Corkage fees - To pay or not to pay, that is the question...

Corkage fees are a bit of an anathema among wine drinkers, and a downright conundrum (which is the name of a white blend by Caymus) to nouveau oenophiles.  Can I or can't I?  DO I or don't I?  If so how much is reasonable?  What's highway robbery? 

And you thought wine enjoyment was easy;  well it is and here's how.

Generally speaking if you bring your own bottle to a restaurant, expect to pay a corkage fee. High-end restaurants may not even allow you to bring in your own vino; if in doubt call ahead and ask if you can and what their fee is.  Typically it's $15-25/bottle depending on the market/community.  What any restauranteur will tell you is they can NOT pay the bills off food/entree sales alone; alcohol many times saves the day, hence the 1-300% mark up. You bringing your own bottle eats into that (no pun intended).  Also, you're not just paying for the wine when you buy it from a restaurant, you're also helping to pay for the flowers on your table, the staff, utilities, any overhead actually.  It's an added cost associated with the experience of enjoying the wine at THAT establishment with THEIR cuisine.

Think of it as just another entree; you rarely say "This is outrageous! I could make this veal milanese or boeuf wellington at home just as well for 1/3 the price!" Ok so some of you reading this WOULD do that...for the record I never have...yet.  Annnnyway, don't bitch about the wine either....or the fee associated with it. It's quite a bit different than just popping the cork at home, slapping a burger on the grill or a pizza in the oven. 

So what's the etiquette?
These are BB's rules for BYOB:

• Ask what their corkage policy is and be prepared to pay a corkage fee. 
• Don't bring a bottle the restaurant already carries.  Again, if in doubt call ahead. (sidenote: I have brought in an older, unavailable vintage or a Reserve series bottle of a wine a restaurant carries to do a mini "tasting" to compare the two)
• Offer to share with the server/bartender and on-duty manager if allowed and involve them in the experience. Let them know why you brought this particular bottle; they may even learn something...and trust me, some of them need to.
• Tip as though you bought it there.  After all the server still decanted, poured etc.
• If you have any left over (which speaks volumes about the wine) don't hesitate to ask for a "to go" bag where available/allowed.  If it's that bad just leave it for the server; they'll love you even more.

Please share your thoughts, opinions, comments etc, I'd love to hear them....and shoot them down if they differ from mine.  But then again you knew that going in.