We consulted our expert sommeliers to answer these questions. We discovered something really interesting that will be very useful if you plan to organize a lunch or dinner where you intend to serve wine. We reveal to you how many wines, at most, you should serve during a lunch or a dinner.

How many wines at most can be served at the table during a lunch or a dinner?

We answer this question and then we explain to you why there should be a limit.

It may surprise you but, according to the Wine Etiquette, there is no "maximum number" of wines to serve at the table during a lunch or a dinner. The recommendation that is given on this specific topic is to avoid exaggerations. The key word is moderation. Serving an excessive number of wines is not recommended because it could create confusion among the diners, preventing them from appreciating the wines and the pairings, ending up making the meal too “heavy” and long, therefore not very enjoyable. The Wine Etiquette dictates that every lunch and dinner should be elegant and “measured”, so that guests can enjoy them to the fullest.

Wine experts have set a limit that should not be exceeded and that is commonly shared and respected:

5 is the maximum number of wines that can be served at the table during a meal.

Why have experts set the maximum limit at 5 wines? Because with 5 or fewer wines you can easily pair them with all the courses of a full meal. For example, a sparkling wine for the aperitif, a white wine for the first course, a red wine for the second course, a more structured red wine for the cheeses and, finally, a dessert wine for the dessert.

The number of wines to be served depends on the type and number of courses planned for the lunch or the dinner. For a meal with fewer than 5 courses there are no issues because each course simply needs to be paired with a specific wine. In fact, except for rare exceptions, such as special tasting events, each course should be paired with at most one wine, so the limit of 5 wines cannot be exceeded.

If the meal includes more than 5 courses ... what should we do? The advice is to follow the rule of 5 wines, always in the interest of maintaining elegance, balance, and moderation in the wine service. If the menu and the dishes allow for it, you can choose wines that pair with more than one course. For example, you can choose the same white wine for the aperitif and for a first course of fish, or a structured white wine for a first course of equal structure and the same wine for a second course of white meat. For informal meals you can also serve wines for the whole meal, that is, super balanced wines and, usually, not excessively complex, that make versatility and adaptability to more dishes their main quality. In short, in these cases, you should study the menu in detail and you should identify those wines that can pair perfectly with more than one course.

On our wine sales site you can find these wines. For each wine we also give you useful advice for pairing. This way you can buy the right wine for the courses of your menu.

Finally, the last tip: in addition to serving only one wine per course, you should also drink only one glass of wine per course. There is no specific rule established by the Wine Etiquette, but this is the conventionally accepted limit. Remember that balance, measure and moderation are key principles of wine service.