Tipping when corkage is involved?

The other thread on wine tipping etiquette got me to thinking about tipping customs when corkage is involved. Let's assume good to excellent service in terms of decanting, stemware, refills (if desired) and the restaurant also has wines available from their menu.

So how much do you tip, in addition to the corkage fee?

[David M. Bueker]

I generally tip based on a reasonable value for the bottles opened.

If we're talking small dinner, say just Betsy and I, single bottle, and corkage is in what I consider "normal" range for Westchester/NYC ($20-40) I probably tip my normal 20% on bill (inc corkage) and then round up $5-10 to make waitstaff about same as if I had ordered a $50-80 bottle. If corkage is waived I generally add $25 to my normal tip.

If a wine dinner with lots of bottles, it kind of depends on what corkage is. We generally don't ask for separate glasses between flights.
1) if we're paying standard corkage, a bit over 20% ( generally we figure out 20%, and round up to next $5 or $10 increment per person -so if bill plus 20% works out to $86 pp , we'll say $90- if service is very good some of us might just throw in $100)
2) if we're getting a corkage deal, 25% plus rounding.
3) If corkage waived, 25-30% plus rounding

Winger has made the valid observation that tips are for service and corkage is for the management to offest lost profit on wine the could have otherwise sold you.

I am guilty of mixing these up to a degree - I don't like to be put in the middle of management and their employees and have to parse the gratuity/corkage betwen them.

It seems to me that you, like me, are mixing corkage and gratuity, as you say if there is a deal/no corkage you'd tip more.

Why - the service is the service, regardless of what management may exact as corkage. Shouldn't they theoretically be independent?

My tendency (and my groups' - my plural is intentional, the several formal and informal groups of winegeeks of which I am a part are all of like mind) to tip more when we get a corkage deal is based on 2 ideas, fairness and practicality:

When we take a table, it is generally for a long period -3 hours or so. A large table that is normally turned isn't, yet we use more stemware, ask for decanters and spit/dump buckets, etc. From a fairness standpoint, a waiter who gets tipped only on food bill (because management chose to waive corkage) shouldn't suffer a loss on income though he did more work than if we were a table of teetotalers (or two tables, as the table likely would have turned). From a practicality viewpoint, it has been my experience that if the waitstaff is happy at the end of the night, it is far more likely that we will be offered the same deal again. It's not easy in NY to find restaurants willing to provide corkage privileges to multi-bottled groups*, much less at a discount, so it's practical to spend a few more dollars to ensure re-invitation.

* many people on wine fora often offer opinions on why restaurants SHOULD be absolutely thrilled to have the business of tables full of winegeeks bringing their own wine, yet most don't (even some that have in past). Which leads me to believe that maybe we are not as attractive as a category as some might think.

From a practicality viewpoint, it has been my experience that if the waitstaff is happy at the end of the night, it is far more likely that we will be offered the same deal again.

I agree. Once waitstaff becomes convinced that corkage/BYO is not in their financial best interest, you have sown the seeds that management will eventually move in another direction.

I always insist on pouring my own wine when I bring it, so the wine waiter really has zip to do (well, 20 seconds with a corkscrew, if I didn't get to it first). Just mention that in terms of amount of work involved - much less than with normal patrons.

We generally do our own pours as well, and often/usually open our own bottles (in my case, often way before restaurant, I live in suburbs, and almost always double decant older wines, I really don't enjoy sediment). But we generally end up with 3-4 stems per person (or more, if we have have bubblies, stickies, etc) We ask for decanters, dump buckets. They clear empty bottles. We are there for hours. I really don't think we are less work than a table that orders a couple of bottles from list, so why should we tip less?

From a fairness standpoint, a waiter who gets tipped only on food bill (because management chose to waive corkage) shouldn't suffer a loss on income though he did more work than if we were a table of teetotalers (or two tables, as the table likely would have turned).

I agree Dale. I tip on the value of the wine if the corkage is waived. If there is a corkage fee do you tip on the fee, the value of the wine or both?

[Robin Garr]

Once waitstaff becomes convinced that corkage/BYO is not in their financial best interest, you have sown the seeds that management will eventually move in another direction.

This. It adds an element of pragmatism to the general principle that if we can afford an indulgent evening out with good food and good drink, it says more about us than it does about service if we look for ways to nickel and dime their bottom line.

I'm more confused now than when the tipping threads started. There seems to be no clear consensus here. What would be the appropriate tip for the wine service in the following BYO scenarios:

1. $10 corkage on a $100 bottle of wine?
2. $50 corkage on a $100 bottle of wine?
3. Corkage waived on a $100 bottle of wine?

Assume all of the above are part of a $100+ meal for two or more.

I'm more confused now than when the tipping threads started. There seems to be no clear consensus here. What would be the appropriate tip for the wine service in the following BYO scenarios:

1. $10 corkage on a $100 bottle of wine?
2. $50 corkage on a $100 bottle of wine?
3. Corkage waived on a $100 bottle of wine?

Assume all of the above are part of a $100+ meal for two or more.

Sam-
Here's how I'd tip the wine portion of the meal:
1. I'd tip $20
2. I'd find another restaurant, order off the list, or in my case drink iced tea.
3. I'd start at $20, but might also seriously consider giving the waived corkage to the server.

I generally don't think much about the value of the bottle. My main concern is the waitstaff feeling they got reasonably compensated for their time, and I pretty sure they're not spending a lot of time on Winesearcher. As noted, I generally try to make sure that tip at lrast is the same as if I had ordered a midpriced non trophy wine (I almost never order anything more than $100). So in your scenarios I'd probably tip 20% on bill and then add:
1) $18-20 dollars
2) $10
3) $25

Bill and Dale,

The guidelines offered by both of you sound quite reasonable. Maybe my offer to tip on the price I originally paid for the wine if the corkage is waived puts the server at a disadvantage. I may need to rethink my position.

Bill - The $50 corkage (actually two bottles at $50 each) was a special occasion, special restaurant and special wines. I was still irritated that they wouldn't cut me a break.