Too Gauche to bring own wine to Palo?

[Aurora's Mommy]

I know you can bring your own wine to the dining room and will be (or maybe not) charged a corkage fee. How about Palo? I've seen the prices for the reds on the menu, and can you say ouch! But, Palo is "a cut above" so is bringing your own wine just not done?

 

[mmouse37]

I, personally, would not do it and I have not heard of anyone else doing it either....I think, as you said, in the regular dining room it would be fine, but I think not at Palo.

Hope this helps somewhat!

 

[NCardella]

On our cruise this past March we were seated (in Palo) next to a couple who had brought in one of those teeny bottles of champagne. The wife jokingly told the server how her husband didn't like it so she buys just the little bottles. The server explained about the $15 corking fee and the wife was very surprised, saying "That's more than the bottle even costs!". They still opened it.

 

[mmouse37]

Good to know that they at least allow you bring your own bottle to Palo...I still would not do it, though.

 

[cathyscrapper]

On our previous two cruises we were able to have dinner at Palo. Both times my husband brought a really nice ($100-150) bottle of wine from home that he had wanted to share with his brother and sister in law. We will be cruising DCL again in September and I know my husband is really looking forward to sharing some wine with his uncle from California, who is also bringing some bottles of wine.

I know the wine will not all be consumed in Palo, but I do know the nicer bottles will be had at the nicest restaurant onboard.

My husband is an Executive Chef at a fine dining restaurant here in the East Lansing, Michigan area. Being from New York and in the profession he is in he understands the nuances of fine dining and wine service. My husband will offer the sommelier a glass for tasting as the bottle my husband brings is not usually available onboard.

Wine is usually about sharing a special bottle you've been saving or that someone special gave to you. It's about more than paying for a bottle of wine it's about sharing the moment. (Do I sound like a commercial or what?)

I guess I wouldn't go out and buy a bottle to have on board just to try and save money. If you have a special bottle bring it, the wait staff is completely ok with it.

Cathy

 

[jenanderson]

I know that if you buy wine on the ship it is suppose to travel with you - does this include Palo?

I have been considering getting a bottle of wine the night before we go to Palo and saving enough in the bottle to have a glass with our meal at Palo.

How about if you get the wine package? Would you be able to get your wine from the package in Palo?

 

[Enna]

On our previous two cruises we were able to have dinner at Palo. Both times my husband brought a really nice ($100-150) bottle of wine from home that he had wanted to share with his brother and sister in law. We will be cruising DCL again in September and I know my husband is really looking forward to sharing some wine with his uncle from California, who is also bringing some bottles of wine.

I know the wine will not all be consumed in Palo, but I do know the nicer bottles will be had at the nicest restaurant onboard.

My husband is an Executive Chef at a fine dining restaurant here in the East Lansing, Michigan area. Being from New York and in the profession he is in he understands the nuances of fine dining and wine service. My husband will offer the sommelier a glass for tasting as the bottle my husband brings is not usually available onboard.

Wine is usually about sharing a special bottle you've been saving or that someone special gave to you. It's about more than paying for a bottle of wine it's about sharing the moment. (Do I sound like a commercial or what?)

I guess I wouldn't go out and buy a bottle to have on board just to try and save money. If you have a special bottle bring it, the wait staff is completely ok with it.

Cathy

I wholeheartedly agree with that. Bringing one's own wine should be about more than just the cost of the bottle vs. the retail price. I'm also thinking that for me to *personally* even consider it, the bottle would have to be special in some way, not just a bottle of something not stocked onboard.

For the OP--Consider that the wine prices are reflective of the atmosphere and the knowlege of the staff. You could consider the cost to be an investment in your wine education if you are willing to discuss your preferences, wine selection and choice of fare to get the best possible pairing with your food.

 

[Laurajean1014]

Yes, I think it would be inappropriate.

 

[NCardella]

Jenanderson,
Yes, the bottle will travel with you, regardless of the dining room.

 

[flexsmom]

Cathy - I think in your situation what you describe is perfectly appropriate! But, it's sort of "from one professional to another" in your scenario. I had not thought of the idea of offering the sommelier a glass, as well. I think that's very classy, particularly when you are expanding the choices - and knowledge - of someone who's "fine art" is wine.

That said, I have a feeling that most people wouldn't bring in a wine that would be on the "special" list. Again - not to say that's limited to price. I think it would be more of the "if it's not on the winelist" kind of thing.

