Wine Forum ~ Wineweb.com

Ordering the House Wine

Wed, 28 Feb 2007 19:33:41 -0600

Unfortunately, CabIsKing is absolutely correct. Sometimes one mark of a quality restaurant is that their mark-ups are relatively low - in the 200% range. Remember, one is paying for the service, ambience, dishwashing, etc. The mark-up on alcohol is even worse! Another reason to enjoy wine!

Ordering the House Wine

Wed, 21 Feb 2007 12:51:22 -0600

Such is the price we pay to enjoy it with our dinners.

Ordering the House Wine

Mon, 19 Feb 2007 07:20:52 -0600

200 to 300% markup. That just seems so wrong.

Ordering the House Wine

Tue, 30 Jan 2007 00:29:19 -0600

As someone who has worked in many fine dinning restaurants and even managed a few I feel that I am rather educated on the subject. The industry STANDARD for selling wine is a 300% mark up. Now as the value of the wine increases the mark up drops a hair (ei. Opus One is marked up about 200%). If you are ordering a glass of wine you can be sure that the restaurant paid the same amount of the entire bottle of wine (this is consistent with the 300% mark up considering the average 750ml bottle pours four glasses). Knowing this you can assume that restaurants are not the best place to experiment with wine. Also, the wine most priced to capitalize profits is the generally the house wine. Wine rep's are often able to offer ridiculous discounts on cheap wine, I have often been able to receive 2-4-1 deals on cases of what one would consider house wine, making that $8 glass of wine cost $4 per bottle. I don't inform you of this to scare you off of drinking restaurant wine, I still enjoy a glass or two when I go out, but I find it helps me make a more educated decision when picking which glass I would like to enjoy. I tend to find that the glass priced right above the house wine is often the best value, however take a look at the whole list. On occasion you can find a few gems.

Ordering the House Wine

Fri, 12 Jan 2007 06:18:12 -0600

Oh Merlotme- You are so right. I will order the house wine if the house (restaurant) is nice. I think there is a saying that I can't exactly remember but is similar to dining in or with swine will not make the wine taste better. Save trying the house wines for reputable establishments.

Ordering the House Wine

Wed, 18 Oct 2006 17:43:08 -0600

Again, to state the obvious. The house wine, depends on the house. Having a glass at a good restaurant usually is a safe bet.

What is the "Normal" Markup

Tue, 26 Sep 2006 10:02:59 -0600

As I noted below, I've seen wines for %400 over retail so %200 is not that impressive to me, but...

"I've seen as little as 5% markup on some wines". Now that's impressive!

Could you tell us where you ahve found such an incredible bargain? Was it on low-end wines? Top-end wines? What kind of restaurant? What kind of wine list?

Bargains do exist. I may have mentioned elsewhere, some 20 years ago I purchased at a restaurant an '82 Chateau Gazin, Pomerol, for less than the local retail price at the time. Certainly still the best Merlot I ever drank. I don't think I will ever top that one!

What is the "Normal" Markup

Tue, 26 Sep 2006 06:56:43 -0600

Don't know that there is a standard. I've seen as little as 5% markup on some wines and also 200% markup on other wines. This is why I try to know general wine values to be able to make good choices when selecting a restaurant wine.

What is the "Normal" Markup

Wed, 09 Aug 2006 17:35:28 -0600

BromBordoo - Great data. Didn't know that much about the subject but I read Nathan's question and your response and was informed. I will persue this topic further by doing some research. I'll let you know my results.

What is the "Normal" Markup

Wed, 09 Aug 2006 13:40:58 -0600

I assume you mean "mark-up" over retail.

I don't think there is really a standard - prices certainly will range from a few dollars over retail to 400% or more.

I think any wine you get for 100% over retail, that is, twice retail price, is a reasonable restaurant price.

At a local restaurant that also has a retail wine shop, they add $5 to the retail price in the resturant, no matter the price - $8 wines are $13, $60 wines are $65. Unfortunately, places like this are few and far between.

The old rule of thumb is to buy in the middle of the price range for the 'best buy'. Cheap wines are usually marked-up heavily - you see Sutter Home for $20 a bottle, St. Urbans Hof QbA Riesling for $8 a glass (it's $12 a bottle). Premium wines may have lower percentage mark-up, but if you buy a DRC La Romanee with a only 50% mark-up, you will still be paying $150 over retail.