Sommelier Suite package question.

[Midwest Sunseeker]

We plan to buy Cellar No. 3 does anyone know if  we will be limited to only wines on list 3 or may we also chose from list 1 &2 also?  Does anyone have favorite wines for any of the 3 lists?  We will be on the Rotterdam.  Thank you for your help. 

[FlaMariner]

From package #1, this is my go to red....and Her Majesty's go to white....but we enjoy all and are not wine picky people.  

 

Toro de Piedra Cabernet Sauvignon Chile

Caliterra Chardonnay, Chile

 

(we've only purchased package #1 and when they were out, HAL substituted a package #2 wine a few times).  

 

I'm sure they would be glad to sell you a package #3 and let you enjoy bottles from #1 and #2 with no problem.....but I've got no personal experience doing that.

 

Enjoy the Sommelier Wine Package......we enjoy it. 

 

[Real NHDOC]

Be aware that the lists have recently changed almost completely. Some wines from Cellar 1 are now in Cellar 2 and vice versa and some have disappeared entirely. Don’t make any decisions until you see the current list. Also, in answer to the OPs question, if you buy a Cellar 3 package you can order wine from any of them. But IMHO there aren’t any dramatically better wines in Cellar 3 than in Cellar 1. It’s a lot of psychology that “spending more gets you better wine”. Just not true. 

[Gigi1977]

Yes, they are happy to accommodate that as the other posters have stated -But there have been a lot of changes recently so be sure and consult an up to date brochure before purchasing.  

[REOVA]

Good suggestion to wait to see what is on the list. I used to bring my own because of the marke up, which is typical of any retail (even at the $20 corkage it was cheaper and better than what they had..."snob" 🤣). But I have found some decent wines in #1 (at different times) that were as good as #3. I've also got multiple bottles of  the same wine before. There are some wines my palate doesnt like (cab sav). Price doesn't equate to better wine so experimenting with different wines in #1 is what I do now. 

[Horizon chaser 1957]

7 hours ago, Midwest Sunseeker said:

We plan to buy Cellar No. 3 does anyone know if  we will be limited to only wines on list 3 or may we also chose from list 1 &2 also?  Does anyone have favorite wines for any of the 3 lists?  We will be on the Rotterdam.  Thank you for your help. 

Yes, they definitely let you choose from Cellar 1 and Cellar 2 when you have a Cellar 3 package. We’ve done it fairly recently.

[Mary229]

I have substituted any wine on the ship as long as it is in the correct price range or less

[Dutchman48]

22 hours ago, Midwest Sunseeker said:

We plan to buy Cellar No. 3 does anyone know if  we will be limited to only wines on list 3 or may we also chose from list 1 &2 also?  Does anyone have favorite wines for any of the 3 lists?  We will be on the Rotterdam.  Thank you for your help. 

It has been my experience if you choose the higher package, there is no issue. I normally get the Cellar No. 3 and have had no problems selecting a wine from a different package. 

Also suggest waiting to you board to purchase your package. This has two advantages. First is due to supply or area sailing wines in package can vary. The second is you can speak to the wine steward on available wines as well as confirming you can get a wine from a different package.

[TV Dad]

On 2/26/2024 at 6:00 PM, Midwest Sunseeker said:

We plan to buy Cellar No. 3 does anyone know if  we will be limited to only wines on list 3 or may we also chose from list 1 &2 also?  Does anyone have favorite wines for any of the 3 lists?  We will be on the Rotterdam.  Thank you for your help. 

YES! Cellar three entitles you to all three levels of wine.

[Sir PMP]

On 2/26/2024 at 6:44 PM, Real NHDOC said:

Be aware that the lists have recently changed almost completely. Some wines from Cellar 1 are now in Cellar 2 and vice versa and some have disappeared entirely. Don’t make any decisions until you see the current list. Also, in answer to the OPs question, if you buy a Cellar 3 package you can order wine from any of them. But IMHO there aren’t any dramatically better wines in Cellar 3 than in Cellar 1. It’s a lot of psychology that “spending more gets you better wine”. Just not true. 

