Sommelier?

We went to a local "wine bistro" for the first time last night, and although our waiter was very attentive and helpful, I found him to be surprisingly...ignorant (hate to use such a strong word, but I can't think of anything better right now) regarding some of his recommendations. In particular, the restaurant pairs a 2005 Flying Fish merlot w/ a mussel dish made with tomatoes, white wine, thyme and vanilla, which my companion ordered. The merlot was incredibly over-oaked...I could smell the vanilla from across the table. I understood the matching of the vanilla flavors, but when I asked the waiter why they hadn't chosen a red wine with higher acidity, he commented that "red wines don't have acidity, only whites. You're thinking of tannins". I explained that no, I know what tannins are, and that red wines can also be acidic. He insisted that I was wrong.

Don't get me wrong, this was all a friendly conversation (business was slow so he was happy to spend some time chatting with us), and I'm not expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I have just noticed lately that a lot of wait staff in restaurants that should know their wines don't.

Just a few weeks ago we were at another restaurant for tapas and I wanted to know which type of grape was used in a particular spanish wine (I assumed it was tempranillo but wasn't sure, as the label didn't list it). Well, the bartender had to call over the owner, who in turn had to get the guy who bought the wine, and he ended up telling me it was the Ribera del Deuro grape. Aye carumba....

Which wine bistro was this? I've been wanting to visit the one connected with Bistro Lepic on Wisconsin Avenue. Is that the one.? I've found at lunches at Bistro Lepic I can obtain good wine matching suggestions from the female owner.

No, this was Grapeseed in Bethesda.

C'mon, K, name names! Which wine bistrot was it? Oops - see you've already answered that!

Poor quality of wine service has long been a beef of mine with regards to wine markups in restaurants. If a restaurant is going to mark up a bottle of wine by 300 or 400 percent, presumably they should be doing something beyond removing the cork and providing glasses. Competent assistance in navigating the wine selection (which I also would hope was chosen with care, rather than Restaurant Theme XYZ winelist from their distributor) would be a great first step.

I'd also like to see some care put into how they visually present their wine information. I remember being thoroughly impressed when I visited Zygomates, a wine bar in Boston, when I saw their wine list. It included not only the year, price, producer, region, country, and grape(s) for each wine (probably around 50 or so wines by the glass or bottle), but listed them in order of their body--from lighter-bodied at the top to heavier-bodied wines at the bottom of the list, for both reds and whites! A useful display of information of which Edward Tufte could be proud and which informs and assists customers before the server even arrives. I have never understood why wine lists so often assume that the customer knows what grape is used in what region, or even what region is in what country! The customer is looking to select a wine, not to relive quizzes of US state capitals from the 4th grade!

Rant complete, thanks!

Keith,

I really like how Harry's Tap Room in Arlington has their wine list laid out (hopefully you can open this link):

http://www.harrystaproom.com/menus/Winelist.pdf

And I know what you mean about wanting a bit more knowledge and service when you're paying such a big markup. However, now that I've griped about a few things, I will give them props where due:

1) The "taste" size pours were very generous, probably about 4 oz. Although they weren't cheap ($3.50-$6 each), I found out that Montgomery County plays the middle-man in all wine purchases, so that in addition to the markup that the wholesaler charges the restaurant/retailer, the county charges approximately 25% on top of that!
The only redeeming factor is that the county now allows you to pop a cork in what you didn't finish and take it home with you.

2) Some of the pairings were pretty well matched, in particular the stuffed piquillo pepper w/ goat cheese and roasted tomato vinaigrette paired w/ a 2006 Moreson Chenin Blanc (really nice wine, with lots of crisp acidity, pear and mineral notes). The 2004 Benton Lane Pinot Noir was a natural for the mushroom soup, although I chose this pairing myself.

3) The waiter was more than happy to have the bartender open up anything that we had questions on, regardless of whether or not we ended up ordering (we tried not to take advantage of this).

One of my most memorable dissapointments was at Lia's in Chevy Chase, where I asked if they had any pinot noir to go with the salmon I was ordering. The waitress said, "I don't think so, if it's not on the wine menu we don't have it". Then when dessert rolled around I asked if they had any port (they've got this HUGE display of wine bottles very prominently displayed which would lead one to believe that they can accomodate most reasonable requests) and she said, "I'm sorry...I don't know what that is". I just went w/ the espresso.

