Riedel's Wine Glass Comparative Workshop

[2SeaWithMe]

My confirmation email stated when we arrived in our stateroom, there should be a slip stating the time of the workshop, as well as a coupon for free glasses to order via celebrity vineyards website.

 

If I can't get the glasses, I'd like more information on the wines being sampled. I can go to a free wine tasting nearly anywhere...and as I stated before, I never knew the original price until this thread, if booking out of the beverage package information only, I wouldn't place a ton of value on a non-set of glasses for one person.

 

That's me personally...so no, without this thread it never would have occurred to me anything was amiss.

[chrystine]

/ She said that when she contacted Celebrity, she was told that you could not sign up for the workshop online, you had to be onboard. According to her contact at Celebrity, the $17.50 is the price for shipping the glasses home.

 

How many "explanations" can Celebrity give lol. It seems like everyone who has contacted them gets a different story.

 

As far as the $17.50 being a shipping charge, that doesn't seem likely. I was charged $15 pp plus gratuity for a total of $17.25 pp. How can they explain charging a service gratuity on a shipping fee??? The tasting only without glasses seems more feasible.

 

I guess time will tell. I sail on the Summit in a week and a half so I will see what happens.

 

Cretia, thanks for posting the info you obtained :)

[CathyCruises]

I will reiterate that Celebrity's shoreside customer service has a reputation for giving incorrect information--if they don't know, they guess. I am sure that's what the TA was told, and just as sure that it's not even close to being accurate.

 

But don't let it ruin your cruise--you will have a great time once you meet the wonderful folks on board.

[cruise kitty]

I booked this almost 2 weeks ago, paid $15 pp plus tip, the website said it included glasses, my confirmation email said it included glasses, figured it was a good price for glasses, since we've already booked the premium bev. pkg.

 

If there was an error on X's part, there has been plenty of time for them to correct it, & send an email explanation. I would have no clue that there is any sort of problem, except that I just clicked on this thread. With this much time having elapsed, I expect for them to honor my purchase.

Edited August 18, 2011 by cruise kitty

[miched]

I believe that people are really missing the

 

*pricing starts at $17.00

 

I checked and it does not mention any glasses being included. All is describes is the wine being transferred into each glass to basically see how the glass affects the wine.

 

There are no other workshops listed and it does state starting at.

 

I think people are confusing this seminar with the one where the glasses are included.

 

There may have been a mess up with the description and it was corrected.

 

If those that got that price and can prove that glasses are included great for them.

 

 

 

.

.

[cruise kitty]

I checked and it does not mention any glasses being included. All is describes is the wine being transferred into each glass to basically see how the glass affects the wine.

 

There are no other workshops listed and it does state starting at.

 

I think people are confusing this seminar with the one where the glasses are included.

 

There may have been a mess up with the description and it was corrected.

 

If those that got that price and can prove that glasses are included great for them.

 

 

 

.

.

 

When I made my purchase, the description clearly included the glasses, my email confirmation also clearly states that my coupons for the free glasses will be in our room when we board. As I stated, I booked almost two weeks ago, more than enough time for X to notify me of any mistake, why would I pay extra for a wine tasting when I have the premium pkg already?

[2SeaWithMe]

This is in the confirmation email:

 

 

 

GUEST NAME PRICE* CREDIT CARD NUMBER

Cruiser1 17.25 USD *******XXXX

Cruiser2 17.25 USD *******XXXX

 

 

Please note: Riedel Wine Glass Workshop reservations cannot be modified once a payment has been made. To change the reservations, you’ll need to cancel it first and then make your purchases again. An invitation to the Riedel Wine Glass Workshop with the time, date and location will be provided in your stateroom upon arrival, along with a coupon to redeem your Riedel Tasting Set on-line through our Celebrity Vineyards website.

[CathyCruises]

That is exactly what mine says as well. Celebrity has had plenty of 'warning' that there is an issue with these workshops, by virtue of the many phone calls they have received by now, so the burden is on them since they have failed to correct the error, if it is one.

