"Featured Wine" with ?Dynamic Pricing?, and a Couple of Well Priced Bottles

[NMTraveller]

I think that on my next cruise I will just bring my own bottles on board.  Between availability, serving a bottle that was opened not recently,  and skyrocketing prices the wine service on board is half baked.  A real sommelier would be nice to have.  
 

In Napa wines are served in a better manner.
 

 

Edited July 5 by NMTraveller

[markeb]

24 minutes ago, NMTraveller said:

I think that on my next cruise I will just bring my own bottles on board.  Between availability, serving a bottle that was opened not recently,  and skyrocketing prices the wine service on board is half baked.  A real sommelier would be nice to have.  
 

In Napa wines are served in a better manner.
 

 

 

I think we got spoiled by a better than average by the glass program. Compounded by the beverage packages. There have definitely been times where I would have ordered a bottle if I hadn't had a package. Probably should have anyway. Although $225 a bottle for freaking Caymus is a crime...

 

Can't find it in the app tonight, but the Penner-Ash Yamhill Carlton Pinot Noir quoted on another thread at around $100 is a good deal (for a restaurant). They also have a couple of Grand Cru Burgundies that seem outrageous at $300+, but are actually not horrible for what they are. 

 

But the by the glass program has regressed to the mean...

[NMTraveller]

2 hours ago, markeb said:

 

I think we got spoiled by a better than average by the glass program. Compounded by the beverage packages. There have definitely been times where I would have ordered a bottle if I hadn't had a package. Probably should have anyway. Although $225 a bottle for freaking Caymus is a crime...

 

 

I think that many could find a $20 bottle of Cabernet that they would be happy with under the premium package.  Bonanza,Daou, etc.  Celebrity should up their game.  Two dollar up charges are a joke.

 

For the high end bottle prices that Celebrity charges, you could join a Napa wine club, get better bottles of wine and still have 4 wine tastings in some of the exclusive rooms at the best wineries in the world.

 

Nothing on Celebrity comes close to the Napa sommeliers.

 

I am not expecting Napa level.  But I am also expecting better than Applebees.

Edited July 5 by NMTraveller

[markeb]

59 minutes ago, NMTraveller said:

I think that many could find a $20 bottle of Cabernet that they would be happy with under the premium package.  Bonanza,Daou, etc.  Celebrity should up their game.  Two dollar up charges are a joke.

 

For the high end bottle prices that Celebrity charges, you could join a Napa wine club, get better bottles of wine and still have 4 wine tastings in some of the exclusive rooms at the best wineries in the world.

 

Nothing on Celebrity comes close to the Napa sommeliers.

 

I am not expecting Napa level.  But I am also expecting better than Applebees.

 

I just don't find comparisons to retail to be that useful other than realizing a more expensive wine "may" be a better value. Typical restaurant markup is 2-3X retail for most mid-priced ($20-30 or so) wines. It can actually be higher for the $12-15 bottles as we've seen with the $17/glass for a $15/bottle wine. Celebrity is definitely on the high end on a lot of those markups. Higher priced but not rare wines tend to have a lower markup. Some of the wines around $100 a bottle on the ship aren't far from retail (others like Caymus are). And some that are higher than that are very close to retail. Which is kind of typical. Markups tend to drop as prices increase.

 

I've had amazing sommeliers in Manhattan. I don't know that I've done a sommelier led tasting in Napa or Sonoma. I've been lucky enough to do a few tastings in Napa with the winemaker. But that's different. And the French Laundry was never on my places to dine list...

 

i really miss the good Super Tuscans, Tempranillos, Alberinos, and similar "not cab sauv not chardonnay" wines that used to be on the by the glass lists. Those were always great. Not as many of them any more.

 

Absolutely, if you live where you can reasonably carry your own better wines onboard, with or without a corkage fee, you're going to be better off on price, selection, and age of the wine. Most of the onboard wines are going to be young to very young. The "sommeliers" onboard mostly aren't (although I've met some that really were). They also don't seem to have the connection to the menu that you find with most certified or advanced sommeliers. And their recommendations are limited to a frequently limited selection. Other than the bottle list, which is very good at the higher end. And pricey. Probably no more pricey than New York, Chicago, LA, or Miami restaurant prices. But certainly higher than Total Wine or similar retail prices.

 

I pretty much subscribe to the theory that life is too short to drink cheap wine. Or mediocre wine! Tonight was a 2007 Robert Mondavi Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon with burgers. Because you eventually have to drink it...

[NMTraveller]

9 hours ago, markeb said:

 

I just don't find comparisons to retail to be that useful other than realizing a more expensive wine "may" be a better value. Typical restaurant markup is 2-3X retail for most mid-priced ($20-30 or so) wines. It can actually be higher for the $12-15 bottles as we've seen with the $17/glass for a $15/bottle wine. Celebrity is definitely on the high end on a lot of those markups. Higher priced but not rare wines tend to have a lower markup. Some of the wines around $100 a bottle on the ship aren't far from retail (others like Caymus are). And some that are higher than that are very close to retail. Which is kind of typical. Markups tend to drop as prices increase.

 

I've had amazing sommeliers in Manhattan. I don't know that I've done a sommelier led tasting in Napa or Sonoma. I've been lucky enough to do a few tastings in Napa with the winemaker. But that's different. And the French Laundry was never on my places to dine list...

 

i really miss the good Super Tuscans, Tempranillos, Alberinos, and similar "not cab sauv not chardonnay" wines that used to be on the by the glass lists. Those were always great. Not as many of them any more.

 

Absolutely, if you live where you can reasonably carry your own better wines onboard, with or without a corkage fee, you're going to be better off on price, selection, and age of the wine. Most of the onboard wines are going to be young to very young. The "sommeliers" onboard mostly aren't (although I've met some that really were). They also don't seem to have the connection to the menu that you find with most certified or advanced sommeliers. And their recommendations are limited to a frequently limited selection. Other than the bottle list, which is very good at the higher end. And pricey. Probably no more pricey than New York, Chicago, LA, or Miami restaurant prices. But certainly higher than Total Wine or similar retail prices.

 

I pretty much subscribe to the theory that life is too short to drink cheap wine. Or mediocre wine! Tonight was a 2007 Robert Mondavi Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon with burgers. Because you eventually have to drink it...

Even when I compare restaurant to restaurant Celebrity per glass is priced several dollars higher.  My comparisons were with the Strat in Las Vegas.  Yet Celebrity does not have dining rooms that are on par with the Strat. More for less.

[PTC DAWG]

19 hours ago, hcat said:

same wines..diff prices at lunch & dinner?  Ripoff???

The lunch is the better deal..

[PTC DAWG]

16 hours ago, markeb said:

Why is it a ripoff and not a simple mistake? Yeah, they should be drawing from the same database, but it seems like over half the people on the board don’t trust the app. Does everyone choose to believe it when it supports a negative narrative? I mean it could be right and there are two prices, but the simplest answer is there’s an error in the app. 

I’ll add that I don’t care if they charge different prices at lunch and dinner..

[asctony]

1 hour ago, PTC DAWG said:

I’ll add that I don’t care if they charge different prices at lunch and dinner..

SMH