If you’re not sure how much to pay for the wine, it’s safer to opt for prices in the middle range. My experience has been that lowest priced wines are just OK pedestrian; highest priced wines, although generally excellent, are not that much better than wines priced in the middle range and are not so good a quality/price value. Of course, if you have deep pockets, if you wish to impress the woman of your dreams, if you’re on an unrestricted expense account—then it’s signals over: Go for it, old chap! Higher the better—First Growths, Grand Crus, venerated pedigree wines from everywhere.
The waiter brings out the bottle you have selected—unopened!--and presents it to you. You’re expected to inspect the label to confirm that it is the wine you ordered: Check the type of wine, the brand, the vintage and the ullage (air space between the bottom of the cork and the top of the wine). If the wine reaches no higher than the shoulder of the bottle, or just slightly above, some of the wine may have evaporated and the flavor may have "turned." Ask the wine steward or waiter to replace the bottle with one showing a higher "fill." Alternatively, advise him that, if opened, you will not pay for the wine if it is bad. Better, however, to ask for a replacement.
The waiter should now open the bottle without histrionics and an ostentatious "plop!" which could frighten the wine. Opening the wine is a ritual in itself. A trained wine steward will cut the capsule neatly just below the lip of the bottle, wipe the lip of the bottle with a clean napkin—preferably moist--to remove any influence of lead from the capsule or mold or dirt that may have gathered. He removes the cork and sniffs it to ascertain that it doesn’t smell bad—"corky" if the cork is diseased. He wipes inside the neck of the bottle to remove any bits of cork remaining from the extraction of the cork.
If the bottle has been stored too long in an upright position, the cork could dry out—feel like wood to the squeeze-- and air could penetrate and possibly spoil the wine. The waiter should place the cork beside your plate (don’t chew it or place it in your ear). The opened wine is set on the table, but not poured. This allows the air to come in contact with the wine, which is said to expand the wine’s bouquet, and give it a fuller flavor. Just before the first course is served, the waiter should return to pour the wine. I prefer that the wine be poured into my glass and into those of my guests immediately upon being opened and accepted by me. This enables the wine to breathe—to truly expand the bouquet and allow the wine to soften.
What follows here is a ritual dating back to the middle ages. At that time, a good way to kill off your enemies was to invite them to dinner and slip a little poison into their wine. Needless to say, everyone soon got a little paranoid about going over to someone’s castle for dinner. So in order to set the guests at ease, the host would take the first sip of wine.
We do the same thing today, but there’s a more practical reason for this. The host takes the first sip of wine simply to see if the wine is sound, has not "turned." If a wine has turned it tastes musty, sometimes like sherry. Wines taste this way if they are exposed to air (oxidized) or heat (maderized) for an inordinate length of time.
If the wine tastes unsatisfactory to you, send it back. If there is an argument (there shouldn’t be), ask the waiter to have the manager or owner taste the wine with you. Furthermore, tell the waiter that if you are wrong you will pay for the one in question and will order another one. The waiter will not want to make a Federal case out of this (and jeopardize the size of his tip), so he’ll remove the faulty bottle. Only be sure the bottle is bad, not that you just happen not to like it.
About tipping: You have been assisted by a bona fide sommelier in selecting the wine. He has handled the wine service properly as detailed above. He has monitored the table throughout the evening, ensuring that no glasses remained empty of wine. You might tip him 10 percent of the total bill before tax. If the service is particularly good or if not quite so good, I adjust the tip up or down from 10 percent. Some sommeliers, for dramatic effect, will suggest they taste the wine in their scalloped tastevin (tasting cup) that hangs from their necks to confirm its palatability.
Superior wine service gives dimension to the dining pleasure and an aura of elegance to the restaurant.