Sparkling Pointe Winery

Revdex.com: I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted] , and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because: Although I appreciate the time it took to answer, it still does not explain how one would think the advertised restrictions were adequate We are all aware that the north fork is some 90plus miles from most visitors and the website should reflect those restrictionsA sign in the parking lot is of little useMy goal was not to get something for free, and although appreciated I would rather hear that steps will be taken to make these "rules" obvious on the websiteI also appreciate standing by staff, but how this was handled on site is far from a hospitable In summary, I'd love to enjoy the experience in the future but honestly this has left me with something unexpected for a vineyard...a bad taste for what should be a memorable day In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above Sincerely, [redacted]

Hello [redacted] , We are sorry to hear that you found our response inadequateWe spent a lot of time on it and really hoped it would clarify the situation and beyond that offer you a glimpse into the reasons why we have a reservation policyAs explained in our prior reply the first line of our website under reservations reads verbatim: Sparkling Pointe requires advance reservations for groups of or more and for anyone arriving by bus or limoThis is repeated in the Contact/ Reservations Tab, as well as exists as the number one item on our FAQ pageWe feel if you read the website this information is very straightforwardAssuming you did not read through our website for these details, you still drove past and ignored the onsite signage reiterating the same message Our website is very clear and we believe this complaint is no longer warranted

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved becauseClearly you didn't read my original complaint. We were SIX (6) persons. Had it said ALL GROUPS IN A LIMO on line I would have taken the matter in stride. Again, 90 miles is clearly a long way to go to read a sign!  Additionally one of my cars is a 7 passenger Suburban, you may want to address that as well in your advertising which will take a web tech 10 min and avoid any future inconvenience to your guests. 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Hello [redacted], We are sorry to hear that you found our response inadequate. We spent a lot of time on it and really hoped it would clarify the situation and beyond that offer you a glimpse into the reasons why we have a reservation policy. As explained in our prior reply the first line of our website under reservations reads verbatim: Sparkling Pointe requires advance reservations for groups of 8 or more and for anyone arriving by bus or limo. This is repeated in the Contact/ Reservations Tab, as well as exists as the number one item on our FAQ page. We feel if you read the website this information is very straightforward. Assuming you did not read through our website for these details, you still drove past and ignored the onsite signage reiterating the same message.  Our website is very clear and we believe this complaint is no longer warranted.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

Although I appreciate the time it took to answer, it still does not explain how one would think the advertised restrictions were adequate.  We are all aware that the north fork is some 90plus miles from most visitors and the website should reflect those restrictions. A sign in the parking lot is of little use. My goal was not to get something for free, and although appreciated I would rather hear that steps will be taken to make these "rules" obvious on the website. I also appreciate standing by staff, but how this was handled on site is far from a hospitable.   In summary, I'd love to enjoy the experience in the future but honestly this has left me with something unexpected for a vineyard...a bad taste  for what should be a memorable day.
 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Dear [redacted], Thank you for bringing to our attention your negative experience attempting to visit the Tasting House at Sparkling Pointe Vineyards and Winery. We are truly sorry that your trip to North Fork Wine Country did not meet your expectations. At Sparkling Pointe, we have a small...

team that works extremely hard to provide the utmost in customer service and hospitality. We also strive to conduct our tasting room operations with an emphasis on wine education and table service. To accomplish this goal our operating procedures, reservation system, staffing plan, and tasting room set up must be highly organized and efficient. We are always pushing to be better and all negative reviews help us to re-define and improve our efforts in hospitality.  However, in this case I must address your complaints as many we do not see to be accurate. In regards to reservations, the first line of our website under our Visit/ Reservation Tab clearly states "Sparkling Pointe requires advance reservations for groups of 8 or more and for any guest arriving by bus or limo.” We also have large signs posted outside both of the roadway entrances to our Tasting House that read “Buses, Limos, Groups by Appointment.  In the past ten years the amount of visitors to Long Island Wine Country arriving by bus and limo has grown enormously. Many of these transportation companies would unload large amounts of intoxicated visitors on the tasting rooms and this became dangerous, hard to control, and often ruined the tasting experience of other guests. In addition, the seasonality and small size of the North Fork Wine Region creates an endless struggle to maintain a large enough team of qualified staff members. Because of this, we have to limit the amount of visitors to our tasting room to an amount that can be handled safely and with excellent service, hospitality, and wine education by our team. Beginning in 2012, we implemented our reservation program to help us control this flow of visitors arriving in large groups and via transportation companies. We are best when we are prepared. We have also hired Parking Lot Welcome Staff whose main responsibility is checking in all limo and bus reservations. On the days in which we are fully booked, we will instruct the Parking Lot Welcome Staff to kindly turn away "groups of 8 or more and any guest arriving by bus or limo”.   In these instances our Parking Lot Welcome Staff know that we are at capacity and do not require management to intervene when letting guests know we are fully booked. Sparkling Pointe does not have affiliate limos that we favor over other vendors. All "groups of 8 or more and any guest arriving by bus or limo” require a reservation and all are handled in identical fashion. We do not and never will take any kick backs or monetary incentives from these transportation companies and to accuse us of such is a falsity. Just like a restaurant, concert venue, hotel, or even a bus or ferry we have a visitor and occupancy limit and sometimes become fully booked. Finally, in regards to the comments regarding drinking and driving we would like to state that the safety of our guests is extremely important to us. We do not encourage overconsumption. This year we even re-designed our pricing structure to inspire our guests to buy wine to go rather than consume at our facility. We are a working farm, production winery, and our Tasting House is a retail space to showcase our product. Guests are meant to sample in small tasting sizes to determine if they enjoy the wines and would like to purchase them to take home. We offer spittoons because many serious wine tasters do not drink the wines, only taste and spit, so that they do not become intoxicated. This allows them to drive safely and visit multiple wineries with a fresh and sober palate.  We do understand that many other guests are here for a different experience, which is why, rather than prohibiting all buses and limos like some of our neighbor wineries, we accept them with reservations, tasting packages, organization, and structure. Mr. Marrone, I do apologize for your poor experience. As we are in the hospitality industry any guest made to feel unwelcome is on us, and we will work towards improvement. I would like to invite you back for a tour and tasting for 6 on us so that we can provide the experience you missed out on. Please contact us at [redacted] if you would like to book this tour reservation. Sincerely, The Sparkling Pointe Management Team