Amtrak needs a new wine vendor

[MARC Rider]

So if you buy an single serving bottle of plonk in the cafe car, it costs $6.00 or so, the red stuff, at least, is atrocious tannic swill that gives you a nice case of GERD for the rest of the evening.

This evening, I stopped at the overpriced liquor store downstairs at WUS and bought me a similar size little bottle of Sutter Home merlot. Same size little plastic bottle, but it only cost me $3.50. (OK $3.85 when you add in DC sales tax.) I've just finished, while, of course, it's still plonk, it was a far better example of the genre.

So maybe Amtrak food and beverage buyers could actually sample the stuff they entrust to the innards of their paying customers? If I were riding from a station without a wine shop nearby, I'd be willing to pay six bucks for the Sutter Home, but I'd go on the wagon if the choice is what they're selling now.

PS That doesn't hold for the 15 buck half bottle. That stuff is Ok.

 

[TinCan782]

If your are in a sleeper, just bring your own...your preference!

 

[crescent-zephyr]

I'm sure Amtrak can source a better quality wine from their current vendor.

 

[Triley]

It's $6.50 and $16 respectively, on the corridor. Can't say I've ever had a complaint from a passenger about the Woodbridge, whether it be the cabernet or chardonnay. People drink more of that stuff than you'd care to believe. We use to have merlot as well, but it rarely sold, so it was discontinued last year.

 

[Manny T]

I understand why Amtrak uses the single serving bottles--to open a real bottle of wine for someone who orders a glass might risk the rest of the bottle going bad before it gets drunk. But the $6.50 price tag is a bit steep.

If you plan ahead, most grocery and liquor stores stock the little plastic bottles in 4 packs. The Chicago area price for a 4 pack is about $4.95-$5.95. What I like to do is pack 1-2 single plastic bottles in my luggage and enjoy them en route in my roomette.

 

[me_little_me]

Does Amtrak's wine come in a brown paper bag?

Do passengers get to whine about their wine?

As a professional oneologist, my favorite wine (not carried by Amtrak) is Thunderbird.

:giggle:

 

[HenryK]

I've always thought the Amtrak plonk was at least drinkable, but then I am a low-budget oenologist whose tastes run no higher than Menage a Trois Silk. That's why I never bring my own wine aboard—the added weight of a bottle or two just isn't worth it to me. A twofer of Woodbridge cabernet in the lounge car does me just fine.

It would be interesting to learn how Amtrak acquires its wines. Low bidder among the vineyards? Or does the winning food vendor also provide the wines?

 

[Seaboard92]

Would someone please pass the paper bag that holds the bottle

 

[zephyr17]

I'd like to know how they settled on Pepsi instead of Coke myself. I hate Pepsi.

 

[Montreal Ltd]

Had to laugh! Reading this thread, went into the kitchen and there is a bottle of Woodbridge cabernet sitting on the counter. Next Amtrak trip in 5 weeks!

 

[Hal]

I'd like to know how they settled on Pepsi instead of Coke myself. I hate Pepsi.

Simple, Pepsi gave Amtrak the best deal.

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[Manny T]

But Henry, that twofer will cost you $13.00 before tax and tip. At the grocery store you'd be out $3-4 at most. Just saying!

 

[Triley]

But Henry, that twofer will cost you $13.00 before tax and tip. At the grocery store you'd be out $3-4 at most. Just saying!

So you don't buy any cocktails or any other alcohol with dinner at a restaurant because of how much cheaper it is from the local source, either? Everybody knows alcohol is a restaurant's bread and butter, and as long as many people are willing to pay it? Well....

 

[Carolina Special]

If AGR can be "better engineered" after 15 years, so can the Pepsi/Coke choice. I prefer the real thing.

 

[HenryK]

Manny T, I am well aware of that twofer price . . . but in a typical Chicago cocktail lounge or restaurant, a single glass of house wine costs between $6 and $9. Suddenly the Amtrak price doesn't seem quite so bad.

Carrying bottles of wine aboard the train is for folks younger and stronger than me. (I've got to tote 18 pounds of camera equipment on my back.)

On the other hand, if somebody GAVE me a bottle of Dom Perignon and a couple of tins of smoked oysters to bring on the train, I'd leave a lens or three at home.

