FORT WORTH- A passenger flying American Airlines (AA) from Miami International Airport (MIA) to Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP) in South Carolina received one of the most unusual in-flight drinks ever served in first class — a homemade mix of chardonnay and sparkling water, presented as a substitute for sparkling wine.

The flight, operated as Envoy Air flight 3394 (MQ) under the American Eagle brand, covers approximately 640 miles. The flight attendant not only served the improvised mix but told the passenger it was airline policy to do so when sparkling wine runs out — a claim American Airlines (AA) has not made in any known service guideline.

American Airlines Attendant Fake Wine

The passenger had already consumed two glasses of sparkling wine during the flight before requesting a third. When the flight attendant returned, the drink she served tasted noticeably off.

The flight attendant then leaned in and explained that crew members are instructed to mix chardonnay with sparkling water whenever champagne or sparkling wine is unavailable.

The passenger described the experience as “the worst possible thing you could do to your customers,” pointing out that simply informing a guest that the product is out of stock would have been a far better response. The deception — not the substitution itself — is what drew the sharpest criticism.

There is no evidence that American Airlines has any policy instructing crew to blend chardonnay and sparkling water as a sparkling wine replacement.

Given the airline’s detailed service documentation and the likelihood that such a memo would have surfaced publicly, this appears to be an individual decision made by the crew member, not a company directive, View from the Wing reported.

Why Running Out of Sparkling Wine on This Flight Raises Questions

Flight 3394 operates on a route of roughly 640 miles. Running out of sparkling wine on a short regional flight points to a provisioning failure — either the flight was under-stocked, or demand significantly exceeded expectations.

On Envoy Air (MQ) regional flights operating under the American Eagle banner, catering quantities are typically calculated based on passenger load and cabin class distribution.

Running dry before landing on a sub-two-hour flight in first class is a service gap the airline should address at the catering level, not by improvising at the galley.

The Chemistry of the Substitution — Why It Fails

Blending chardonnay with sparkling water does not produce anything close to sparkling wine. The result is a thin, watered-down drink with reduced aroma, softened acidity, and a flat fruit profile.

If the chardonnay used had oak, butter, or vanilla characteristics — common in many American commercial chardonnays — those notes become even more disjointed when diluted.

The carbonation from sparkling water integrates poorly, lacks the yeasty complexity of actual sparkling wine, and produces what most tasters would describe as “something is clearly wrong” rather than “this is simply cheap.”

No proportion of the two liquids corrects for the absence of secondary fermentation, which is what gives real sparkling wine its texture, persistence, and flavor depth.

Galley Gossip vs. Official Training: A Wider Problem

This incident points to a broader issue in airline cabin service: flight attendants often absorb informal procedures from colleagues rather than from official training materials.

When airlines reduce recurring in-person service training and rely instead on memos and digital communications, procedural inconsistencies emerge — sometimes small, sometimes as strange as this one.

The practice of mixing chardonnay and sparkling water and labeling it sparkling wine almost certainly originated from galley-to-galley knowledge transfer, not from any company policy document. That gap between what crew are formally trained to do and what they actually do in the cabin is worth attention from airline management.

How U.S. Airlines Approach Domestic Sparkling Wine

Domestic sparkling wine service across major U.S. carriers varies considerably in quality and investment:

Delta Air Lines (DL) serves Une Femme “The Betty” Sparkling Brut, which draws consistent criticism from passengers. Among the more charitable reviews, one described it as tasting “like cider,” while another noted that the product had reportedly improved by addressing a previous plastic smell and taste.

United Airlines (UA) offers Gambino Prosecco on domestic routes, which is generally considered a step above what Delta provides.

American Airlines (AA) does not prominently advertise its domestic sparkling wine. The airline previously served La Marca Prosecco, a product available in three-bottle splits for around $15 at major retail stores — a reasonable offering for the cabin class. At the time of this incident, the split served on board was a Bottega Brut, a product retailing at approximately $7, which observers found acceptable if not exceptional.

None of the major U.S. carriers invests significantly in domestic sparkling wine the way they do in their international business class champagne programs.

American Airlines (AA) is noted for a strong international business class champagne selection, while United Airlines (UA) holds the broader edge in overall wine programming.

Past In-Flight Beverage Incidents at Other Airlines

This is not the first time airline beverage handling has drawn public attention. An Emirates (EK) cabin crew previously caused widespread controversy after being caught pouring champagne from a used glass back into a bottle.

Separately, an American Airlines (AA) flight attendant was filmed recycling orange juice in the galley. Both incidents raised questions about onboard service standards and galley practices.

Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Airlines flight attendants union pushed for a two-drink limit per passenger on each flight — a proposal that, if enforced through limited catering loads, could itself lead to situations where drinks run out before the flight ends.

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