Sommeliers on Princess?

Do the Princess ships provide sommeliers at dinner?

And basically the waiters know nothing about the wines. So review the wine list on line before going and bring your own wine if you can. Thats what I do. I once asked a waiter if he an had an opinion on some of the more expensive wine and he said,"Oh, they don't let us try those."

 

I would not reccommend the expensive wine tasting. Too much talking and barely a thimble full of each wine with tons of food.

No, the "bean counters" eliminated the sommeliers some time ago.

 

Some of the better Table Captains know wines.

OK, now I feel totally stupid/unsophistocated/fill in your favorite adverb here. What the heck is a sommelier?:cool:

custompcsys

 

Sommelier is a trained expert in wines, who recommends wine to compliment your meal.

 

Some might call him a "paid shill".

custompcsys

 

Sommelier is a trained expert in wines, who recommends wine to compliment your meal.

 

Some might call him a "paid shill".

 

Learn something new every day. Thanks for the explanation :D

And they are so nice to have! :(

 

I would not reccommend the expensive wine tasting. Too much talking and barely a thimble full of each wine with tons of food.

We were treated to a free wine tasting on RCCL, with our membership. Lot's of cheese, crackers and fruit, plus some desserts to go along with the wine. The portions were enough (about half a glass), that I could never finish my wine in time. The thing that really bothered me was the fact that the glasses were not changed in between courses and I had to "down" my wine before trying a new taste. :eek: needless to say, I was looped before that hour was over.

Any one who is a "oenophile" would know what a "sommelier" is.

 

oenophile

1.One who appreciates and enjoys wine.

2.A collector of wine.

 

sommelier

A restaurant employee who orders and maintains the wines sold in the restaurant and usually has extensive knowledge about wine and food pairings. :D

I've noticed on the Patters that there is a "Wine Line" available to call during the day in which you can preorder wine for that night and the person answering the call is supposed to be able to give you advice and food/wine pairing suggestions. I've never tried it, I wonder if anyone has any experience with it though?

Just my opinion---Ordering wine is a personal choice, we don't go with the opinions of others. We have been burned a couple of times before and won't go down that road again. We look at the wine list and choose a wine or champagne that we are familiar with. If we want to explore, we go to the ship's wine tasting sessions. We have been to two of them: one cheaper and one more expensive. Out of the 12 wines that were presented, we only liked one wine and one champagne. Sampling is definitely cheaper than buying a bottle of disappointment.

Contrary to the previous poster, I have found that since the sommeliers disappeared about 7 years ago or so that most of the waiters DO know something about the wines on the list. They are actively trained and I have found that they can make recommendations or discribe the various bottles. Head waiters (section managers) are also well-versed in this area.

 

I enjoy the more expensive wine tasting. The wines served there are of a high quality and you are served around a third of a glass. COnsidering that you try 6-7 wines and it is a TASTING (not a chugging event) that's more than adequate. The canapes served at this event are quite nice.

Contrary to the previous poster' date=' I have found that since the sommeliers disappeared about 7 years ago or so that most of the waiters DO know something about the wines on the list. They are actively trained and I have found that they can make recommendations or discribe the various bottles. Head waiters (section managers) are also well-versed in this area.

 

I enjoy the more expensive wine tasting. The wines served there are of a high quality and you are served around a third of a glass. COnsidering that you try 6-7 wines and it is a TASTING (not a chugging event) that's more than adequate. The canapes served at this event are quite nice.[/quote']

 

In general you order wine form the waiters but there are some sommeliers. Maybe one per dining room, that you can request if you have a special request for wine or information.

Contrary to the previous poster' date=' I have found that since the sommeliers disappeared about 7 years ago or so that most of the waiters DO know something about the wines on the list. They are actively trained and I have found that they can make recommendations or discribe the various bottles. Head waiters (section managers) are also well-versed in this area.[/quote']

We've also noticed that if you bring your own wine to dinner and offer some to your waiter and head waiter, the level of service and attentiveness tends to improve. :D We did this with Argentine and Chilean wines we purchased ashore when we went around Cape Horn. The wines were unfamiliar to the staff and since they were interested in learning about wine, they were appreciative for the opportunity to sample them.

 

On our recent Manaus-Rome cruise we were mostly ignored by our head waiter until we offered some wine we had purchased in France. After that he was much warmer and friendlier towards us. Go figure.... ;)

We always bring our own wine - they charge $10 for corkage which is ok. Last time, in the Sterling Steakhouse I handed my own bottle of Claret to the waiter who opened it in grand style and with a great flourish poured a little taster into my glass. I said "You don't have to go through all this, it's my own wine, you can just pour it!"

Indignantly he replied. "No sir! I insist. And if it's not satisfactory it will be sent back to your room!"

Funny! :D

 

I can just see the Head Waiter and Waiters all drunk now because everyone from Cruise Critic will be offering sips of their wine.

We know almost nothing about wines but drink wine every day and go often to Sonoma and Napa. We have learned to respect the knowledge of the waiters about wines. Yes -- we took a whole case to one cruise and always take 4 or 5 bottles that range in price (admittedly price is not always a good indicator of rating). We were impressed by the waiter's judgment -- we always offer them wine when we take our own. If you don't drink wine regularly or know enough, then a Sommelier's recommendation will only have snob value!/Sultan