The first pour is the most important one.
It establishes pace. A Champagne opened without ceremony, or a white poured too cold, or a red introduced before it is ready will shape the evening more than the great bottle that comes later. The room adjusts itself to the first signal, and once adjusted, rarely recalibrates.
A proper first pour is not impressive. It is correct. It arrives at the right temperature, at the right moment, and disappears into the rhythm of the table without requiring comment.
Everything that follows inherits its tone.