Ask Amy: ‘Can you hear me now?’ YES!
These other diners have paid for this wine and – just as they paid for their steak or crab cake – it is not appropriate for you to decide what to do with their leftovers.
For a more professional assessment of your question, I’ve shared it with Meaghan Frank, who is vice president at the family-owned winery started by her great-grandfather, the wine-making pioneer Dr. Konstantin Frank. Meaghan is also an instructor for the Wine and Spirit Education Trust.
Her response: “There are several issues here, hygiene being one. Just as you would not help yourself to water from another table’s half-finished pitcher, this bottle will have touched glasses which others have drunk from.
“Taking this wine is also not fair to the restaurant and staff. If your group decided to drink it at your table, you would be taking up the table for a longer period, preventing the restaurant from turning the table over, and likely affecting the amount of the server’s income for the night.”
Dear Amy: I have a suggestion for “Anxious Aunt,” whose niece was getting married in Europe.
She should not be pressured to attend. But I wonder if someone at the wedding ceremony could arrange to livestream it?
– Wondering
Dear Wondering: Great idea! Anxious Aunt could even host a local get-together and viewing party for those other guests who couldn’t make the trip.
Offering to do so might also serve to smooth the rocky reaction from family members regarding her decision not to attend this overseas wedding.
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(You can email Amy Dickinson at askamy@amydickinson.com or send a letter to Ask Amy, P.O. Box 194, Freeville, NY 13068. You can also follow her on Twitter @askingamy or Facebook.)
©2023 Amy Dickinson. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
