If you bring something to a group dinner, like a bottle of wine, that wine is either a gift for the host, enjoyed at the group dinner, or possibly goes home with the person who brought it.

None of those options relate to the bottle of wine belonging to someone who attended the group dinner but did not bring the wine and is not hosting the dinner party.

In today’s story, one friend tries to stake claim to a particular bottle of wine.

Let’s see how the story plays out…

Everything I see belongs to me….

This happened almost 20 years ago, but it still makes me shake my head when I think about it.

I was very good friends with a group of people and their partners who all spent years in a graduate program together.

We formed a tight bond, and even when we started completing and leaving the program, we remained close and arranged gatherings.

She loved these group meals.

Two of the people were local to the area, so they would sometimes host a meal or make arrangements for dinner at a local place.

The group members were all foodies and wine lovers so meals either out or prepared at home were always top notch.

I was the last to complete, and it was a great opportunity to get the group back together for a weekend of fun.

The two locals hosted gatherings at their homes, and we all went out to several amazing meals.

Her partner bought champagne.

My partner purchased six well regarded bottles of champagne to celebrate my completion.

Think Bollinger, Piper Heidsieck, Duval Leroy.

One was a magnum if I remember correctly.

My partner would bring out a bottle or two of the champagne to share with the group when we were at someone’s home eating or just hanging out.

One friend is best described as a “rummager.”

One of our group, who had hosted the first gathering in their home, decided to go to the cooler and rummage through the bottles and then dictate which one was served when.

It got a little tiresome.

As we we were all packing up to depart after a lovely Sunday brunch at our other friend’s home, The Rummager tried to take the last bottle out of the cooler for themself.

They announced they had hosted the first party so “etiquette” stated that it was rude to not give it to them.

We chose not to.

The “rummager”  saw the wine again…

A few months later, The Rummager, came to our home for a weekend visit.

They spied the “last bottle” in our wine rack and read us the riot act (again) about how Emily Post was spinning in her grave for our lack of decorum.

And demanded we give them the bottle or chill it to open later.

Again, we chose not to.

It was a great source of amusement to my partner and me whenever we thought about it.

The rummaging friend should just buy a similar bottle.

It’s ridiculous to try to stake claim to something that’s clearly not yours!

Let’s see how Reddit reacted to this story…

This reader suggests turning the wine into a trophy.

Here’s another suggestion for the bottle…

This reader points out a big mistake they made with the wine…

Here’s a funny image…

That friend certainly had some nerve to ask for the same bottle twice!

They must have really wanted it.

If you liked that post, check out this post about a rude customer who got exactly what they wanted in their pizza.