food-and-wine-pairing-a-sensory-experience-robert-harrington
food-and-wine-pairing-a-sensory-experience-robert-harrington
food-and-wine-pairing-a-sensory-experience-robert-harrington
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Chapter 14 The Customer Experience: Product, Service, <strong>and</strong> Training Issues<br />
INTRODUCTION<br />
Up to this point, the discussions <strong>and</strong> exercises in this text<br />
have armed you with (1) depth of <strong>experience</strong> in tasting <strong>and</strong><br />
evaluating <strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>wine</strong> combinations, (2) the basics of <strong>wine</strong><br />
evaluation <strong>and</strong> differences between varietals characteristics,<br />
(3) an underst<strong>and</strong>ing of gastronomic identity <strong>and</strong> its relationship<br />
with <strong>wine</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>food</strong> marriages, <strong>and</strong> (4) knowledge of how<br />
<strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>wine</strong> elements interact <strong>and</strong> transform each other.<br />
These methods provide you with a tool kit of ideas, concepts,<br />
<strong>and</strong> knowledge for quickly identifying key <strong>wine</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>food</strong> elements<br />
that impact the effectiveness of <strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>wine</strong> <strong>pairing</strong>s.<br />
This process combines techniques <strong>and</strong> ideas from both the art<br />
<strong>and</strong> science of <strong>sensory</strong> evaluation. The heart of this process<br />
relies heavily upon the senses of sight, smell, taste, touch, <strong>and</strong><br />
hearing.<br />
As pointed out throughout the text, it is important to<br />
consider the impact of a region’s gastronomic identity on<br />
<strong>food</strong>, <strong>wine</strong>, <strong>and</strong> the <strong>pairing</strong> of the two when considering various<br />
matches. A variety of environmental <strong>and</strong> cultural elements<br />
impact preferences <strong>and</strong> prevailing components,<br />
textures, <strong>and</strong> flavors in <strong>wine</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>food</strong>. The Aperitifs in each<br />
chapter demonstrate that many business <strong>and</strong> educational endeavors<br />
have found taking the gastronomic identity perspective<br />
to <strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>wine</strong> <strong>pairing</strong> to be rewarding <strong>and</strong> profitable.<br />
This perspective helps to provide unique <strong>experience</strong>s for locals<br />
<strong>and</strong> visitors alike while preserving (<strong>and</strong> in many cases<br />
exposing) a part of history.<br />
The previous three chapters have focused on the use of<br />
the Wine <strong>and</strong> Food Pairing Instrument <strong>and</strong> explained how the<br />
profile it creates can be used to predict levels of match. The<br />
decision tree <strong>and</strong> scoring sheet help to create a structure to<br />
evaluate the impact of various elements on the potential<br />
match.<br />
The concept of <strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>wine</strong> <strong>pairing</strong> is an exciting,<br />
challenging, <strong>and</strong> rapidly evolving topic area <strong>and</strong> industry.<br />
Many issues impact the <strong>experience</strong> your guests will have in<br />
your establishment, including the quality <strong>and</strong> extent of your<br />
<strong>food</strong> menu <strong>and</strong> accompanying <strong>wine</strong> list. Many questions have<br />
not been fully explored up to this point: How, specifically, can<br />
the <strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>wine</strong> <strong>pairing</strong> process be used to create a positive<br />
<strong>experience</strong> for my guests or customers? Will these <strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong><br />
<strong>wine</strong> <strong>pairing</strong> skills be useful in allowing my business to be<br />
more successful <strong>and</strong> competitive in the marketplace? Will this<br />
process ultimately provide greater gastronomic satisfaction<br />
for my guests <strong>and</strong> positively impact the bottom line of my<br />
business? The answers to these questions depend on how you<br />
implement your particular <strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>wine</strong> program. Successful<br />
implementation has to do with your customers’ perception of<br />
service quality. The key criteria customers use to evaluate service<br />
quality include the reliability, responsiveness, competence,<br />
courtesy, <strong>and</strong> communication demonstrated by those<br />
providing the service as well as their underst<strong>and</strong>ing of the<br />
consumer. 1<br />
Aperitif Product-Service Considerations for a Food <strong>and</strong> Wine Program<br />
How large should the portion be in our <strong>wine</strong>-by-the-glass program? Or, what are the correct <strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong><br />
<strong>wine</strong> portion sizes in a multi-course tasting menu? Before these <strong>and</strong> many other questions can be answered,<br />
you will need to consider customer needs, seating capacity, the number of meals served, equipment needs,<br />
staff skills, <strong>and</strong> training capabilities.<br />
Product presentation refers to every aspect associated with how the product is presented to the final<br />
customer. For <strong>food</strong> items, the concept of presentation includes the layout <strong>and</strong> combination of <strong>food</strong> items<br />
on the plate as well as the china, glass, silver, <strong>and</strong> other non-traditional service pieces that may be used.<br />
For <strong>wine</strong>, the presentation may include the storage unit (a visible cellar), <strong>wine</strong> buckets (Sterling silver? Or,<br />
plastic?), <strong>and</strong> the glassware.<br />
The table setting plays a large part in the presentation factor of a <strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>wine</strong> product. How formal<br />
or informal should the setting be? What is the correct set-up for a multi-course tasting menu? If I am<br />
invited to a multi-course, formal dinner will I use the proper etiquette? These <strong>and</strong> other questions point<br />
out some of the issues of creating the right <strong>experience</strong> for guests attending a multi-course <strong>food</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>wine</strong>