Neptune Suite - Sparkling wine

[Skicruiser55]

Can the sparkling wine that you get with a Neptune Suite be exchanged for a regular bottle of wine?  I can’t remember if we did that last time.  

[cccole]

I have read that we could request this but with the HIA we just left our sparkling wine in the closet when we left.  Next time we'll do that.  Cherie

Edited May 9 by cccole

[Skicruiser55]

Also what sparkling wine do they provide?  

[cccole]

I don't remember.  All I remember are posts about how horrible it is so we just put it in the closet.  It might have been fine for adding to OJ in the morning for a mimosa.  But, in a Neptune Suite, the mimosas are complimentary.  Sorry I cannot help you more.  I think on our next cruise we will request a white, rose(not sure if this is an option), or red.  Cherie

[Skicruiser55]

1 minute ago, cccole said:

I don't remember.  All I remember are posts about how horrible it is so we just put it in the closet.  It might have been fine for adding to OJ in the morning for a mimosa.  But, in a Neptune Suite, the mimosas are complimentary.  Sorry I cannot help you more.  I think on our next cruise we will request a white, rose(not sure if this is an option), or red.  Cherie

Even though we’ll have HIA - it’s nice to have a bottle of wine (that you like) in the room to drink w/o having to go to the bar.  On our last cruise we got COVID at the end of the first week and second week we weren’t drinking in quarantine - I can’t even remember what we did if anything with the sparkling wine.  

[CruiserBruce]

The brand is typically Wycliff...a member of the Gallo family. Pretty poor. 

[Skicruiser55]

3 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

The brand is typically Wycliff...a member of the Gallo family. Pretty poor. 

Figured that was the case and the trade for a bottle of wine won’t be much better - thanks 

Edited May 9 by Skicruiser55

[cccole]

We're like you and were able to bring some nice wine on in Chile for the cabin.  I think the question has been asked if you can substitute so many drinks a day for a bottle of wine.  Can't remember what the answer was, I'm not 35 any longer.  Have a great cruise.  Cherie  

Edited May 9 by cccole

[Torquer]

1 hour ago, Skicruiser55 said:

Can the sparkling wine that you get with a Neptune Suite be exchanged for a regular bottle of wine?  I can’t remember if we did that last time.  

Absolutely.  We stay in the PS, where HAL gives a bottle of real champagne.  On one cruise, in addition to HAL's bottle of champagne, our TA gave us a bottle of sparkling wine.  We drank the champagne, but asked the Neptune Lounge concierge and they were happy to exchange the sparkling wine for a bottle of wine.  I didn't actually look up prices, but just asked for a bottle of red wine...I assume it was less than the value of the sparking wine, but don't know for sure.

Edited May 9 by Torquer

[SeaMatesNYC]

26 minutes ago, Skicruiser55 said:

Figured that was the case and the trade for a bottle of wine won’t be much better - thanks 

And the non sparkling wine won’t clear potential bathroom sink drain clogs (I’ll get me coat…)

[Wehwalt]

Our experience was with a Neptune on the Zuiderdam in January was that the Neptune Lounge attendant, after we told him we wanted to switch the sparkling wine for a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc said he would consult with the cellar master. It happened in about a day and there was no problem. 

[retird]

In the Neptune Suite on our recent cruise , we exchanged the sparkling wine for a bottle of flat mineral water.  Considered it a good trade.

[DaveOKC]

Four cruises in past 18 months on the Eurodam.  Twice was able to exchange it for a bottle of white wine, once they said they would check on it and never did (we did not care to follow up since we had a drink package anyway) and last month they would only exchange for three cans of soda.  Have had similar experiences on other HAL ships.  Soooo, exchanging the sparkling wine will vary depending on the ship.

 

[Saphire]

We didn't inquire about exchanging. I was happy to see the sparkling wine on ice as we entered the room. We took it to the verandah to enjoy sail away. Somehow the quality didn't cross my mind. Maybe it was the sea air, or the relaxation of finally having my feet up, or leaving the world for 11 days... it tasted wonderful. Cheers!  

[Sir PMP]

17 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

The brand is typically Wycliff...a member of the Gallo family. Pretty poor. 

$6.99.

[SeaMatesNYC]

16 minutes ago, Sir PMP said:

$6.99.

But is it $25 on the ship??

[Skicruiser55]

43 minutes ago, SeaMatesNYC said:

But is it $25 on the ship??

