Wine In Luminae

[DaKahuna]

 Looking at the menu's for Luminae for our upcoming sailing on Millennium and am rather disappointed at what is being shown on the menu in the app.  According to the app there are four red wines on the menu, of which only one is available without and up charge.  Two of the remaining three are wines I had on the DBP on our last cruise but are now $19.  The fourth is the Opulance with is now showing as $25 a glass. 

 

 I was hoping, based on the Webinar with Laura I was hoping for a larger / better selection of wines.  Then again this could just be another failure of Celebrity IT to keep information update.  

 

[zitsky]

DBP = Deluxe Beverage Package???

 

I don't remember the wines in Luminae being that special.  I will drink almost anything but I was a little dismayed when the sommelier offered me something from Lodi, CA from the premium package.  Livermore I would have said, no problem, but I haven't found many Lodi wines that deserve to be on the Premium list.  I'd rather drink wine from North Carolina.

 

I wasn't aware of this webinar with the President.  When was it?

Edited April 26 by zitsky

[Baynanno1]

Like many others, we were also disappointed in the move out of the Premium Package of several of the most popular wines and the subsequent upcharge on those wines.

Wines will not necessarily be those on the list. I'm sure the Sommelier will do their best to accommodate your tastes without an upcharge if possible.

 

We are red wine drinkers and were offered a Merlot on the second night of our recent cruise. It was an easy drinking wine, flowing from pre-dinner, through dinner and after dinner back in Michael's Club on Solstice. We were surprised to find when we picked up a wine list while passing through another area, that the Columbia Crest Merlot from Washington State Wineries was included in the Classic Package!

[1Virgo]

Decoy was back on in Luminae last month on Ascent. Wonder if wine available is dependent on ship. there were many that we used to get in Luminae not there

[Northern Aurora]

We left the Millennium on April 21st following a B2B.  Decoy was available in Luminae and the Retreat Lounge.

[81Zoomie]

We saw a quote at a winery in McLaren Vale, Australia last month that said, “…Never give bad wine a second sip….”  We took it to heart and paid a little extra by the glass to drink Emmolo Merlot and Opulance Cab on many nights.  When we were feeling like anything might do we paid a tiny bit extra for the Kendall Jackson Cab. If you just ask the wine steward for a cab in Laminae, he/she will most likely pour you a glass of Chateau Souverain 😝.  Honestly, Celebrity should be embarrassed by the wines they are including in the Retreat and Luminae.  YMMV.

 

 

Edited April 27 by 81Zoomie

[Jim_Iain]

I don't think the menu is particularly all inclusive.    I know that Decoy is back and in the Premium Package.   I also noticed they had Malbec at $17.   The Sommelier on Solstice seems to be doing a good job finding wines within package prices.  

 

Iain drinks Chardonnay and is very happy with Louis Jadot 'Macon-Villages"

[jelayne]

We are on the Edge and don’t bother with the printed list of wines on the Premium beverage package.  We tell the Sommlier what we have having for dinner and let them recommend wines.  We have had some nice wines that we were not familiar with in Luminae, Blu and 2 of the MDRs.

[DaKahuna]

2 hours ago, 1Virgo said:

Decoy was back on in Luminae last month on Ascent. Wonder if wine available is dependent on ship.

 

 Decoy is not on the Luminae wine list.  Castle Rock Pinto Noit $17; Cune Crianza $19; Conundrum Red Blend $19; Opulance Grchich Hills Carbernet Sauvignon $25  are the only ones showing.  

 

 Blu is doing better with two $17 wines -- Alta Vista Malbec and Benziger Merlot.  

 

 

5 hours ago, Baynanno1 said:

I'm sure the Sommelier will do their best to accommodate your tastes without an upcharge if possible.

 

 i am counting on it.  I noticed that almost all of the wines that I had in Luminae on our cruise last year, e.g. Cherry Tart, Conundrum, Elegance have all been priced at $19.  The only one that was moved back into the DBP was the Decoy.  

 

 Oh well, it's going to be a challenge for the Sommelier for sure. 

 

[DaKahuna]

1 minute ago, jelayne said:

We are on the Edge and don’t bother with the printed list of wines on the Premium beverage package.  We tell the Sommlier what we have having for dinner and let them recommend wines.  We have had some nice wines that we were not familiar with in Luminae, Blu and 2 of the MDRs.

 

 This has worked well for me in the past and I plan to take a similar approach this time around.   Just find it strange that the menu on the app is showing so few choices for Luminae.

 

[jelayne]

6 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 

 This has worked well for me in the past and I plan to take a similar approach this time around.   Just find it strange that the menu on the app is showing so few choices for Luminae.

 

Decoy is definitely on the Premium package, but we have had wines we like better from the sommelier.  We did pay the upcharge for Red Condundrum 1 night and also had it a 2nd.Night with no charge.

