The Vintage Standard
Five steps that keep the wine list true to the cellar. A changed vintage is a small fact, and a large one when the guest finds it on the label alone.
- Who
- Head sommelier, with the sommeliers and servers on shift
- When
- Before every service, and the moment a wine sells out
- You need
- The printed list, the cellar count, tonight’s change slip
- Measured by
- List checked against stock before service
- Change told before the bottle is opened
- List corrected within 7 days
5 steps
01
Check the cellar
Thirty minutes before service, compare the list with the cellar count. Any wine with fewer than two bottles left, or a new vintage in stock, goes on the change slip read out at the briefing.
Say this
“Changes tonight: Meursault now 2021, not 2020. Two Sassicaia left. Rioja Reserva sold out.”
Common mistake Checking stock on the screen only. The system says six bottles; the cellar has four and a broken case.
02
Say it first
When the bottle in stock is not the vintage on the list, tell the host before you fetch it, in one sentence, with what the change means in the glass. Then the host decides: the same wine or another.
Say this
“The list says 2020, Mrs Tanaka. We now have the 2021, a little fresher. Shall I bring it, or suggest another?”
Common mistake Presenting the new vintage and hoping the host won’t read the label. The host who does stops trusting the rest of the list.
03
Offer one alternative
When a wine has sold out, offer one alternative straight away: same grape or region, same style, within about 10% of the price. Name it before the guest has to ask what else there is.
Say this
“We poured the last of that on Saturday, Mr Weber. The same grower’s Riesling from the next slope is very close.”
Common mistake Saying “we’re out” and handing the list back. The guest starts again from page one and orders more cautiously.
04
Correct the list
Mark every change on the master list the same night. Update the printed and digital list within 7 days, and until then every server carries the change slip in their pocket.
Say this
“Master list updated 14 Oct: Meursault 2021, Rioja Reserva removed. Reprint ordered for Friday.”
Common mistake Waiting for the spring reprint. For months the list offers wines the cellar no longer has.
05
Decide the line
Within 48 hours of a sell-out, decide with purchasing whether to reorder, replace or retire the wine. Note which alternative guests accepted; it is often the wine that should take its place.
Say this
“Rioja Reserva out. 5 of 6 tables took the Ribera instead. Proposal: list the Ribera.”
Common mistake Reordering the same wine out of habit. The tables that took the alternative have already told you what they prefer.
Our Sold-Out Plan
The three wines on your list most likely to change this month, and what the floor offers in their place. Fill it in for your own cellar.
Our fastest seller
- Wine and vintage on list
- Bottles left today
- Alternative to offer
- Price difference
Our rarest bottle
- Wine and vintage on list
- Bottles left today
- Alternative to offer
- Price difference
Our next vintage change
- Wine and vintage on list
- Bottles left today
- Alternative to offer
- Price difference
The head sommelier fills it in on Monday and briefs one wine a day. By Thursday every server should name all three alternatives from memory; if not, taste them together before Friday’s service.
The Standards Library.
No. 90 · Wine
The Temperature and Glass Standard
Five checks on what a guest feels before tasting: how cold the wine is and the glass it is in. A white served too warm tastes of alcohol before fruit.
No. 91 · Wine
The Faulty Bottle Standard
Five steps for a bottle that may be faulty, whoever notices first. The answer never depends on who is on shift, and it is never argued at the table.