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Bringing a bottle
Some people think that because of their age or status, it is somehow not 'done' to bring a bottle. Others would never dream of crossing a friend's threshold without a bottle of wine in hand. I can't see why anyone would resent the gift of a bottle thoughtfully chosen; although anyone who expects every guest to bring a bottle and gets upset if they don't, is probably wise to spell this out in advance.
One of the touchier questions of modern etiquette is whether you have to open a bottle that someone brings, or can you keep it and savour it on another occasion? I would say that if someone brings a bottle of white or sparkling wine ready-chilled or, as has frequently happened to me, a red wine already decanted, then this should be taken as a pretty strong hint that its donor expects the wine to be drunk then and there. If, however, your guest arrives and puts a bottle on one side without comment, then you are not duty-bound to open it. However, the perfect host would probably unwrap it at some point, express thanks, and ask whether the guest would like to taste it ('taste' being such a useful euphemism for 'drink').
(Naff, by the way, is a British expression for something we all agree to look down on.)
Naff bottles
- Cheaper branded wines e.g. Blossom Hill, Gallo’s Sierra Valley, Yellow Tail, Piat d'Or, Mateus, Lambrini, Liebfraumilch
- Any really cheap table wine wines in funny, asymmetrical bottles; wine with serving suggestions as titles; or wine in containers other than bottles
Not as naff as many people think
- Supermarket own-label wines - although few look good enough to present to design gurus, some taste quite good
- Mineral water - perhaps it's just my friends, but some hosts are much better at providing booze than the water needed to stop the dehydration effect
Smart choices
- Champagne - almost always appreciated. Bollinger and Louis Roederer (Dom Pérignon or Krug if you can afford it) are gold chip presents. Look out for my review of great sparkling wines next week
- Obscure wines - either a small, unknown producer of a well-known wine such as Beaujolais or California Chardonnay, or something new (a weird new grape variety or curiosity from an up and coming wine region), or something only insiders know about (such as Château Latour's basic Pauillac, effectively its 'third wine', for example)
- Good sweet wines of any sort seem like something special and are usually appreciated even in half bottles.
- Olive oil - estate bottled oils are what wine pros take to each other's houses
