Bringing olive oil as gift to a dinner party could be considered rude, the UK’s leading etiquette experts have warned.
While a bottle of wine is the tried and true method, a new supermarket report recently found that Britons are choosing to bring the pastry staple – or something that will last longer than the evening.
However, Debrett’s, the publishers of Britain’s most popular etiquette handbook, have warned that the trendy offering could come off as an insult.
‘Good-quality olive oil is becoming desirable, so I can see why some people might think it’s a good gift idea,’ Liz Wyse, an editor at the outlet told The Times.
‘But it does trouble me because it might imply that your host does not have a sufficiently well-resourced kitchen.
‘I would be cautious about giving it because it could be misread as a comment on the quality of your host’s ingredients.’
She added that one exception would be if you returned from holidays in the Mediterranean with a nice bottle of oil.
However, Liz insisted that a bottle of wine was still your best bet – even if your host if teetotal.
Bringing olive oil as gift to a dinner party could be considered rude, the UK’s leading etiquette experts have warned. Stock image used
‘At least it can be given to other guests. Unless your bottle is a complete clash with the food, your host will find it nice to open and serve that evening,’ she continued.
‘But coming with your own elderflower cordial because you don’t like wine implies your host would not provide an acceptable alternative to alcohol. You have to be cautious.’
It comes following a report suggesting that guests are increasingly likely to bring a bottle of olive oil to a gathering.
This is according to this year’s Waitrose Food & Drink Report, which points out that oil, olives, nuts, honey, vinegar and premium salt are among the things guests are swapping in for booze.
The report suggested the new trend had started to grow after House & Garden magazine asked if a ‘trendy’ bottle of oil was ‘the new wine’ when it came to dinner party gifts, the Telegraph reports.
Graza, a premium olive oil brand, told the magazine: ‘We have heard from customers and investors that olive oil is very well received as a gift, especially because you can use it at dinner, and then still have some leftover, whereas a bottle of wine either disappears in 10 minutes or collects dust.’
It has even been suggested that it could be seen as rude to bring wine to the meal.
American TV chef Ina Garten said she doesn’t bring items which may make the host feel they need to serve.
However, Debrett’s, the publishers of Britain’s most popular etiquette handbook, have warned that the trendy offering could come off as an insult. Stock image used
‘I don’t bring a particular course. Like, I wouldn’t bring cheese, because they feel like they need to serve the cheese with the dinner’, she said.
Instead she said some alternatives would be homemade granola, good coffee or caramel chocolate, which could be enjoyed at a different time.
Victoria Moore, The Telegraph‘s wine correspondent, said she had been doing this for ‘years’ as she has always been keen to ‘avoid looking like a cheapstake’ with just a free sample.
She said she noticed friends moving away from bringing wine and speculated this may be because of an assumption the host will have sorted it.
She also explained of an unspoken understanding that nothing should be brought which adds to the clutter or takes up cupboard space in someone’s house, such as scented candles.
The supermarket chain Waitrose added it has become a ‘status symbol’ to have a pantry stocked with ‘premium, ethical and – crucially – pretty brands’.
Guests who bring wine are also more likely to turn up with it either in a box or a can, the supermarket suggested.
Sales of non-bottled wine were up 25 per cent in total since last year. They are more environmentally friendly than glass and are lighter and take up less space. Boxes also mean wine can be stored for longer.
For those preferring a cocktail, the retailer said drinkers are experimenting with cheese-based drinks such as ‘feta brine martinis’.
Growing in popularity are also savoury unammi-flavoured cocktails, according to a report by drinks brand Diageo.
Food which is seen as ‘flexible’ such as dips and ‘picky bits’ have also proves popular, the retailer said.
The report also found that young people are turning to social media for recipes, turning away from recipe books and looking at TikTok for dinner inspirations.
A survey by the retailer found that 72 per cent of younger people say they embrace ‘no recipe’ approach to cooking. By contrast, 70 per cent of those asked who are 45 or over say they relied on their battered and foot stained recipe books.
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