Template Issues

Automate a Restaurant Wine List from Excel to Word

Maira Mehtab Sep 22, 2026 870 views

Question details

A restaurant needs to automatically generate a branded, printable Word wine list using inventory data stored in an Excel spreadsheet.

Product: Microsoft Word and Excel
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Creating a structured document divided into wine sections (sparkling, white, red) and sorted by country, region, appellation, producer, name, format, and price.
Observed behavior: The goal is to dynamically link Excel data to a formatted Word document with styles, logos, and section headings to avoid manual data entry.

Before you start

Ensure your Excel inventory table is fully organized with clear column headers for every attribute (Category, Country, Region, Price, etc.) and contains no blank rows within the dataset.

Solution 1Recommended

Use Word Mail Merge with a Directory Template

The Mail Merge feature allows you to use your Excel workbook as a data source to automatically populate a structured Word document.

To group items by sections (like sparkling, white, and red wines) and regions, you will need to sort your Excel data first and use Word's 'Directory' (or 'Catalog') Mail Merge type rather than standard letters.

Sort the Excel data

Open your Excel wine inventory spreadsheet. Select your data table, navigate to the Data tab, and click Sort. Sort the data by Category, then by Country, and then by Region to ensure items group correctly in Word.

Prepare the Word template

Open Word and create a new document. Add your restaurant logo, fonts, cover page, and section headings to establish the branded styling for your wine list.

Start the Mail Merge

Go to the Mailings tab, click 'Start Mail Merge', and select 'Directory'. Then, click 'Select Recipients', choose 'Use an Existing List', and locate your Excel workbook.

Insert Merge Fields

Place your cursor where you want the wine details to appear. Click 'Insert Merge Field' and add the respective tags (e.g., <<Producer>>, <<Wine Name>>, <<Format>>, <<Price>>) onto a single formatted line or table row.

Finish and merge

Click 'Finish & Merge' and select 'Edit Individual Documents'. This generates a new Word document containing all your Excel entries, which you can then adjust for page breaks and final section formatting.

Formatting tip: To prevent prices from losing their currency format during the merge, right-click the Price merge field in Word, select 'Toggle Field Codes', and add \# "$#,##0.00" to the end of the code.

Seamless Document Automation

Create Branded Wine Lists Effortlessly with WPS Office

WPS Office provides a highly capable Mail Merge feature, allowing you to connect WPS Spreadsheet data directly to WPS Writer to generate professional, formatted wine lists in minutes without manually copying data.

1. Organize Data in WPS Spreadsheet: Open WPS Spreadsheet, enter your wine inventory, apply clear column headers, and sort the data by category and region.
2. Set Up WPS Writer Template: Open WPS Writer to design your wine list layout. Add your restaurant logo, styling, and a cover page.
3. Connect the Spreadsheet: Navigate to the Mailings tab in WPS Writer, click 'Open Data Source', and select your saved WPS Spreadsheet.
4. Insert Fields and Merge: Use 'Insert Merge Field' to place your wine attributes into the document, then click 'Merge to New Document' to generate your final printable list.

Fully compatible with Microsoft Excel (.xlsx) and Word (.docx) file formats.Built-in professional document templates for menus, lists, and cover pages.Intuitive Mailings tab makes managing data sources and merge fields simple.Lightweight, fast, and completely free for standard office tasks.

microsoft office alternative - wps office

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I group my wine list by country and region in a Mail Merge?

You must sort the Excel data by Country and Region first. In Word, use the 'Directory' merge type. To fully automate the category headers, advanced users can use conditional IF field codes (e.g., { IF { MERGEFIELD Country } <> { MERGEFIELD Country }... }) or simply generate the list and insert page breaks manually.

Can I include a cover page in an automated Mail Merge document?

Yes. You can design your cover page at the beginning of your main Word document template. Insert a page break after the cover design before adding your merge fields on the subsequent pages.

Why are my Excel prices losing their formatting in Word?

By default, Word pulls raw data from Excel without the visual formatting. To fix this, you need to add a numeric picture switch. Right-click your merge field, select 'Toggle Field Codes', and append \# "$#,##0.00" before closing the bracket.

Do I need complex macros to generate a wine list from Excel?

No. While VBA macros or third-party document generation tools offer advanced automation, Word's built-in Mail Merge 'Directory' feature is fully capable of compiling list items into a single, structured document natively.

Document & File Issues