What we work on
A wine list the team can sell and the business can afford.
Good lists are built around the venue: the food, the guest, the storage, the team and the numbers. We help independent restaurants and wine bars structure, trim or rebuild a list that does its job.
The problem this addresses
Wine lists drift. They grow by addition: a wine a rep recommended, a bottle the chef loved, a producer someone met on holiday. After a few years the list reflects its history more than the venue's strategy.
The result is often a list that is hard for guests to navigate, hard for the team to explain and hard for the business to stock sensibly. Fixing it is rarely about adding wine knowledge. It is about structure, decisions and discipline.
Signs the list needs attention
- Guests ask for help choosing and the answer is always the same two bottles.
- Large parts of the list sell rarely, while a few wines sell out.
- Wines of the same grape, region and price compete with each other.
- The list reads well but does not match the food or the service style.
- Nobody can say why a particular wine is on the list.
Questions we help answer
- What is the list's job in this venue: everyday, celebration, discovery, or wine-led?
- How many wines does this venue actually need, and in which styles?
- Does every price step give the guest a reason to pay a little more?
- Which wines duplicate each other, and which gaps does the list leave?
- How does the list sit with the food and the team's ability to talk about it?
What we look at
- List structure, categories and flow.
- Range depth against how much the venue sells and stores.
- Price steps within each style.
- Duplication and gaps across grape, region and style.
- Supplier mix and how it shapes the list.
- Fit with the food, the service style and the guest.
Where it fits
Common questions
How many wines should a list have?
There is no single right number. It depends on how much the venue sells, how it stores wine, how well the team can talk about it and what guests expect. A longer list is not automatically a better one.
Do I need to cut wines I love?
Not necessarily. The aim is a list where every wine has a clear job. Some favourites earn their place for reasons beyond sales, and we will say so.
Will you replace our supplier relationships?
No. We help you compare like with like and understand your options. The buying decision stays with you.
Where should we start?
For an existing list, a Beverage Profit Snapshot is a low-cost start. For a new opening or a complete rebuild, a custom project is usually the better route.
Related reading
How to Know Whether Your Wine List Is Working
Seven practical signals that show whether your wine list is doing its job for guests, the team and the business, and what to check next.
Wine List & PricingWhy a Large Wine List Is Not Necessarily a Better Wine List
The real costs of an oversized wine list, when depth does make sense and a practical way to decide how many wines your venue needs.
Talk through your wine list
Tell us what the list is doing and what you would like it to do. We will suggest the right starting point.