I was able to open the wine list and Harry's Tap Room does look like a place to try when I am in DC area.

JC, here's another place that I've only been to once, but was very impressed. Great service and each of our meals was beyond reproach:

http://www.blacksaltrestaurant.com/wines.html

It's kind of off the beaten path, not metro accessible, but I'd recommend it.

I really like how Harry's Tap Room in Arlington has their wine list laid out

Yeah, I love their section entitled "Talk Dry, Drink What You Like!" And I like the fact they offer a very decent Virginia wine (Barboursville Cabernet Franc).

I actually dined at Harry's once for lunch and enjoyed the experience. It is one of those places that you can 'feel' the corporate influence and corporate design of the place, but it works. The service was top notch, the ingredients were incredibly fresh, and it had a fun decor. Most places that 'feel' corporate fall flat on their face, but I found Harry's Tap Room to really have worked out the concept well (had a similar experience at a few places in Charleston, South Carolina). My one and only complaint was the coffee (which I ordered, of course, sans menu, set me back something like $4.50 for a small cup, when the rest of the meal and the wine were very well-priced. But overall, it was fun.

Most places that 'feel' corporate fall flat on their face, but I found Harry's Tap Room to really have worked out the concept well (had a similar experience at a few places in Charleston, South Carolina).

Keith, do you happen to remember which places in Charleston? I'm hoping to get back there some weekend this year, and I'd be grateful for recommendations. I was there a couple of years ago, but don't recall where I dined!

Keith, do you happen to remember which places in Charleston? I'm hoping to get back there some weekend this year, and I'd be grateful for recommendations. I was there a couple of years ago, but don't recall where I dined!

My recs are probably from about the same period of time you were there, it's been a couple of years. But my vague recollections are as follows:

Magnolia’s - Went there for brunch. Southern-style nouvelle cuisine. Okay atmosphere, good food, but it depended a lot on what you ordered, very good service. I think's it's somewhat of a local institution, but not sure how reliable it is. You may want to ask locally.

Cypress- same corporate ownership as Magnolia's. Went there for dinner. Very loud and very packed--in fact, it's quite a crazy atmosphere--feels like you're on the floor of the stock exchange or something. The food, seafood mostly, however was divine. I loved everything we had there.

McCrady's- just went here for drinks before dinner. Excellent wine flights options and stunning romantic setting: bricks, soft lighting, wood, all that jazz. Stunning place for a drink and the wines were excellent--we meant to go back before we left, but didn't have the time.

Mimis Cafe - not entirely sure this was the place (no good pic on the website), but if it was excellent quality of simple dishes and good prices

Oops, edited to say Magnolia's, not Blossom.

Thanks, Keith!

Thanks K for the additional recommendation in DC area. I will file away the Charleston, SC suggestions from Keith as well. I liked Brett's but he closed that one and opened a new restaurant I believe. Not sure of the name. McCrady's sounds great and Cypress maybe for the seafood.

[James Roscoe]

This is interesting as I live in DC and go to Charleston regularly. As for DC, I am poorly qualified because I am a humble teacher with relatively meager means. I did love Dino's where I had dinner with Hoke and some friends in December.

Charleston is much easier on the wallet. Cypress is expensive but great. Try Coast on a Sunday night if you want a really lively place and good prices. Meritage had great tapas and a good wine list. I also had my first Thai experience in Charleston at I think Tsunamis. It may have been another place. At any rate, Charleston has restaurant and wine scene that puts Baltimore and DC to shame. It's a major foodie town. I haven't had a bad meal there yet, although to be fair, I am easy to please.

James, Dino is great...had Christmas Eve dinner there with my husband and his dad and really enjoyed it.

I'm really looking forward to getting back to Charleston and exploring some of these suggestions.

[James Roscoe]

James, Dino is great...had Christmas Eve dinner there with my husband and his dad and really enjoyed it.

I'm really looking forward to getting back to Charleston and exploring some of these suggestions.

My oldest daughter graduates from C of C next month. My wife and I will be down there for a long weekend. I am sure some great dining will be instore. I can't wait. One of my wife's fantasies is to open a wine bar on East Bay Str. in Charleston and call it J's on Bay. We love that town.