Opening the nice bottle you brought as a gift.

This sums it up pretty well

 

You did the right thing. If no one else was going to appreciate it, why shouldn't you be able to? Shame on the host for tossing it on the Island of Misfit Beverages where it was to be forgotten for the rest of the night.

 

Why no be honest and say you brought it, under the guise of a gift, so that you could drink it yourself.
When the host didn't offer it to you to drink, you took it upon yourself to open and drink.

To answer your question, yes it was rude.

 

I wouldnt have brought a beer they probably wouldn't like as a gift to a housewarming party.

 

I would follow what other people were doing. If other people opened what they brought, then fair game.

 

I would only bring such a beer to a party ( and a small one at that) for the express purpose of turning them on to something they may not have tried before, and perhaps enlightening them to what quality beer can be.

 

*shines light from desk lamp in your face*

So....just tell us the truth, you brought the bottle to a group a wine drinkers, you figured people would stay away from it so you could drink it....so you could show you brought a gift while enjoying a delicious beer you wanted. That sound about right?

I WANT THE TRUTH!

 

Bring beer for beer drinkers, bring wine for wine drinkers.

 

Well, at least you got to drink it

 

Haha I am not shy about some things. I probably would have loudly and laughingly said something to no one in particular, like, "Well, you wine snobs aren't going to open this fantastic beer, so somebody better do it before the sticks get stuck too far up all your asses." as I popped it open and poured myself a glass.

JK, of course, but not by much Def. would have opened it and def. would have said something humorous as I did.

 

It is an interesting dilemma the way it played out, but if I am giving a nice bottle to a host as a gift then I would usually make that clear up front. "Here's this plant for your new place and a cool bottle of beer that you should open sometime later when you have time to enjoy it. It's a barleywine, blah, blah, blah..." That is a gift and there is no confusion and it wouldn't end up on the crappy wine table. If you want to bring a bottle or two to share at the party, then be clear about that too.

I just had a similar situation at a party thrown by some friends who wouldn't likely have any great beers even though they had caterers serving basic beer and wine and had a full bar set up. I had a Belgian-beer-loving friend in town so I brought him to the party (with permission) along with 4-5 large format brews for us to enjoy. I fully expected to drink *some* of beers but I just gave them to the caterers to pour and offer to whoever wanted to try them. It worked out just fine, and the only awkward moment came as I was leaving and there was one bottle of Prairie Ale unopened. Seeing as it was not a gift or a pure donation to the party -- which was way overstocked with booze -- I took the extra bottle home. I felt a twinge of douchiness but it would have been a plain waste of the bottle and I wasn't even sure if the caterers were taking the leftovers or the hosts were keeping them.

 

I'm with the crowd that's unsure why you brought something you knew the host wouldn't necessarily be into as a gift.

Another angle on your question though, I once brought a bottle of Dark Lord to a friend's birthday party who's into craft beer with the intention to share it with the crowd. When I presented it to him, saying I brought this to celebrate your birthday, he said thanks, I'll drink this tomorrow by myself. I asked, don't you want to share it with everyone here, trying not to be rude but wanting him to open the damn bottle so I could get a pour, but he said no, nobody else would appreciate it.

Was he rude for not sharing the bottle, or was I rude for assuming he would open it?

 

He might have been a little dense by not taking the massive hint you dropped, but again I think being as direct as possible is the only solution: "I brought some DL for us to toast your birthday. Who else here do you think should get a pour with us..." Or even better, just open the bottle without showing it first and say you want to toast his bday.

 

Based on what you've said, it was quite rude on multiple accounts.

For starters, a bottle of wine for the host is a gift, to be opened by them when they feel like it. Sometimes that is at the party, sometimes that is for another time. Typically hosts have already planned the beverages for the party, and the bottles that people bring are little more than "emergency backup". You should have had no expectations of opening that bottle that night.

Second, you bought him a bottle that you knew he wouldn't like.

Third, you opened it without even asking him.

 

i would have tried to bring two (if possible). 1 gift for my friend... & 1 to open & share. the mistake you probably made was making the beer a "gift". next time bring some cheese or flowers or, or, or... for a "gift".

btw, in your honest opinion, did anybody else enjoy the beer?