French class Paris : Order wine in French
How to ask questions to the waitor or sommelier
In all restaurants, you will be asked “Voulez-vous du vin? “(Would you like some wine?)
You can choose to have it “au verre” (a single glass of wine), or “à la bouteille” (the whole bottle).
In “Un Grand Restaurant”, you will have “un Sommelier “(a wine steward) giving you advice on which wine to choose according to the type of meats and flavours you ordered. The best solution is to communicate as much as you can with the sommelier or the waiter. If you hesitate or simply need recommendations, you will also have questions to ask the sommelier. I recommend using the following questions:
Est-ce que avez la carte des vins s’il vous plait? (Do you have the wine list please?)
Est-ce que vous servez du vin au verre? (Do you serve wine by the glass ?)
Est-ce que vous avez des demies-bouteilles? (Do you offer half-bottles of wine ?)
Quelles sont vos suggestions pour le vin? (What are your wine suggestions?)
Quel vin est-ce que vous me recommandez? (Which wine do you recommend ?)
Quel vin est-ce que vous me conseillez pour aller avec ce plat? (Which wine do you recommend to go with this dish?)
J’hésite entre deux vins, lequel est-ce que vous me conseillez? (I hesitate between two wines, which one do you recommend ?)
Before making a recommendation, the waiter might enquire about your tastes for wine and preferences. To start, he or she might be asked if you prefer a “vin rouge” (red wine) a “vin blanc” (white wine) or a “vin rosé” (rosé wine). It’s perfect if you already know those basic French words, but it’s not sufficient. Even if you nobody asks you to be an expert and use technical expressions, it’s better to encourage the sommelier to continue the interaction in French.
Photo credit: Pelle Martin
I encourage you to express what you like or what you dislike and don’t be afraid to make mistakes. To speak about your tastes with more detail, you can use the following expressions:
How to express your tastes and preferences in French.
J’aime les vins légers et frais. (I like light and fresh wines.)
J’aime les vins pétillants. (I like sparkling wines.)
Je préfère les vins fruités. (I prefer fruity wines.)
J’ai une préférence pour les vins blanc secs. (I have a preference for dry white wines.)
J’aime assez les vins liquoreux. (I quite like sweet wines.)
Je bois des vins moelleux. (I drink mellow wines.)
En général je bois des vins charpentés. (In general I drink well-structured wines.)
J’aime les cépages de Bourgogne comme le Chardonnay. (I like grape varieties of Burgundy such as Chardonnay.)
J’aime assez les vins minéraux. (I quite like mineral wines.)
J’aime bien les vins boisés. (I quite like oaky wines.)
J’aime les notes végétales dans un vin. I (like the vegetal notes in a wine.)
J’adore les notes florales. (I love floral notes.)
Ce que j’aime ce sont les vins épicés. (What I like are spicy wines.)
J’adore les arômes épicés. (I love spicy flavours.
How to order in French
Now you have overcome your fear of speaking French with the sommelier, and even start to feel more relaxed. Well done! You have made your choice and you are now ready to order. Here are the expressions you can use:
Je vais prendre un Nuit-Saint-Georges. (I will have a Nuit-Saint-Georges.)
Je voudrais une bouteille de St Emilion. (I would like a bottle of St Emilion)
J’ai choisi un Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2012. (I have chosen a Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2012.)
Now you can ask your french tutor in Paris to pronounce those sentences :)
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