GK wrote:
A friend came for dinner last week and brought along a bottle of '03 Musar. I opened the bottle for decanting and immediately picked up the distinctive whiff of cork taint. A quick taste confirmed the wine was corked. My friend retuned to Waitrose the next day with the bottle and his receipt. Waitrose advised him they would send the bottle away for detailed analysis and let him know the outcome. This may take up to 28 days and he won’t get a refund until someone, somewhere agrees the wine is faulty.
I was alarmed when he told me this, I don’t think I would have walked away without a full refund. Surely they have someone in their wine department who knows what a corked wine tastes like?
Is this standard practise for Waitrose?
No- well it never used to be. I had 2 bottles of Ninth Island pinot noir from Tasmania, that had gone like moldy old carpet ! Essentially, because air was getting into the wine thru the side, between the glass and the cork. So - not taint from the cork bark itself, or, some other infection / inclusion buried in the cork that reacted when wet.
No question -
but they did say they might contact me and took my name and address & phone number for reporting. They didn't report back, so they obviously came to the same conclusion as me.
As for staff employed in the store wine dept. stocking shelves or re-ordering using their electronic stocking levels gismo - NO, affraid not.
They won't know,
or be qualified to say so, in a retail environment. My Majestic Local are different, and Mark will take a sip with caution - if I say it's faulty - but that is our relationship - not Majestic's marketing policy per se'
That '03 Musar is a fine wine,
they should have refunded, and then reported back, if there was a contra opinion. What does the policy say for a £17 wine ? Your friend must have had the wine in stock for a year or two ?
Some Waitrose stores make-up their own minds - you may have to go back to your own local. Not all that many people keep their receipts for better wines ?
Things are changing, unless these wines are over £20 a bottle - Is there a laying down age rule for more expensive Waitrose wines ?
I don’t think I would have walked away without a full refund .....Nor me, but as a small group of wine contributors here, we are very certain of our opinion. Customers should not be made to go through the hoops, when they have the receipt, and have bought the wine for themselves !
GK, you know what you are talking about - But How do Store managers make the correct decision in other circumstances ?
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