[1Virgo]

10 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 

 Decoy is not on the Luminae wine list.  Castle Rock Pinto Noit $17; Cune Crianza $19; Conundrum Red Blend $19; Opulance Grchich Hills Carbernet Sauvignon $25  are the only ones showing.  

 

 Blu is doing better with two $17 wines -- Alta Vista Malbec and Benziger Merlot.  

 

 

 

 i am counting on it.  I noticed that almost all of the wines that I had in Luminae on our cruise last year, e.g. Cherry Tart, Conundrum, Elegance have all been priced at $19.  The only one that was moved back into the DBP was the Decoy.  

 

 Oh well, it's going to be a challenge for the Sommelier for sure. 

 

 

 

DaKahuna. Obviously you were not on the Ascent last month, on our cruise, in Luminae 

 

When the Sommelier brings a bottle of wine that says DECOY, and, has the duck on it, it is Decoy.    

 

Oh. I do believe others have said Celebrity wine lists are not always accurate.  FYI. There were other wines not listed, but were there.   
 

Never ceases to amaze us those that choose to contradict someone that posts about what they ve seen or experienced when those people were not there.  

[zitsky]

10 minutes ago, 1Virgo said:

 

 

DaKahuna. Obviously you were not on the Ascent last month, on our cruise, in Luminae 

 

When the Sommelier brings a bottle of wine that says DECOY, and, has the duck on it, it is Decoy.    

 

Oh. I do believe others have said Celebrity wine lists are not always accurate.  FYI. There were other wines not listed, but were there.   
 

Never ceases to amaze us those that choose to contradict someone that posts about what they ve seen or experienced when those people were not there.  

 I had Duckhorn, not Decoy in Tuscan on Eclipse.

[Liao]

30 minutes ago, 1Virgo said:

 

 

DaKahuna. Obviously you were not on the Ascent last month, on our cruise, in Luminae 

 

When the Sommelier brings a bottle of wine that says DECOY, and, has the duck on it, it is Decoy.    

 

Oh. I do believe others have said Celebrity wine lists are not always accurate.  FYI. There were other wines not listed, but were there.   
 

Never ceases to amaze us those that choose to contradict someone that posts about what they ve seen or experienced when those people were not there.  

Exactly!  I don't know why people pay so much attention to the app anyway, esp. if so far out from their cruise and/or if just perusing in their spare time from home.  I can't tell you how many times my wiater in Luminae has said don't worry if you don't see something on the menu, just let me know and I will do my best to get it for you if it is on the ship.

Edited April 27 by Liao
Sp

[miched]

11 hours ago, jelayne said:

We are on the Edge and don’t bother with the printed list of wines on the Premium beverage package.  We tell the Sommlier what we have having for dinner and let them recommend wines.  We have had some nice wines that we were not familiar with in Luminae, Blu and 2 of the MDRs.

We do the same.  Most times the wines listed aren’t available.  I think they are there just to fill the menu.  
 

The sommelier also seems to like having the freedom of being able to recommend something.   One of the reasons we enjoy a cruise is to be able to try different entrees, and drinks that we normally wouldn’t have.  
 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[DaKahuna]

42 minutes ago, 1Virgo said:

When the Sommelier brings a bottle of wine that says DECOY, and, has the duck on it, it is Decoy.    

 

 I am very familiar with Decoy and have had it many times on Celebrity.  I was just commenting about it not appearing on the wine list for Luminae.  I am positive that if I order it I will receive it. 

 

19 minutes ago, Liao said:

Exactly!  I don't know why people pay so much attention to the app anyway, esp. if so far out from their cruise and/or if just perusing in their spare time from home.

 

Our cruise sails Wednesday 5/2, that's not that "so far out."

 

[George C]

We were on summit last month, retreat didn’t have decoy on first visit , we asked for it and it was there rest of the week, Luminae had that all week , plus a Chianti Classico that I liked , we also bought on two good bottles and traded our champagne for two more bottles of red wine, if you have a drink package you should not be charged a corkage, I did have a argument with staff of Le Petit Chef on that , I won the argument with help from concierge.

Edited April 27 by George C

[paulh84]

I never look at the wine lists. Just ask what they recommend, or ask if they have any suggestions by the glass that are not on the menu. The Chateau Souverain cab they try to slip in is terrible. And despite the chokehold Decoy apparently has on Celebrity guests, I don’t want it every night either.

[MandL]

35 minutes ago, paulh84 said:

I never look at the wine lists. Just ask what they recommend, or ask if they have any suggestions by the glass that are not on the menu. The Chateau Souverain cab they try to slip in is terrible. And despite the chokehold Decoy apparently has on Celebrity guests, I don’t want it every night either.

