Second Glass Wine Riot

I really enjoyed getting unlimited wine, and getting to learn all I wanted about them. Even an art station for your glass, temporary tattoos, champagne booths, and crash courses!
Cons: There is nowhere to just sit instead of in the classes. My friend, and I would sit in on classes so we’d be able to sit and eat.
App was awesome, but easily overloaded. It would frequently freeze when booting up.
Lastly the entrance was difficult to find. Union station employees would send us there, but we didn’t know we had to enter from the outside. They would direct us to the closest entrance to the hall, but we couldn’t get in that way. Being able to see it, and not enter was quite frustrating. My friend, and I joined a group of people also looking for it. Our group that easily grew to a dozen could only find the entrance after searching for about an hour.
All-​in-​all
I wish it was more clearly marked where to go. I lost an hour of the event trying to find the entrance :(
Otherwise it was quite great. A bit overwhelming with all the varieties, but fun none the less. Would have appreciated more Ice Wines, and ports though. Also an ETA on postcards. I attended the event in October, but just got my post card in December.

If you are new to the wine tasting experience, then you will love Wine Riot. However, if you are a veteran of the wine tasting experience, then Wine Riot is an average wine tasting event with very little variety.
For instance, where’s the port wines and the ice wines? There are hundreds of different types of ports, yet they were not present at the Wine Riot. The same can be said for ice wines. Hell, you can get a port wine and an ice wine at Cooper’s Hawk. As a matter of fact, Cooper’s Hawk was at this event, and they didn’t bother to bring their port and ice wine with them.
You will get your share of the Pinot Noirs, the Merlots, basic sweet wines, and the Cabernet Sauvignons of the world, but that’s about it.

Great event. Not pretentious! How frustrating is it to go to the store and not know what wine you like or which wine you want to buy? Wine Riot can help you with that! They have 250 wines available for tasting and you can learn while you are at it. Everyone is easy going and friendly.
Food was available for purchase.
And because it is in a Union Station, which is a train station, well, it is easy to get home after trying a lot of wines.

I love Wine Riot. I look forward to this event every year. The staff is wonderful and the wine and food vendors are great. The Instagram photos are so much fun.

It was a well organized festival but I thought the selection was a bit lacking. There was a lot of wine, but a limited selection from many wineries present. Tamale Spaceship was probably my favorite part. The boyfriend and I had a good time but we both felt the 60 $ plus 10 $ fees to print the tickets (that part made no sense) was a bit crazy. Both agree we have been to better and cheaper wine fests in the Chicago area-​If we had discounted tickets would probably be only way we came back again. Many good stands set up such as photo booth, Unilocal and Skinny Pop.

!!! Yasssssssss hunni child this is where it’s AT! Best decision I’ve made all year! Wine Riot is where the cool & chic gather. From tattoos to Tee-​shirt, Wine Riot exceeded my expectations from the moment I stepped into Union Station (Great choice BTW). I cannot wait to go again. Yes I did get tipsy, yes there was lots of laughter and falling, and plenty of WINE… and wine and more wine.

My fiancé and I had a blast with some of my coworkers. He is not a wine drinker and we found about 4 wines that he liked. I wanted to taste all of them then I realized that it was a futile effort but nevertheless a novel attempt. Sugar Bliss cakes & Tamale Spaceship were delicious. TONS of different activities. I wish that I would have gotten a shirt (get the shirt if you go). With over 250 wines one would be hard pressed to not find at least a few. Had a cool little class/​tasting on the different chardonnay’s which was truly a fun experience. The place seemed packed but it flowed so well. Everyone was nice, social and having a good time. I would say go in a counter clockwise fashion start on the outside and work your way in, if you are trying to taste a majority of the wines that is. Of course some stations are more crowded than others. The people at the booths are helpful and sometimes knowledgeable, I’m sure a few were drunk but it is wine riot. They also hand out plenty of water. To pay 60 bucks to spend 4 hours tasting all the wines you can manage I say it was well worth it. Especially with activities scattered throughout. Bring something to clear your palate with because if you like reds some are so dry and bitter that it will make all of them begin to run together as far as taste and smell.

What a freakin blast!!!
Wine Riot was an amazing event! The location of Union Station was perfect. A great central location to accommodate the event. You know what that means — the typical annoyance of Downtown Chicago parking, but whatever, it’s Chicago, get over it!
The place was PACKED! There were so many booths to go and sample wines from, as each worker educated you on the brand that they were representing. Wines were from all over the world and varied between whites and darks, drys and sweets. Maps located by most stations gave a direct look at where the wine was from as well as other facts about the brand. Every representative I interacted with was very patient and cheerful. There was a Bubbly Bar that was strictly for champagnes, mini classes were taught on wine knowledge, temp tattoos were cool, and went well with your pic if you decided to jump in the picture line.
The amount of people stumbling around due to being tipsy?! HUH-​LARIOUS! One chic fell flat on her face and tried to blame it on the floor being slippery. Yeah. Okay. Then as she walked off, someone mentioned that she’d been there drinking since the event started… almost 5 hours ago. Sheesh!
This was totally worth the $ 55 I paid. Only thing is, I wish there were Port and Ice wines. That would’ve been awesome. Needless to say, I will be back when the event returns in October.
#ChiTownFoodieChic
#WHONEEDSLOVEWHENYOUHAVEBOOZE

Such a fun event! Attended with my parents and had an amazing time.

