Etiquette for Stemware and Wine

However one chooses to place the stemware, in American, British or most Continental dining, it is always in the order in which each glass will be used, with the first glasses above the tips of the knives, moving out above the spoons, etc…which is the reverse of the order of utensil placement. In French dining, it is the reverse order with the glasses moving from above the knives, toward the left side of the place setting, all along the top of the place setting. This placement is also used in “wine-tasting dinners.”

What Have We Here? — A formal place setting for a multi-course dinner, showing the wines for the different courses.

The wines and courses would be for the chosen menu as follows:

• Champagne with the Appetizer
• Sherry with the Soup
• Rosé with a Pasta with Shellfish
• Champagne with Sorbet
• Red Wine with the Roasted Quail
• Water with the Salad
• Tokay with Asst. Cheese and Fruit
• Cordial with Flambé Dessert

This is just to be used for instructional purposes. One would never see these wines pre-poured in this manner, prior to the different courses being served.

These glasses are clustered above the utensils and to their right, in the order of use, when setting the table. Stemware can also be “spiked” or lined up in a row coming out from above the utensils (gilded age style), above the place setting (in the French manner), or in a triangle pattern.

However one chooses to place the stemware, in American, British or Continental dining, it is always in the order in which each glass will be used, with the first glasses above the tips of the knives, moving out above the spoons, etc…which is the reverse of the order of utensil placement. 

In French dining, it is the reverse order with the glasses moving from above the knives, toward the left side of the place setting, all along the top of the place setting. This placement is also used in “wine-tasting dinners.”

Each previous glass would be removed prior to the next course, except for the water glass and the champagne.

The champagne can be served as the only wine throughout the meal, after the sherry for the soup course, if a host or hostess prefers.

Or champagne, like water, can be left at the setting throughout the meal, along with any other course specific wine which is being served. – Maura J. Graber, The RSVP Institute of Etiquette, 2025

Contributor Maura Graber has been teaching etiquette to children, teens and adults, and training new etiquette instructors, for over 35 years, as founder and director of The RSVP Institute of Etiquette.  She is also a writer, has been featured in countless newspapers, magazines and television shows and was an on-air contributor to PBS in Southern California for 15 years. 

🍽️Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia 

The Art of Wine Tasting

Don’t drink too much of one wine. Mix up your tasting pattern to include wine you normally do not buy. Napa is a place to experiment with new wines and different wineries.

The Etiquette of Wine Tasting

Picture this scenario in any four-star restaurant. You and your party of six are seated at your table and the waiter passes out the menus. He then deposits the wine list in your hands. The list looks like a telephone book from Chicago. When you open it, total confusion rears its head. Where do you start? What goes with the dinner you and your guests are going to have tonight? What wine goes with fish and beef?

Here are your choices: 

• Panic
• Fake it
• Ask for help
• Drink the house wine
• Promise yourself you will try to learn more about wine before this happens again 

However you handle the choices of 1 through 4, option 5 can be satisfied at Napa Valley.

IS THERE AN ART TO WINE TASTING?

The simple answer to this question is no, but here are some recommendations on how to make your tasting more fun and memorable. Evan Goldstein, director of the Sterling Vineyards School of Service and Hospitality, offers these suggestions:

1. Don't drink too much of one wine. Mix up your tasting pattern to include wine you normally do not buy. Napa is a place to experiment with new wines and different wineries.

2. Experiment by tasting different foods with one wine. This will help you explore how different wines and foods mix, complement or contrast each other.

3. Ask the winery personnel questions about the wines they are pouring. These trained personnel can give you great tips how their wine is priced, what foods it is best paired with, and what characteristics are common in the winery’s other wines.

4. Compare two different wineries on the same wine at the same time (Pinot Noir vs. Pinor Noir). This direct comparison tasting shows you the differences in winemaking styles. Sometimes it's subtle and sometimes it's dramatic.

5. Take simple notes on what you tasted. Finding great wines at Napa Valley is easy, trying to remember them may be more difficult. With your simple notes you can purchase these wines with confidence in a restaurant or in the grocery store. – From an article for the Napa Valley Register, 1992

🍽️Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia