by Max Hauser » Tue Jan 29, 2008 2:25 pm
By the way, I might even be able to top that incident. I posted this elsewhere years ago. It's remarkable because senior sommeliers are responsible, not untrained raw servers.
I first saw it in San Francisco around 1999. A group of experienced Burgundy fans (in and out of the trade) met for dinner at a fine restaurant with a high-profile (Master) sommelier (with bowtie) who despite cordial general help (he also cordially knew some of the diners already), refused to decant a magnum of 1985 Clos de Tart as requested. Its owner, who brought the bottle to the restaurant and requested the decanting, knew what he was doing (he's a Burgundy expert with longer experience than the somm, and a larger collection than most restaurants).
When challenged on this detail, somm asserted that one must not decant Burgundy that has some age. (Comment: Some people, who've actually enjoyed it longer than he has, find Pinot Noir wines sensitive to sediment, and not badly affected by decanting shortly before service, which removes the sediment. That's why they decant.)
Same thing happened in New York at a very respected restaurant where sommelier refused to decant 1985 Roumier Bonnes Mares for an importer I know who has comprehensive Burgundy experience, and also had spent serious money ordering the bottle. Then it recurred in the same restaurant with another magnum of the Roumier, and the person who ordered it challenged the sommelier, who claimed to know better. "I'm Roumier," the guest then explained; he knew the wine certainly pretty well. In each case, the customers had considerable experience and knew what they were about.
It caused speculation: Was some Sommeliers Advisory circulating by telex? Did these service professionals meet in a smoke-filled room and plan out dogma to force on customers?? What about the less experienced diner, who happens to know something about wine, but might be intimidated by such attitude?
It was bizarre, and I don't think I've ever gotten a clear explanation.