The penny finally drops

CHEERS: Barton on Wine

BY WARREN BARTON

Regularly I am invited to dine at some of the country's better restaurants by winemakers keen to showcase their wines by partnering them with dishes designed to show them at their best.

It is a privilege and a treat that I would probably never otherwise enjoy.

Rarely, if ever, do I go to restaurants such as this of my own choosing because I am simply not prepared to pay the prices that most of them ask for wines that are worthy of the food they serve, or wines which I wish to drink with a particular dish, which is usually expensive, too.

For the food I am prepared, and expect to pay good money. But I resent having to pay twice, in some cases nearly three times the retail value for a bottle of wine bought at wholesale price. Particularly when in my cellar at home I have one or several bottles of the same wine, often of a more drinkable age, or a wine I am desperate to try with a certain dish that is not on the restaurant's list.

That is why I have always been and remain an advocate of BYO - bringing (or taking) your own; an advocate who is now delighted to see more posh restaurants (we're not talking curry houses and cafes) welcoming BYO on one or several nights of the week and charging corkage to cover the cost of service, the provision of glasses , their cleaning and of other incidentals.

It's certainly beats the hell out of listening to the owners of these restaurants bleating on about commercial realities and trying to justify the cost of house wines with little apparent thought for the customers' ability, or willingness to pay for them.

Finally the penny seems to be dropping , not only here but in Britain, too, where the bring-your- own- booze revolution has spread even to Michelin-starred restaurants.

Tom Cannavan, a British writer whose wine-pages.com website lists several hundred restaurants that allow BYO, says that traditionally this has been the province of lower- end restaurants without a licence and for customers who want to drink on the cheap.

"The new movement is for people who are serious about their food and wine, but really resent that restaurants mark their wines up so highly that they can't afford wine to match the quality of the food they are eating."

Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for a couple of 50 or more London restaurants that have so far joined a BYO club that allows customers to pay a [PndStlg]99-a-year subscription for free or cheap corkage at most times, explains the change of heart like this: "Everybody is watching the pockets at the moment, but we don't like to think of it as desperation.

"The time has come to be more flexible with diners and more hospitable."

What also needed to be said - and has been by the BYO club - is that bringing your own also has a few unwritten rules, the first of which is not to turn up with a cheap and nasty wine or with one that is on the restaurant's list. And always offer the wine-waiter a taste.

Some wines to charm the waiter's palate as well as your own:

Valli 2008 Bannockburn Pinot Noir (about $55): A supple, silky, subtle medium-bodied Central Otago pinot noir with surprising depth and complexity.

Trinity Hill 2007 The Gimblett ($38): A splendid, warm and chewy blend of merlot, cabernet sauvignon, petit verdot, cabernet franc and malbec.

Man 'O War 2008 Dreadnought Syrah (about $45): A beautifully perfumed Waiheke Island red loaded with berryfruit, spiked with spice and packed with power.

Dog Point 2008 Chardonnay (about $38): A beautifully-textured pure and powerful chardonnay subtly influenced by yeast and oak. Classy.

Pegasus Bay 2009 Gerwurztraminer (about $35): A debut wine that sets the bar at a new height for this variety in NZ. Built like Schwarzenegger but with more finesse. A stunner.

- © Fairfax NZ News