Corkage is the fee that restaurants charge diners for every bottle of liquor, mainly wine, that is served but was not bought at that restaurant. Ideally, this fee attempts to cover usage of the stemware, the time of the wait staff to open and serve the wine, and also the lost profit. In general we need to remember that a restaurant is in the business of selling food and beverages, so when you bring your own wine it is lost revenue. So for the restaurateur, do you allow patrons to bring their own wine, and if so, how much do you charge?

Why Bring Your Own Wine?

The topic of corkage is a non-stop debate. The one thing that most experts agree on relates to why patrons bring their own wines: (1) If the restaurant has a reputation for serving very expensive wines, diners will prefer to pay corkage than pay the high bottle prices. (2) The second main reason is that wine lovers have very special bottles they want to have with a dish they have tasted at that establishment. (3) The third key reason is that if the restaurant has a crappy wine list with few choices, but the food is great, they will prefer to bring their own bottle and pay the fee.

How Restaurants Can Turn The Tide

Over the past two years, both here in Jamaica and in the USA, more patrons are bringing their own bottles.

Check yourself: Try to find out why more guests want to bring their own bottles. Are your prices too high? Is it that the wines on your list don’t pair well with your menu offerings? Do you have a wine list with only six wines listed?

Create a policy that works for all: Become one of your wine-loving clients for a few days and look at your own restaurant’s dining experience through the eyes of your customers. Remember, your patrons should not feel punished for bringing that special bottle they got from the last trip to wine country. If you have trained staff with a deep knowledge of wine and you have a superb wine list, then your corkage fee can be high – over US$15 per bottle. If you have a small list and your staff knows very little and merely opens the bottle and pours, then a small fee is appropriate – US$5-$10 per bottle. One fine dining establishment in North America experimented by waiving the corkage fee for one night only. This proved an immediate success with collectors, wine lovers and those in the wine trade. Also, consider waiving the fee in certain situations, such as for repeat guests, colleagues in the restaurant or wine industry, or for very special occasions.

Communicate your policy: It should be on your website, your menu, and your staff should know and understand it very well and be able to explain it to anyone who asks.

Guidelines for diners:

1) Do call before turning up with bottles of wine; stemware needs to be considered.

2) Never bring cheap wine, and always offer the wine steward/ sommelier a taste. Some restaurants request that customers only bring wines that aren’t on their lists.

3) It’s always a good idea to buy a bottle for every bottle that you bring; sometimes the establishment will waive the fees.

Restaurateurs, remember that wine lovers can be your establishments’ best friends if you play your cards right.

Christopher Reckord – Businessman, Entrepreneur & Wine Enthusiast. Send your questions and comments to creckord@gmail.com. Follow us on twitter: @Reckord

Captions:

3208 – Some venues like Moon Hill encourage patrons to bring their own bottle (BYOB). This is excellent fun for wine lovers who have more wine than time to drink them.

Enamore:

This is the type of wine that you want to bring to your favourite restaurant – an Amarone-style Malbec made with 60% Malbec, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, with the balance Cabernet Franc and Bonarda and aged for 12 months in seasoned French oak.

DCS8434:

Most restaurants will waive corkage fees for special occasions like birthday parties and wedding anniversaries. Do call ahead of time to make these special arrangements.