Few restaurant patrons take unfinished bottles of wine home with them following a meal, despite a law passed in the summer that allows them to, local restaurateurs say.
Rhode Island’s “merlot-to-go” law, which allows restaurant patrons to take an unfinished bottle of wine home with them following a meal, was passed last summer in an attempt to promote responsible alcohol consumption and to bolster restaurant business.
Under the law, a diner or dinner party may take a single bottle of unfinished wine out of a restaurant following a full meal, as long as the bottle has been re-corked and sealed in a special plastic bag marked with the date.
Only one bottle may be taken, and the bottle must be transported home in the trunk of a car. Restaurants are not required to permit patrons to take unfinished wine bottles home.
Amy Kempe, a spokeswoman for the Rhode Island Hospitality and Tourism Association, said that although some restaurant patrons have taken advantage of this option, “there has not been a huge demand.”
Reasons cited by restaurateurs include a lack of public awareness, a wider range of by-the-glass wine selections at many restaurants, and concern by some restaurateurs about possible liability lawsuits stemming from the practice, she said.
“Some people say they haven’t seen an uptick,” Kempe said, “and then other people say they’ve seen a small uptick in more expensive bottles of wine.”
There has also been some confusion about the law, Kempe said. Some restaurant owners were unsure of what type of “to go” bag was acceptable, and some believed a receipt needed to be stapled to the bag.
The sealable plastic bags can be ordered from food service suppliers, or on the Web at winedoggybag.com, Kempe said. A dinner receipt does not need to be stapled to the bag, but the date does need to be indicated on the bag in some way, she said.
Not surprisingly, restaurants that promote merlot-to-go report a greater number of patrons taking their unfinished wine with them following a meal. Jamie LaPlume, general manager of 22 Bowen’s Wine Bar and Grill in Newport, said more customers have taken their wine to go than he expected, and he thinks the number will increase even more in the summer.
“We definitely see a lot of people taking wine with them,” LaPlume said. “If we have a party of two – a husband and a wife – then the husband might drink two glasses of wine and the wife might drink one.
But there’s four glasses of wine in that bottle. So instead of ordering individual glasses, they’ll get a nice bottle of wine, and they’ll take the fourth glass home with them.”
Servers and bartenders at 22 Bowen’s are trained to inform their patrons – many of whom are tourists staying in Newport hotels – they can take an unfinished bottle to go, LaPlume said.
“We don’t push it, but we recommend it,” he said. “If they really want this bottle of wine but there are only two of them and they don’t want to waste money, then a server will let them know.”
But others restaurant owners don’t promote the service, or they choose not to let unfinished wine bottles leave their restaurant entirely, fearing they could be held liable if a patron opens the bottle before getting home.
Vincent DiRaimo, an owner of the Atwood Grill in Johnston, said the restaurant carries the wine-to-go bags and will allow a customer who asks for it to take an unfinished bottle home.
But Atwood Grill doesn’t market merlot-to-go, he said.
“If they want their wine, they can have it,” DiRaimo said. “But to be honest, we prefer not to do it. Suppose they start drinking on the way home while driving. That’s always in the back of your mind.”
Home Industries Business Services Wine-to-go idea isn’t taking hold <br>
<i>Many restaurants don’t offer patrons the option</i>
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