Whether you have the perfect wine to pair with a specific dish you want to try at a restaurant or you simply want to taste a special bottle from your cellar, going out to dinner taking the bottle of wine with you can be done. It's called the cork right: let's see everything there is to know.
Especially for those who love collecting interesting bottles in their home cellar , it may happen that they want to take the wine with them to the restaurant. Having dinner at a restaurant while carrying a bottle with you is not only possible but by following a few rules it is not rude.
Let's see what there is to know about corkage rights.
What is the right of cork?
This is the possibility of having lunch at the restaurant bringing wine from home .
How does the right of cork originate?
The corkage fee is an Anglo-Saxon practice: it is the corkage fee , a "tax" for bringing wine from home, born around the 1950s in the United States as a consumer reaction to the costs of wine at restaurants.
Today it is a practice known as BYOB (bring your own booze, bring your own bottle), a tool for restaurateurs also useful for increasing their numbers.
In Italy it is still a little-known practice.
How many bottles can you bring from home?
It's a good idea not to overdo it: bring a bottle from home for every two guests . Two at most.
Are there any rules for bringing wine to the restaurant?
Just one: if you bring a bottle from home, you pay for the service and the amount can naturally be requested in advance.
What does the cost of the corkage fee cover?
It is the dining room staff who have to take care of the bottle, brought from home, also according to the customers' instructions: the cost of the service covers uncorking, table service, use of glasses, and any decanter. It varies depending on the venue, but is usually around 5-10 euros per bottle.
- Read also: how to buy wine online
How to exercise the right of cork?
Some conventions help make the exercise of corkage rights simple and hassle-free.
1. It is good practice to communicate your intention to exercise it when you book. The advice is to explain that you want to taste it in combination with the particular dishes prepared by the restaurant: the meaning is not without questioning the restaurant's wine list.
2. But be careful, conventionally you bring a bottle from home if this (or a particular vintage) is not present in the wine list : although it is not necessary to communicate which wine you want to bring from home, make sure first.
3. And finally, two more etiquette conventions: it is good taste to order something from the restaurant menu and offer a glass of it to the owner.