[uktog]

The website has now been changed and there is no reference to receiving the glasses, it merely talks about the tasting sessions. Price remains the same as was appearing last week ie in UK money £10.20 including 15% service charge

 

Will be interesting to see what happens next

[waggie]

I booked this yesterday(17.08) and received email confirmation:

Riedel Wine Glass Workshop

Total Packages Purchased: 1

Total Cost *: 10.70 GBP

 

Payment(s) for Guest(s) in Reservation Number: xxxxxxxx

 

GUEST NAME PRICE*

10.70 GBP

Please note: Riedel Wine Glass Workshop reservations cannot be modified once a payment has been made. To change the reservations, you’ll need to cancel it first and then make your purchases again. An invitation to the Riedel Wine Glass Workshop with the time, date and location will be provided in your stateroom upon arrival, along with a coupon to redeem your Riedel Tasting Set on-line through our Celebrity Vineyards website.

I hope Celebrity clarify this soon!

[38anchor]

Celebrity have obviously noticed the error on the website and have therefore changed it over the last 21-24 hours as it no longer says that you will receive the glasses.

 

For the few of us who have purchased this BEFORE the website change it will be interested how they play this out once onboard.

 

I like many others have printed out both the initial web splash page and the confirmation email which clearly states that you receive the glasses.

 

Now we don't sail for another 4 weeks so i expect them to either

 

a) send us an email explaining the error before we sail (and possibly give us the option of canceling)

b) mention the error when we speak to either guest services of the sommelier (it is requested that we do this on our confirmation email) and to do this on the day of embarkation - again giving us the option to cancel.

c) Say nothing and once we have done the class and ask for the glasses they then tell us it was a mistake.

 

Like I say, until somebody has actually bought this package and sailed, its hard to second guess what they are going to do, and my guess is each ship will deal with it differently.

[Crusing Nut]

This is in the confirmation email:

 

 

 

GUEST NAME PRICE* CREDIT CARD NUMBER

Cruiser1 17.25 USD *******XXXX

Cruiser2 17.25 USD *******XXXX

 

 

Please note: Riedel Wine Glass Workshop reservations cannot be modified once a payment has been made. To change the reservations, you’ll need to cancel it first and then make your purchases again. An invitation to the Riedel Wine Glass Workshop with the time, date and location will be provided in your stateroom upon arrival, along with a coupon to redeem your Riedel Tasting Set on-line through our Celebrity Vineyards website.

 

I notice it does not say "free" glasses. Maybe a discounted price is going to be shown when you go to redeem?

[Crusing Nut]

Product Description This tasting set is an excellent introduction to Riedel stemware, the choice of wine connoisseurs worldwide. Offering four different glasses for sampling a wide selection of wines, it’s an ideal way to begin a Riedel collection or to supplement an existing collection.

 

Each lead-crystal glass is from Riedel’s Vinum series of stemware, shaped to enhance the characteristics of specific varietals. The set includes one of each glass:

 

• 21.5-oz. Bordeaux, for complex reds including Merlot and Cabernet

• 12.4-oz. Sauvignon Blanc, for light to medium-bodied white wines

• 24.7-oz. Burgundy, for medium-bodied reds such as Pinot Noir, Burgundy and Beaujolais

• 21.1-oz. Montrachet, for rich, full-bodied whites such as Pouilly-Fuissé and Chardonnay

 

Made in Austria. Set of four.

 

NOTE: If you are redeeming the coupon you received on board, simply click the Add to Cart button above, then enter your coupon number in the promo code field in the shopping cart. Your discount will be automatically applied. Please note only one coupon may be redeemed per order. If you have more than one coupon to redeem, you must complete separate orders for each individual coupon. Please enter only one coupon code per order.

 

http://www.celebrityvineyards.com/default.asp?catid=13&parentid=0&viewproduct=1&productid=5

Edited August 18, 2011 by Crusing Nut

[uktog]

Actually we want to buy two more of these sets. We had been planning to attend the seminar on board and had booked. Although we have sailed many times when this seminar has been offered, we can only use it to get the glasses when we are sailing out of Southampton and have the car as the distributor could not deliver to the UK

 

I do hope that we can get the glasses relatively easily or our first two sets are now a bit of a waste

[eadien7]

I notice it does not say "free" glasses. Maybe a discounted price is going to be shown when you go to redeem?

 

 

Good point. Whichever happens, for my $17.50 I'll be happy. But I have to wonder if once on the ship, if the wine tasting shows up in your portfolio, will the people on the ship know how much you paid for it?

[CathyCruises]

Now THERE'S a good point. Whatever, if I don't get the glasses I will be okay paying $15 for the tasting--even the Napa vineyards charge for tasting these days, so this price is one of the few things on board comparable to land prices.