Spot on.

[SilvertoGold]

On three Noordam cruises last yearwe bought package #2s and I liked one of the wines from Package #1. When we ordered my #1 wine we were charged the per bottle pricing.  The Cellarmaster always fixed this mistake.  It turned out that our main waiter in the MDR didn't know how to imput this (very odd occurrance, apparently) into the computer. The Cellermaster trained him in the procedure after the third time this happend.  No more problems after that. YMMV, but it would be nice to get  waiters who know how to do this.

[Real NHDOC]

18 hours ago, SilvertoGold said:

On three Noordam cruises last yearwe bought package #2s and I liked one of the wines from Package #1. When we ordered my #1 wine we were charged the per bottle pricing.  The Cellarmaster always fixed this mistake.  It turned out that our main waiter in the MDR didn't know how to imput this (very odd occurrance, apparently) into the computer. The Cellermaster trained him in the procedure after the third time this happend.  No more problems after that. YMMV, but it would be nice to get  waiters who know how to do this.

You need to monitor your folio very carefully when you buy a Sommelier suite package because mistakes happen quite often and I have been charged many times for bottles that were supposed to be from my package. Their system is terrible and it becomes the guest’s responsibility to keep track of how many bottles were consumed since there is no way to tell from their billing system. Sometimes on some ships the bottle shows up as a zero charge on the folio and sometimes not. It’s just the way it is. Aggravating but still worth the effort since you can get good wines at a great price (with the Mariner’s discount) if you’re diligent. 
 

Only one time did I encounter a cellar master who was a stickler for only allowing us to order wines specifically listed in the cellar instead of allowing us to substitute others from the regular list of comparable price. Most of the time they will gladly allow you to have a bottle of St. Michelle Riesling, for example, even though there is no Riesling in any of the cellar listings. 

Edited March 4 by Real NHDOC

[SilvertoGold]

1 hour ago, Real NHDOC said:

You need to monitor your folio very carefully when you buy a Sommelier suite package because mistakes happen quite often and I have been charged many times for bottles that were supposed to be from my package. Their system is terrible and it becomes the guest’s responsibility to keep track of how many bottles were consumed since there is no way to tell from their billing system. Sometimes on some ships the bottle shows up as a zero charge on the folio and sometimes not. It’s just the way it is. Aggravating but still worth the effort since you can get good wines at a great price (with the Mariner’s discount) if you’re diligent. 
 

Only one time did I encounter a cellar master who was a stickler for only allowing us to order wines specifically listed in the cellar instead of allowing us to substitute others from the regular list of comparable price. Most of the time they will gladly allow you to have a bottle of St. Michelle Riesling, for example, even though there is no Riesling in any of the cellar listings. 

Excellent! We have had a sticker on the back of our room card and each bottle was crossed off as ordered. That does not solve the problem of having a wine from another package, but it is a record of what you have used and we have not had problems that way.  We never use the package outside the MDR, so that helps, too. One cellarmaster, Bernie, was really superb, always ready and willing to fix things and he trained waiters on how to imput the computer for the packages.

[FlaMariner]

From our last couple of cruises using (Oosterdam March 2023 & Westerdam October 2023), the Sommelier package bottle count was easily understood two ways....

 

Our dining room waiter was all over it....he would let me know that "this is #4" or whatever the count was when I asked.

 

also.....

 

Each time we ordered a wine, a zero entry was added to our shipboard account.  We could easily add them up. 

 

Package #1 at twenty bucks a bottle (w/4* discount) is the best deal for us at sea......

 

Enjoy the wine onboard......and yes, I'll have another glass, and one in a "to go" cup, please......(sometimes, they will switch out the wine glasses when you want one "to go" after dinner)