8 funniest things sommeliers experience
It’s always fun when sommeliers share the funny or bizarre things they experience at work. From guests attributing very special characteristics to their water to wonderfully refreshing wine showers. These are the eight most remarkable.
Cheers! To never again
“On Valentine’s Day, a couple ordered the most expensive wines on the wine list. They seemed very happy, and I thought, ‘how lovely, they must be celebrating yet another wedding anniversary.’ But what turned out to be the case? They were celebrating their divorce!”
Uh, it tastes something like that
“Heel vreemd, maar ook wel erg aandoenlijk: een gast wilde niet het wijnarrangement, maar hij wilde wel van mij alle verhalen over de wijnen horen. Heel vreemd om een wijn wél toe te lichten, maar niet te serveren.”
Wine shower
“I tried to open a bottle with a plastic cork. It was quite difficult, so I held it between my knees to get a better grip. But I lost control, and half the contents of the bottle landed squarely in the guest’s face.”
From Somalia
“I worked on a large cruise ship, and a guest read my name tag. Under my name was the word ‘sommelier’. I’m quite blond, and the man found it all very confusing. He thought I was from Somalia.”
Courses 4, 5 and 6 again, please
“Some people don’t handle alcohol very well and occasionally forget things. Especially with wine pairings featuring multiple courses. A different wine each time is a lot too. Recently, I had a guest who couldn’t remember what he had eaten at all, and cheerfully ordered the last three courses again.”
Chablis, then?
“A classic, and it never gets old. I regularly have guests who say they absolutely don’t like Chardonnay. Recently, one man really went all out. “And I suppose one of those sweet ones with ice too, hahaha, no, Chardonnay is not for me, far too common!” Would the gentleman perhaps like to try a lovely Chablis instead? Well, he certainly would; the gentleman loved Chablis. “Excellent choice, sir,” I said, barely able to suppress a private chuckle. Another person who didn’t know that Chablis is made from 100% Chardonnay grapes.”
Very special water
“Because I work at a Michelin-starred restaurant, I often deal with people who act very fancy toward the sommelier. I don’t mind; our manners are naturally somewhat more formal than in a casual café. But sometimes it leads to truly hilarious scenes. There was one regular guest who had ordered a very expensive Burgundy. As always, he wanted to taste the wine first, especially to involve his table companions in his boundless wine knowledge. This time, things went terribly wrong. Shortly after I had poured his glass, someone at a table behind us dropped something. He briefly turned around, then picked up the wrong wine glass, which was filled not with wine but with water. Completely serious, he swirled the glass, put his nose in it, and then began a speech about the wine’s vanilla aroma resulting from the use of oak barrels. Naturally, I pretended not to notice; at the end of the evening, it earned me a wink and a generous tip.”
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