Shrinkflation is Hitting the Wine Pours at Restaurants

I was out with my wife at dinner at the Tap Room (which you may remember I thought was one of the worst meals I have had in the last decade) and she ordered a glass of chardonnay. It looked like they gave her a really small pour and when asked about it, they said that was their normal pour (more like a 4 ounce pour rather than the standard 6 ounce)

Just a few years ago, the standard wine pour was 6 ounces but restaurants are trying to shrink that recently to between 5 or 6 ounces. Why you ask? Money of course.

A standard bottle of wine contains 25.4 ounces — meaning a generous 6-ounce pour will yield four glasses, a standard 5-ounce glass will deliver five and a measly 4 ounces will eke out six (so fifty percent more glasses from each bottle of wine). So restaurants can generate more profits by cutting your wine pours while keeping their pricing at the same levels (or in most cases increasing their prices along with other items).

I found an article in the NY Post which covered this topic. They found servers who admitted to this. “I worked for Danny Meyer and we always gave 6 ounces,” said a sommelier at a popular new downtown restaurant. “When I got here I was quickly corrected and instructed to pour only 5.” People who say the standard is 5 ounces are just gaslighting you.

Do not take comfort when they bring out those small wine carafes because they come in sizes ranging from 4 to 8 ounces.

If someone serves you a small pour (less than 6 ounces), I recommend you just demand a standard 6 ounce pour. Nothing less.

#foodwithaview #foodporn #foodie #foodstagram #foodpics #restaurantreview #reviewrestaurant #grub #grubbing #wine #shrinkflation