Imagine sitting down for a nice meal, ordering a decent bottle of wine to pair with your steak, and unknowingly sipping one of the rarest and most expensive bottles in the entire restaurant.
That’s exactly what happened at Hawksmoor, an upscale steakhouse in Manchester, back in 2019—and it’s a story that still has people talking.
The Pricey Mix-Up No One Saw Coming
Two diners were enjoying what they thought was a £250 bottle of Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande.
They loved it so much, they asked for a second.
But that’s when things got weird—the server realized there wasn’t another bottle of what they ordered in the wine room.
Cue a moment of panic.
Turns out, the new assistant general manager on duty had accidentally grabbed a £4,500 bottle of Chateau Le Pin Pomerol 2001, one of the most expensive wines on the restaurant’s list.
By the time the error was discovered, the diners had already savored every drop.
The Staff Handled It Like Pros
According to Hawksmoor co-founder Will Beckett, the staff member “styled it out” at the table, apologizing for the lack of a second bottle and casually offering them another instead.
The guests didn’t suspect a thing, paid for their dinner, and left—blissfully unaware they’d just consumed what many wine lovers would call liquid gold.
Later that night, reality hit the restaurant team.
Will Beckett received a frantic early morning message detailing the accidental splurge.
His response?
He turned to Twitter.
A Tweet That Took Off Around the World
Beckett posted a light-hearted message on X (formerly Twitter), giving a shoutout to both the lucky diners and the staff member behind the blunder.
The post blew up—tens of thousands of likes, retweets, and millions of views.
Within 24 hours, what started as a simple wine mix-up turned into an international headline.
Calls and messages poured in from all over the world. Friends and family of the restaurant staff were spotting the story on TV from countries like Australia, Chile, and Croatia.
The Unexpected Upside for the Restaurant
Surprisingly, the accidental giveaway didn’t hurt the restaurant financially—it actually gave business a major boost.
Beckett shared that the story brought in so many curious diners that the restaurant earned far more than it lost on that single bottle.
“Honestly, Hawksmoor got busier for weeks,” he said.
“We made way more money from the exposure than we lost from giving away that wine.”
What Makes This Wine So Special?
The Chateau Le Pin Pomerol 2001 isn’t just expensive for fun—it’s an ultra-rare vintage from one of the smallest and most exclusive estates in Bordeaux.
The wine has a deep, rich color and a complex flavor profile, boasting notes of cherry liqueur, plum, caramel, liquorice, and more.
It’s listed under a special “rarities” section on the menu, a nod to its uniqueness.
If the diners had ordered the cheapest bottle instead—a £26 Sangiovese—the restaurant would’ve lost a whopping £4,474.
A Happy Ending for Everyone Involved
Despite the costly error, no one got in trouble.
Beckett stood by his team and chalked it up to a one-off mistake.
And the diners?
They unknowingly got the wine experience of a lifetime.