[uktog]

Now THERE'S a good point. Whatever, if I don't get the glasses I will be okay paying $15 for the tasting--even the Napa vineyards charge for tasting these days, so this price is one of the few things on board comparable to land prices.

 

The pours on the last few wine tasting we have done on board have been very small - doubt if we had 2 glasses of wine across the 5 glasses being tasted

[2SeaWithMe]

This is what the website now says...it has been corrected:

 

Celebrity Cruises and Austrian crystal manufacturer Riedel - recognized worldwide for designing finely tuned drinking instruments for every level of wine sophistication - now make it possible to experience something truly unique at sea. Participate in the Riedel Wine Glass Comparative Workshop and experience how the shape of a glass affects the experience of every sip of wine through this fascinating seminar.

 

Reserve your place now, and then on the day of embarkation, be sure to confirm your participation with the Guest Relations desk or your sommelier in the main or specialty dining room. An icon placed on your SeaPass Card indicates your participation in the Riedel Wine Glass Comparative Workshop.

 

Once you have confirmed your purchase online, the order cannot be modified. You may, however, cancel the order and then make your purchase(s) again.

 

Participation must be pre-reserved a minimum of four days before your sail date

 

 

This is what the website stated when I purchased:

 

Ok, without doing a huge process I can't just C & P my screen shot. But at the end of the (much shorter) description, which states nothing about confirming participation (??) it states:

 

"Participants receive a set of Reidel Stemware to take or ship home (Shipping not included)."

 

 

If they know enough to fix the website, they should at least be acknowledging those that booked under a different description.

[sczcardfan]

Celebrity have obviously noticed the error on the website and have therefore changed it over the last 21-24 hours as it no longer says that you will receive the glasses.

 

For the few of us who have purchased this BEFORE the website change it will be interested how they play this out once onboard.

 

I like many others have printed out both the initial web splash page and the confirmation email which clearly states that you receive the glasses.

 

Now we don't sail for another 4 weeks so i expect them to either

 

a) send us an email explaining the error before we sail (and possibly give us the option of canceling)

b) mention the error when we speak to either guest services of the sommelier (it is requested that we do this on our confirmation email) and to do this on the day of embarkation - again giving us the option to cancel.

c) Say nothing and once we have done the class and ask for the glasses they then tell us it was a mistake.

 

I agree that those are how I see the options playing out, although if they don't take 'Option A' then I would be be unhappy with how they handle this.

 

If they know enough to fix the website, they should at least be acknowledging those that booked under a different description.

 

Yep, they must have a record of everyone who booked this online at $15, and their email address where they sent confirmation. This should be a simple process to address this issue...whether or not they manage it properly remains to be seen though.

[JezzaC]

Now we don't sail for another 4 weeks so i expect them to either

 

a) send us an email explaining the error before we sail (and possibly give us the option of canceling)

b) mention the error when we speak to either guest services of the sommelier (it is requested that we do this on our confirmation email) and to do this on the day of embarkation - again giving us the option to cancel.

c) Say nothing and once we have done the class and ask for the glasses they then tell us it was a mistake.

 

Option d) Celebrity Cruises tries to use any of those options mentioned and are told about European consumer protection laws and decide to give glasses to passenger

[Crusing Nut]

It will be interesting to see what kind of discount one is given when ordering the glasses from Celebrity Vineyards.

Edited August 18, 2011 by Crusing Nut

[2SeaWithMe]

It will be interesting to see what kind of discount one is given when ordering the glasses from Celebrity Vineyards.

 

Not sure what you mean, when those who booked were told free, not discounted.

[Crusing Nut]

Not sure what you mean, when those who booked were told free, not discounted.

 

 

Someone posted upthread that they will receive a voucher in their room for a set of glasses to be redeemed at Celebrity Vineyards dot com, I posted what was stated in it....

[Oville]

Not sure what you mean, when those who booked were told free, not discounted.

 

 

The set of 4 glasses sell for $112 on Amazon so the $87 onboard is a pretty good deal. Are you really going to put up a fight if you don't get them for $17.50?

[adchesney]

I am on the 6th November cruise...and will be kicking up a fuss, if they do not honnor my booking - as they have over two months to notify me.

 

BTW, on their website the glasses are $89 and shipping to Great Britian is $25.

 

Regards

 

ADC