Wine service

Many places have sommeliers, which are professionals dedicated exclusively to the service of wines, but as waiters we must have, at least, basic notions of this service.

Know the different types of grapes, know how to uncork, serve wine and have notions of pairing (the harmonization of wine with food).

Never assume that people want white wine in a jar with ice, ask first.

Don’t put your hands on the beak of a bottle of wine while pulling out the cork.

Do not burst a champagne cork. Remove it silently, gracefully. The less noise, the better, you’re not celebrating the new year!

Never allow the wine bottle to touch the glass it is pouring into. No one wants to drink the powder from the bottle.

We must know our wine list, check the stock and temperature in cava before starting the service and replace what is used at the end of it.

Pairing tips:

It is important to know the intensity of the dish to be served

• Vegetables, salads, and entrees tend to be low-bodied foods. In contrast, cuts of meat and proteins are heavier in the mouth.
• A piece of grilled meat with salt and pepper is not the same as that same meat with a dark sauce of mushrooms or four cheeses.
• The intensity of each dish varies. Once the weight of the dish has been defined, I look for a full-bodied wine with similar characteristics so that both the dish and the drink do not stand out more than the other and end up canceling each other out.

Body of the wine:

• Light bodied: they are easy to drink, acidic, fresh and little alcoholic.
• Medium-bodied: more alcoholic, sweet, bitter and drying.
• Full-bodied: son very dense, alcoholic, drying and strong.

While there are rules and ways to harmonize, the taste for wine is something very personal and there will be people who drink the wine they like no matter what they eat and this is not bad, we must respect it.