Agreed. And our fall back Pinot Noir is the Celebrity Elegance.  We just returned from the Millennium (in Luminae). Not a lot of choices, but the Sommelier tried his best.  We finally purchased a bottle of good wine towards the end of the cruise that couldn’t be purchased by the glass.  That’s how they hold back the best wines.  

[Folsomdoc]

We sailed Apex a few weeks ago. We live in N. California so we are spoiled. But, the wine selection in Luminae, the Retreat Lounge-atrocious. The upcharge is one thing. But, as I stated on another post, given the world is awash in good wines at reasonable prices it’s a disgrace that a company with the buying clout of RCG can’t do better. We are researching other higher end cruise lines as that was a major disappointment. 

[DaKahuna]

2 hours ago, MandL said:

We finally purchased a bottle of good wine towards the end of the cruise that couldn’t be purchased by the glass.  That’s how they hold back the best wines.  

 

 This is my fear.  I know I should not really trust the app before we board but it is interesting that since my initial post, one additional wine was added in Luminae.  Blu is still showing more selections.  I just am not looking forward to an upcharge every time I want a glass of Elegance. 

Real world problems right! 

 

[markeb]

5 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 I am very familiar with Decoy and have had it many times on Celebrity.  I was just commenting about it not appearing on the wine list for Luminae.  I am positive that if I order it I will receive it. 

 

 

Decoy is showing up for Summit next month in Luminae, at $17. Not that it represents some great buy or great wine, but it is available in the app. But it's a pretty pathetic by the glass list for Luminae! I'd probably pay the upcharge for the Kiona Merlot under protest, but there's no way on earth (or anywhere else) that I'd pay $2.40 more for Conundrum!

 

4 hours ago, paulh84 said:

I never look at the wine lists. Just ask what they recommend, or ask if they have any suggestions by the glass that are not on the menu. The Chateau Souverain cab they try to slip in is terrible. And despite the chokehold Decoy apparently has on Celebrity guests, I don’t want it every night either.

 

Unfortunately, I've not found on my more recent sailings any real ability of the server to suggest a wine. It's more of a "do you want a cab or a merlot?" discussion, if they have a merlot available. With rare exceptions, they're just not that skilled at wine pairings. Admittedly, it's a 7-14 day menu so it would be harder to match on the fly, but I'd think they'd work up pairings ahead of time. And agree on Decoy... (Now if they had Duckhorn, it would be a different story.)

 

1 hour ago, Folsomdoc said:

We sailed Apex a few weeks ago. We live in N. California so we are spoiled. But, the wine selection in Luminae, the Retreat Lounge-atrocious. The upcharge is one thing. But, as I stated on another post, given the world is awash in good wines at reasonable prices it’s a disgrace that a company with the buying clout of RCG can’t do better. We are researching other higher end cruise lines as that was a major disappointment. 

 

I'll wish you luck on the research. A number of folks have talked about Regent and their all included model. It took some work, but I tracked down one of their wine lists (here on Cruise Critic, I believe) and while all (that I looked at anyway) their by the glass offerings were included, they were still pretty pedestrian wines. The French restaurant onboard did have an interesting selection of French wines that I'd probably try.

 

 

I'm reluctantly accepting that the drink package is a better deal for cocktails, maybe rum, and some whiskies. So far the martinis are included, although I'm more of a whisky cocktail person. The wines are not great, and many aren't even that good. The best benefit to the package if you want a nice glass of wine with dinner is probably the bottle discount. That just makes it more difficult to have a different glass of wine with your courses or for my wife and I to have a different wine based on what we're ordering. The "other reds and whites" that were once a key feature of the Luminae wine list aren't in the app anymore. And if they're onboard the servers (I largely refuse to call them sommeliers) rarely offer them unless you really ask.

[cruzzzinma]

5 hours ago, MandL said:

 We finally purchased a bottle of good wine towards the end of the cruise that couldn’t be purchased by the glass.  That’s how they hold back the best wines.  

The sommeliers used to have the ability to provide those wines by glass if the number of glasses at the premium package top price totaled more than the bottle price. I admit is has been a long time.

[cruzzzinma]

1 hour ago, markeb said:

Unfortunately, I've not found on my more recent sailings any real ability of the server to suggest a wine. It's more of a "do you want a cab or a merlot?" discussion, if they have a merlot available. With rare exceptions, they're just not that skilled at wine pairings. Admittedly, it's a 7-14 day menu so it would be harder to match on the fly, but I'd think they'd work up pairings ahead of time. And agree on Decoy... (Now if they had Duckhorn, it would be a different story.)

Agree, agree, agree!!!

[fac429]

Where are people finding the wines available in Luminae for their cruise?  Our sailing is in June, and all I see are the two "featured" wines.  Are we too far out from our cruise?  Or am I looking in the wrong place (I'm currently checking where the dinner menus are located in the app)?  Thanks!