Yes, wine does follow you to Palo as well. Just mention to your regular server that you're dining in Palo the next night and they'll have it arranged.

 

[Flagger]

I say bring a box of Franzia to Palo. If that is what you prefer, it is not available on the ship, the bring it along. There are actually some very fine wines available in boxes especially from Australia. They travel much better as well.

 

[woody73]

On our previous two cruises we were able to have dinner at Palo. Both times my husband brought a really nice ($100-150) bottle of wine . . .

My husband is an Executive Chef at a fine dining restaurant . . . he understands the nuances of fine dining and wine service. My husband will offer the sommelier a glass for tasting . . .

Wine is usually about sharing a special bottle you've been saving or that someone special gave to you. It's about more than paying for a bottle of wine it's about sharing the moment.

I guess I wouldn't go out and buy a bottle to have on board just to try and save money. If you have a special bottle bring it, the wait staff is completely ok with it.

Cathy

Cathy offers sound advice.

Woody

 

[BluOrchid2]

On our previous two cruises we were able to have dinner at Palo. Both times my husband brought a really nice ($100-150) bottle of wine from home that he had wanted to share with his brother and sister in law. We will be cruising DCL again in September and I know my husband is really looking forward to sharing some wine with his uncle from California, who is also bringing some bottles of wine.

I know the wine will not all be consumed in Palo, but I do know the nicer bottles will be had at the nicest restaurant onboard.

My husband is an Executive Chef at a fine dining restaurant here in the East Lansing, Michigan area. Being from New York and in the profession he is in he understands the nuances of fine dining and wine service. My husband will offer the sommelier a glass for tasting as the bottle my husband brings is not usually available onboard.

Wine is usually about sharing a special bottle you've been saving or that someone special gave to you. It's about more than paying for a bottle of wine it's about sharing the moment. (Do I sound like a commercial or what?)

I guess I wouldn't go out and buy a bottle to have on board just to try and save money. If you have a special bottle bring it, the wait staff is completely ok with it.

Cathy

What an excellent post - thank you!!! I for one appreciate the education.

 

[daisy112878]

Totally agree with Cathy. Most of the best restaurants in Atlanta let you bring your own bottle with a corkage fee. I would never think of bring $2buck chuck or something similar. It's definitely more about the experience of enjoying a nice bottle of wine then just trying to save money.

 

[inkkognito]

I dunno...I just wouldn't do it at Palo. I would find another occasion to share the special bottle, and instead I would look at the Palo meal as a chance to try an entirely new wine. But that's just my opinon, and I am a wine dullard whose only knowledge comes from the onboard tastings.

 

[birkner]

We have a fellow traveler on our cruise who will be shipping wine for us so we can all share it on the cruise. She and her DH have a wine shop in California and will be sending plenty of bottles for us to drink on the cruise.

While there are some nice wines on the cruise, I prefer to drink the wine we will bring aboard. DH and I will be bringing a glass of wine to dinner but the majority of our wine will be consumed elsewhere,

 

[slindamood]

On the transatlantic we had a special bottle of wine we got at a winery in the Penedes section of Spain prior to the cruise. We saved the specal wine for the last night (we had had a wine package for the cruise, sampling the Mediterranean wines DCL had for the summer). We offered a glass of the wine to our drink server, but he refused saying they were not alowed to drink while working - not even to sample a special wine.

 

[MBPrincessMoM]

Palos offers some interesting wine pairings and has a lot of wines available by the glass. My husband and I got different things then tasted each others. A change for us from getting a bottle.

 

[mommasita]

It would not be in my comfort zone, but if it works for you go ahead.

 

[m4travel]

Wine is usually about sharing a special bottle you've been saving or that someone special gave to you. It's about more than paying for a bottle of wine it's about sharing the moment. (Do I sound like a commercial or what?)

I guess I wouldn't go out and buy a bottle to have on board just to try and save money. If you have a special bottle bring it, the wait staff is completely ok with it.

Cathy

Okay; some might say we're wine snobs. We occasionally bring wine on board, but only because we know they won't have it available. This is a special occasion, and we enjoy a special wine with our meal. We never bring wine that we expect to find on the wine list. If we found that we had a wine that is on the list, it would be consumed in the cabin, not at a restaurant.