ordered and got a glass of Whispering Angel rose- good start.

 

Then ordered the Sokol Blosser Pinot Noir and the Matanzas Creek Merlot. Neither forthcoming. Actually the waiter(otherwise a lovely guy) was a bit naughty because he didn't actually draw my attention to the change of Pinot. It was Robert Mondavi Private Collection. So I checked the Merlot, and was told the replacement is Francis Ford Coppola Diamond Selection. Both are a bit of step down, the former especially so. The Coppola wine was OK. But it did make me wonder that if they run out, they really should be swapping it with something at a similar price from the main list. There were more than acceptable alternatives on it- assuming those listed are not also mythical.

 

I then asked for a dessert wine (the one mentioned is the Errazuriz Late harvest SB). Waiter said there was none, he could only offer port at which point I asked for the sommelier to explain all this. He raised the supply issue, said they missed a shipment at the last post but were expecting to be re-supplied at the next port. So I'll update in a day or so. In the meantime he produced a couple of glasses of nice Sauternes.

 

I am sympathetic to supply issues however I have my doubts the wines listed are suddenly going to appear tomorrow. I am less sympathetic to passing offer cheaper wine and especially not printing out a list of what you are actually getting, rather than presented with the myth of the current list. Sommelier reckoned keeping the wine listed and 'publicised' was part of the contract but that's no use without supply! Will update if there are any developments.

[Mackdogmolly]

@federalexpress, remind me what ship you are on. Thanks.

Betsey

[federalexpress]

17 minutes ago, Mackdogmolly said:

@federalexpress, remind me what ship you are on. Thanks.

Betsey

Pursuit.

[Mackdogmolly]

46 minutes ago, federalexpress said:

Pursuit.

Thanks. I’ll be sailing on her on March 7th.

[asnaleah]

Thanks. We’re boarding February 25. I’m wondering if we should bring wine onboard. 

[wjfan417]

2 hours ago, federalexpress said:

A partial update on Ultimate selection choice. On my first night I was given the wine list from which all by the glass options are included in the package. Very happy to note all the original wines promoted on the website. Ordered and got a glass of Whispering Angel rose- good start.

 

Then ordered the Sokol Blosser Pinot Noir and the Matanzas Creek Merlot. Neither forthcoming. Actually the waiter(otherwise a lovely guy) was a bit naughty because he didn't actually draw my attention to the change of Pinot. It was Robert Mondavi Private Collection. So I checked the Merlot, and was told the replacement is Francis Ford Coppola Diamond Selection. Both are a bit of step down, the former especially so. The Coppola wine was OK. But it did make me wonder that if they run out, they really should be swapping it with something at a similar price from the main list. There were more than acceptable alternatives on it- assuming those listed are not also mythical.

 

I then asked for a dessert wine (the one mentioned is the Errazuriz Late harvest SB). Waiter said there was none, he could only offer port at which point I asked for the sommelier to explain all this. He raised the supply issue, said they missed a shipment at the last post but were expecting to be re-supplied at the next port. So I'll update in a day or so. In the meantime he produced a couple of glasses of nice Sauternes.

 

I am sympathetic to supply issues however I have my doubts the wines listed are suddenly going to appear tomorrow. I am less sympathetic to passing offer cheaper wine and especially not printing out a list of what you are actually getting, rather than presented with the myth of the current list. Sommelier reckoned keeping the wine listed and 'publicised' was part of the contract but that's no use without supply! Will update if there are any developments.

We were on 4 cruises on Quest in 2022-none had Sokol Blosser PN.