How about sending back "house" wine? My husband says you can't send it back no matter how bad it is.
Here in Mexico house wines were very often gawd-awful a dozen years ago when they cost 20-30 pesos a glass. Nowadays they are mostly quite drinkable at 50-70 pesos a glass. With the exchange rate difference, the US dollar equivalent is almost the same over those 12 years, $2.50 to $3.50 and that includes tax.
Maybe twice a year these days we will be served swill and DH says to just cowgirl up and drink it or order something else, but that complaining about an inferior house wine is tantamount to going to McD's and complaining there are too many kids there. Then there's the issue of explaining to a Mexican waiter that the wine is "bad," since the server has likely never tasted wine of any sort. If there is an owner around, maybe you could make that point.
My guess is that if a glass of house wine here cost $10 USD (as it often does in the states), that he'd change his tune and complain. He says no he wouldn't, but that has yet to be put to the test.
