Vineyard 48 has had its liquor license suspended following numerous incidents of extreme intoxication, including a large altercation there last weekend that involved some 400 drunk and disorderly patrons, according to state regulators.
The SLA board today ordered an emergency summary suspension of the vineyard’s license, effective immediately. No alcohol can be sold or consumed on the premises, the authority said in an announcement of the suspension this morning.
“Vineyard 48 has amassed a disturbing record of repeatedly serving patrons far beyond the point of extreme intoxication, straining police resources and wreaking havoc on their neighbors and the surrounding community,” State Liquor Authority counsel Christopher Riano said in a press release issued this morning by the authority.
The state’s action today came after Southold Police were called to the vineyard Saturday where they found “an estimated 400 disorderly, heavily intoxicated patrons who were pushing, shoving and screaming at one another,” according to the liquor authority.
“A fight ensued involving 15 to 20 patrons requiring the response of six police officers, who ordered the vineyard closed for the afternoon due to the overwhelming size of the crowd,” the state said.
Long bathroom lines, some 30 people deep, led to patrons wandering off the premises to urinate and defecate on the properties of neighboring residents, police reported to the SLA.
Earlier that day, police were called by a neighbor complaining of two patrons engaging in sexual acts in view of their backyard bordering the vineyard. Officers found two highly intoxicated trespassers and escorted them off the neighbor’s property.
Police investigating the incident observed an extremely intoxicated male patron who caused a disturbance in the rear of the establishment, in addition to a second intoxicated patron who was unable to stand on her own.
“The disturbing incidents of Sept. 30 are only the most recent in a long line of resident complaints and police encounters at Vineyard 48,” the SLA press release said.
“According to the SPD, officers responded to 10 incidents at the premises from May 28, 2017 to Sept. 30, 2017. Two incidents involved alcohol overdoses where patrons were rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment, four instances involved intoxicated patrons causing disturbances in the community, and three instances involved buses and limos making dangerous illegal U-turns near the vineyard,” the state agency said.
The SLA currently has three pending cases against Joseph Paul Winery Inc. dba Vineyard 48, according to the press release.
On June 5, 2016, Southold Police responded to an alcohol overdose at the vineyard, where a patron was found vomiting on the premises and immediately transported to the hospital for medical treatment, according to the SLA.
On October 15, 2016, Southold Police responded to another alcohol overdose, again requiring immediate treatment at a local hospital, the agency said. While responding to the October 15 call, police observed and broke up two separate physical altercations, one involving an assault by a highly intoxicated underage woman on another female, and an unrelated fight erupting shorty after between patrons requiring police and management to intervene, the authority said.
In addition to the altercations, police observed numerous highly intoxicated patrons drinking sangria out of gallon buckets, with an estimated 500 patrons on the licensed grounds, according to the liquor authority.
Southold Police Department reports detail an additional eleven incidents between May 14, 2016 and October 30, 2016, including three incidents for alcohol overdoses, four responses to fights between patrons and two for intoxicated patrons harassing neighboring residents, the release states.
“The time has come for this licensee to follow the laws of New York State, and I commend the SLA for taking emergency action, as Vineyard 48 has demonstrated again and again they have zero respect for the law, and no care for their neighbors, the police or for the safety of their patrons,” Riano said.
Following extensive litigation about prior patterns of serious illegal conduct by the licensee starting in 2013, the SLA Board imposed a $10,000 fine and a 21-day suspension in 2016, according to the press release.
Vineyard 48 referred a request for comment to its attorney, Peter Sullivan of NYC. Sullivan could not immediately be reached for comment and did not return a phone message left with a receptionist.
Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell was happy to learn of the SLA’s action. He said if Vineyard 48 remains closed this weekend, “it’s a good day for Southold.”
The SLA’s decision to summarily suspend a license is not a final determination on the merits of the case. The licensee is entitled to an expedited administrative law hearing before an administrative law judge. An order of summary suspension remains in effect until such time as it is modified by the SLA or a reviewing court, the liquor authority said.
“It’s a shame that businesses can operate the way did do for so long,” Russell said. “They were a black eye to the winery industry, a black eye to Southold and, frankly, a black eye to everything. There is no perceivable benefit to having businesses like that open and operating in Southold,” he said.
