The average bottle sold in October was $191.58, up 10.5% on last October at the same restaurants and the highest October on record. Yet bottles that were on lists in both years cost guests just 0.2% more. Price rises didn’t do this; guests chose better bottles: about half of all bottles sold now cost $125 or more, up from roughly 44% a year ago.
- Bottles $125+, Oct 2025: ~44%
- Bottles $125+, Oct 2026: 49%
A guest who chooses a bottle worth twice as much is telling you they trust the list. That trust is worth more than a price rise, and it’s easy to lose with an empty slot or a server who can’t talk about the wine. The middle of your list ($125 to $250) is now where most of the decisions happen.
- Fill gaps between $125 and $250 first; that’s where guests are landing.
- Hold prices on your best sellers; the trade-up is doing the work.
- Brief every shift on three bottles from the middle of the list.