Rowdy Topless Tasters!

Last week I received an intriguing press release about a new program launched in New York’s Finger Lakes wine region (click here to read the news story). The program’s goal? To rein in out-of-control tour groups that can’t tell the difference between a genteel afternoon of tasting fine wine and a booze-soaked Mardi Gras parade. Groups exhibiting “inappropriate or illegal behavior” will be issued either a “Yellow Card” or a “Red Card” to let them know they’ve been put on notice. Meanwhile, tasting room staff will call the next wineries on the trail to let them know that a drunk posse of crazed wine tasters is heading their way. Groups holding the dreaded “Red Cards” may be turned away at their next stop and forced to drink tepid tap water for the rest of the day. This all seemed a bit extreme when I first read about it—how rowdy could these people be? We’ve all gotten a bit loopy after one-too-many stops on the wine-tasting trail, right? Well, it seems that Finger Lakes tourists have taken the concept to a whole new level of debauchery. Paul Thomas, who is the executive director of the Seneca Lake Wine Trail, told me about some recent incidents: “a college student almost killing himself doing a header off a winery deck, another customer coming close to drowning in a winery pond clearly posted ‘no swimming,’ customers urinating in the parking lot or scampering around topless.” Did he say “scampering around topless”? I hope I never see that here in California! (People prone to topless--or even pants-less--scampering are never the ones you’d actually want to see showing off the goods.) Now that I’ve put that appetizing image into your heads, does anyone have an out-of-control-wine-taster story they’d like to share? Feel free to make one up—I could use a laugh!

Comments

[el jefe]

Tina - you didn't tell me you had a blog! (I'll add you to my list if you add me to yours :)

Curiously, we have had few incidents - perhaps we are more over the top than our visitors?

One does stick in mind: I have a felt topped poker table stashed in a side room of our Murphys tasting room. During one busy weekend, one of my TR staff heard a noise and went to investigate. She arrived just in time to see pants going down and skirt going up - on my poker table!

(Congrats on the blog - I love the name! :)

[huevosconvino]

I had an insane experience that I wrote about a while ago on my blog...the sound of a puking man and a screaming child eminating from the same bathroom really creeped me out.

Also, you should check out Oregon for some completely ridiculously drunken wine tasters. I saw a woman skip into Beaux Freres as if she had ruby slippers on...yikes.