At least 

[LAFFNVEGAS]

20 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

The brand is typically Wycliff...a member of the Gallo family. Pretty poor. 

We love Wycliff and was so thrilled when they switched over to it we discovered they had it last September on the Westerdam Alaska, then we had it again on the Koningsdam Pacific Coastal, then got to the Nieuw Statendam in December to find they still had that terrible stuff they had for years prior to Wycliff and their bar staff had never heard of Wycliff or so they said..

Looking at the menus for Westerdam, granted they are just arriving from Japan and have not hit Seattle yet but it is showing they are serving in the MDR for Breakfast Domaine Ste Michelle Brut. Unknown if that might have replaced Wycliff, possibly not. Most definitely hoping Wycliff will be the House Sparkling for at least the Alaska Season . 

[CruiserBruce]

17 minutes ago, LAFFNVEGAS said:

We love Wycliff and was so thrilled when they switched over to it we discovered they had it last September on the Westerdam Alaska, then we had it again on the Koningsdam Pacific Coastal, then got to the Nieuw Statendam in December to find they still had that terrible stuff they had for years prior to Wycliff and their bar staff had never heard of Wycliff or so they said..

Looking at the menus for Westerdam, granted they are just arriving from Japan and have not hit Seattle yet but it is showing they are serving in the MDR for Breakfast Domaine Ste Michelle Brut. Unknown if that might have replaced Wycliff, possibly not. Most definitely hoping Wycliff will be the House Sparkling for at least the Alaska Season . 

The St Michele is the $11 per glass sparkling wine that is covered by the SBP. We drank a lot of it our last two cruises. We like it. There is also a prosecco at $9/glass, that they use for Mimosas.  It is definitely not taking the place of the Wycliff. The Wycliff is used for the large free pours, like the welcome aboard toast by the Captain, the Mariner's Reception, etc. The Wycliff is also used for other mixed drinks that have a sparkling wine in it.

 

To be honest, we drink a fair amount of champagne of a wide variety of qualities...we are even wine club members at Korbel Winery, one of the largest producers of sparkling wine in the world. Had two glasses of the Wycliff at the Mariners reception, and had a headache the rest of the day. That is reportedly caused by smaller bubbles in less expensive champagnes. 

[LAFFNVEGAS]

6 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

To be honest, we drink a fair amount of champagne of a wide variety of qualities...we are even wine club members at Korbel Winery, one of the largest producers of sparkling wine in the world. Had two glasses of the Wycliff at the Mariners reception, and had a headache the rest of the day. That is reportedly caused by smaller bubbles in less expensive champagnes. 

That is too bad about Wycliff giving you a headache, I have problems with some wines and occasionally with sparkling wines although not as often. My tongue starts to tingle, then the inside of my mouth does if I do not stop, then my tongue starts to swell up. It's been a while since I let that happen. I can usually tell within 3 sips if I am going to have a problem. Wycliff has been one of those rare finds for me that does not bother me at all. We actually discovered it over 20 years ago and had it shipped to us and would often bring it on board the ships back in the day the HAL did not have a limit on bottles of wine. 

[Wehwalt]

Of course, there's always the Duc de Valmer sparkling wine that typically is given out as prizes, or, as we laughingly call it, "Duke de Puke".

Edited May 10 by Wehwalt

[LAFFNVEGAS]

54 minutes ago, Wehwalt said:

Of course, there's always the Duc de Valmer sparkling wine that typically is given out as prizes, or, as we laughingly call it, "Duke de Puke".

That is the stuff I absolutely hate and was what they gave out on the Nieuw Statendam, hopefully they have gotten rid of that stuff fleet wide.

[cruiseDad227]

Sorry if this question has been asked before but I’m a 1st time HAL cruiser and staying in a Neptune suite. Can you have the sparkling wine replaced with a non-alcoholic alternative like sparkling cider?

Thanks in advance for your help!

[DaveOKC]

9 hours ago, cruiseDad227 said:

Sorry if this question has been asked before but I’m a 1st time HAL cruiser and staying in a Neptune suite. Can you have the sparkling wine replaced with a non-alcoholic alternative like sparkling cider?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Read posts from the beginning of this topic for answers.

[TV Dad]

On 5/10/2024 at 11:33 PM, cruiseDad227 said:

Sorry if this question has been asked before but I’m a 1st time HAL cruiser and staying in a Neptune suite. Can you have the sparkling wine replaced with a non-alcoholic alternative like sparkling cider?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Yes