 

[TinCan782]

Manny T, I am well aware of that twofer price . . . but in a typical Chicago cocktail lounge or restaurant, a single glass of house wine costs between $6 and $9. Suddenly the Amtrak price doesn't seem quite so bad.

Carrying bottles of wine aboard the train is for folks younger and stronger than me. (I've got to tote 18 pounds of camera equipment on my back.)

On the other hand, if somebody GAVE me a bottle of Dom Perignon and a couple of tins of smoked oysters to bring on the train, I'd leave a lens or three at home.

I feel the pain! I've regressed to a "point and shoot"...got tired of lugging a bag of camera and lenses over my shoulder!

 

[Manny T]

18 pound camera or bottle of wine? It's all a question of individual priorities. To each his or her own.

Btw, if I was in a restaurant or bar and ordered a glass of wine, and they came to the table with a small plastic bottle of Sutter's Home or Gallo, unscrewed the top and poured it in a plastic glass for me, no, I wouldn't be happy to pay $9 for that.

And Triley, last time I checked, Amtrak rules and regulations permit roomette and bedroom PAX to have and to consume wine in their private accommodations, there is no negative connotation to doing so, and the impact on Amtrak's bottom line is either negligible or of no concern to Amtrak. This differs completely for a restaurant, where the sale of alcoholic beverages is crucial to profitability.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

The real wine glasses added a nice touch of class to the Amtrak diner. that was a shame to see them go.

 

[Hal]

If AGR can be "better engineered" after 15 years, so can the Pepsi/Coke choice. I prefer the real thing.

The vendors give a good deal for exclusivity. They also throw in the non rev soft drinks. Amtrak and the vendor have a contract. Giving exclusively saves Amtrak money. That is why all the soft drinks are Pepsi products. They currently have the contract. So if you prefer Coke, stinks to be you......

 

[tommylicious]

Had the half bottle Cab on tonight's 49. Was great!

 

[Alexandria Nick]

I'd like to know how they settled on Pepsi instead of Coke myself. I hate Pepsi.

Simple, Pepsi gave Amtrak the best deal.

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Which is a bit funny because Coke routinely crushes Pepsi on those deals. That's one of the reasons Pepsi owned a few fast food brands for a while. It was more cost effect for them to own the restaurant than try to out deal Coke on supply deals.

I prefer Dr Pepper, to my great annoyance, because its availability is dependent on if the local Coke or Pepsi bottler has a contract. Apparently Amtrak's Pepsi bottlers don't have Dr Pepper or Amtrak chose not to stock it!

 

[Hal]

I'd like to know how they settled on Pepsi instead of Coke myself. I hate Pepsi.

Simple, Pepsi gave Amtrak the best deal.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Which is a bit funny because Coke routinely crushes Pepsi on those deals. That's one of the reasons Pepsi owned a few fast food brands for a while. It was more cost effect for them to own the restaurant than try to out deal Coke on supply deals.

I prefer Dr Pepper, to my great annoyance, because its availability is dependent on if the local Coke or Pepsi bottler has a contract. Apparently Amtrak's Pepsi bottlers don't have Dr Pepper or Amtrak chose not to stock it!

When I drank soft drinks I prefered Dr. Pepper and Seven Up but now I won't touch a soft drink. Water is my main beverage everyday supplemented by Coffee.

 

[RalphCT]

I enjoyed a half bottle of cabernet sauvignon from the Hahn winery on the Empire Builder. Nothing wrong with that one.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

If AGR can be "better engineered" after 15 years, so can the Pepsi/Coke choice. I prefer the real thing.

So you prefer Mexican Coke?

The vendors give a good deal for exclusivity. They also throw in the non rev soft drinks. Amtrak and the vendor have a contract. Giving exclusively saves Amtrak money. That is why all the soft drinks are Pepsi products. They currently have the contract. So if you prefer Coke, stinks to be you......

On the other hand if most of your customers mainly want Coke products but all you've stocked are Pepsi products then it also sucks to be Amtrak. You can make several common cocktails with Coke but who ever heard of a Pepsi cocktail?

Had the half bottle Cab on tonight's 49. Was great!

Yeah, I saw your other thread already. The main thing that stuck out for me were the generic frozen veggies on the bottom-left of the photo. Did the wine make it easier to swallow them?

 

[Carolina Special]

I expect the real Coke/Pepsi issue is that Coke is red and Pepsi is blue. Amtrak uses Pepsi since their rail traffic is better in blue states...