Airline Wine: Mediocre at Best

If you've taken an airline flight in the past few years, you're aware of how dreadful the wine selection is. Buying a glass of wine on an airplane tends to be pretty expensive, but worse than that - most of the time it's pretty awful as well. San Francisco wine writer and New York native Liza Zimmerman has an op-ed piece running on the Examiner's website that tackles the subject head-on, wondering aloud why American carriers like Continental don't make more of an effort to pair with American wineries and offer their customers something special. It's a quick and entertaining read, and I think that anyone who has first hand experience with airline wine will whole-heartedly agree with his take on the subject.

From the Examiner:

I had this idea when my grandparents flew around, in the 1930s, that airline travel was very romantic. Even in the late '80s and '90s when I lived in Italy, and flew to Rome and back a couple times a year, wine selections seemed better and less regulated by the bottom line and deals made by I am not quite sure whom. I am still offended by having to pay $5 to $7 for a generally disappointing 375-ml. bottle of wine (read those tiny plastic bottles) when I pay a handsome amount of money for an often-late flight and I can't bring my own wine or elect to sample something more exciting.