Bermuda is very open in it's acceptance of lunchtime drinking. Very much like Europe, if you walk into a good restuarant at 1:00 pm any day of the week, there will be people drinking. This is good and bad for me, in that I get paid to drink at lunch once evry two weeks or so. It is bad in that my lunches last 12 hours sometimes. But I digress.
As another aside, we have developed a class system, similar to the Hurricane scale to describe our lunches. A tropical storm would signify a quick lunch with maybe a glass of wine, while a class 5 lunch would represent major catastrophe to both home and body. Class 5 is rare but it happens. You can fgure out the rest of the scale.
Anyway, whoever sits down first will imediately order a bottle of dry white wine. This is before looking at the menu, ordering water, or even saying hello to the waiter. If I am first, I will order a bottle of Seresin. White is expected because it is good for hangovers (many of my clients will be hungover from the night before) it is in a screwcap so you don't have to wait, it is cold to cool you down from the heat of bermuda, and you don't have to think about it. You don't want the wine dominating the discsussion when you are meeting and greeting.
Usually 1 more bottle of white to go with starters.
The Alpha wine guy (i.e. the person in our group who knows the most about wine) will then order a (usually) big red. This will either be French or Italian depending on the Alpha wine guy, no exceptions. Never California Cab.
If I am ordering, I might order a Tignanello or a Cignale. Probably half the table is eating a cut of meat, so this stands up well. If it is an important client, we will go Burgundy and let the wine guy suggest something. $100 a bottle at least.
This is also the time in the lunch to discuss wine, so it helps if you pull out something interesting. Occasionally I will chat with the wine guy (I mean the wine steward of the restaurant) before lunch to have something ready that will spur discussion and/or impress.
Interestingly, during the big red stage of the lunch, we will often reject the first bottle after it is finished and choose something new. I am not sure why this is, but people like to hem and haw over the wine and perhaps it makes us all feel intelligent to say something like ("wouldn't that Bordeaux be better")
The final stage of wine would be a Burgundy or something lighter. This is really the only stage that American wines come in. Last week it was an Oregon pinot. This is kind of like our dessert wine. the wine discssuin has ebbed, so something drinkable is all that is needed. Although you still need a good wine that will not taste like piss next to the spectacular Italian you just drank.
Then espresso and back to work
Unless of couse there is a bonus stage!
Sometimes at 3:30 on a Friday after we have all finished our espresso, someone will suggest "one more quick bottle" and then all bets are off. This also signals the transition from a class 2 to a class 3 lunch. Minor damage expected. The wine could be anything at this point and the wine guy (steward) is now our best friend.
Well that's my story!
Dinner is a whole different progression!
