Mr B wrote:

> > I would conclude that there is NO utility in sniffing the cork
> > Other than checking to see if the brand on the cork is correct, there is
> no
> >
> This is mind-boggling. Do people really switch bottles? I'm going to sound
> like an old-world reactionary here, but surely not??

Surely not. I have never encountered any evidence, nor heard a first person
account, of bottle switching in any restaurant I know of. It may happen, but
not in any reputable restaurant, I would venture. By all accounts, the
branding of corks stems from a much earlier era when (possibly) the practice
was more commonplace than it appears to be today.

HTH
Mark Lipton