Great wine event! Reds, whites and sparkling from many, many different countries. Lots of free giveaways and coupons as well. My favorite stop was the champagne tables. My only issue is that there was not nearly enough food and it was tough to find the main entrance. A lot of the entrances were blocked so I had to walk all the way around Union Station. Also, there needs to be more seating, my feet hurt after standing for so long!

What a great event! So many drinks, greatly organized, wonderful venue. They even placed non-​drinking activities to keep us from drinking non-​stop, and instead, encouraged us to learn more about wine via the classes. Wish the photobooth was working, and that the winery brought even more wine.

Oh my goodness, this was SO MUCH FUN.
How could you not have fun drinking various wines for four hours straight and hopping on the train afterwards so you don’t have to worry about driving?!
YES. This is my kind of thing.
Wine Riot had a tattoo booth (I might have gone a little crazy there), a photo booth/​Instagram station with fun quotes and props, a cool phone app to keep track of all the drinks you liked (and didn’t like), and dozens of wine to sample. The cheese sample table was pretty sweet, too. Somewhere, a DJ was playing music, free bottled water was given away, and a food truck had food to purchase. All in the beautiful setting of Union Station. It was a great place for this event — close to public transportation and not too crowded or chaotic.
Some of the vendor spokespeople were very sweet, sharing information with us about the wine/​company and pouring us generous samples. Others were standoff-​ish, not saying anything and generally ignoring us. You can bet my friend and I returned to the tables with the nicer workers (and generally preferred those wines anyway). I thought that the four hours that Saturday afternoon would be more than enough time, but my friend and I ended up staying until closing (and could have stayed longer)! I left the event with a nice buzz and a list of new favorite wines.
Thank you so much for the tickets, Candice/​Yelp! Much love!
They were definitely put to good use. ;D

As a child, I had long dreamed of the moment of my first wine tasting. I pictured myself in a tuxedo with monocle perched atop my cheek. I would coy chuckle at presumptuous jokes while one hand would twist an end of my oversized and styled mustache. The other hand would hoist a wine class, pinky raised of course, and deliver the punch line to a ridiculously corny joke while a gaggle of stale cohorts would chuckle with the same dry, soul-​less, laughter.
NO! NEIN! Wine riot wasn’t so!
I would call it more of a modern wine tasting, and not very snobbish.
Candice G., the Queen of the Chicago Suburb Unilocalians, served as our ambassador as we floated from one wine table to the other. Having received free tickets from Unilocal,I was very pleased with our experience. The wine was very abundant, with nearly every vendor offering a few whites and a few reds. The Wine 101 tables were helpful and informative, ripping the «snob» label right off by giving straight, useful information that came in very handy for the vino novice like myself.
There was even a cheese table, and I didn’t even have to put on a phony mustache or throw my hoodie up for quick disguises for seconds. They didn’t mind!
I did have tamales from Tamale spaceship, as well as a few sliders. That was one of the things I wish they had more of… food! I was kind’ve hoping for some semi-​snobby accomplices for the vino… like pears, walnuts, crackers, mas queso… maybe even some sausages… and I was hoping even more for more food vendors.
The only other downside did not concern me personally, but that doesn’t mean I don’t care! The women’s washroom was absolutely ridiculous. Even though there were two locations, the main one was tiny and the line wrapped around the wall. I would suggest more signs, at the very least, to let the chicas know there is another place to let that wine go!
Another thing I would’ve liked was the option to purchase wine from the vendors. Alas, all I got was some literature on where to find it in my hood. That’s all mighty fine, to be sure, but the impulse shopper in me was severely disappointed.
So! All in all, thumbs up!

Our ever so awesome CM, Candice G. rocks! So does being a Chicago ‘Burbs Unilocal Elite! I was able to snag 1 of the 10 pair of tickets for this event and so glad I did.
One of the best thing about Wine Riot is that it’s at Union Station so my cousin and I jumped on the local Metra and rode it in, no worries about looking for parking and paying an arm and a leg to park. Cost us $ 7 for roundtrip, whoot!
It was a riot alright, so many vendors and wine where do we start? We walked the venue at least 2 – 3 times, since there were so many vendors and so many wines! I’m more of a white wine girl and a novice, so I tried to try a few more reds and other types of white and did find a few I enjoyed, but my favorite of the night was Madria Sangria — red. Not dry like most reds with a fruity flavor. Best part is the next day I found some at my local Mariano’s for our early Mother’s Day lunch!
The food was very limited, I was hoping for great food options that would pair well with wines, even snack tables of meats and cheese. They did have one cheese booth and it was a big hit! There were 2 food truck vendors, Tamale Spaceship and The Flying Slider. We enjoyed the duck confit tamale with mole sauce and the sirarcha chicken slider, while the second option of each were meh. Personally when it comes to wines I crave charcuterie and cheese, but that could be my limited experience and exposure to wine.
We were also able to get some fake tattoos, me with the drink more wine globe, while my cousin opted for the naked mermaid. We also took pictures at the photo booth, but skipped the line to buy them. I really enjoyed the app so I can remember which wine I loved, liked, or wasn’t fond of, but some of the booths had different wines compared to what was listed on the app so that wasn’t helpful.
Definitely an event for wine lovers, but also an adventure for newbies like myself. Maybe more food next year and free photo booth pictures, that would be awesome.

I have been sitting here trying to see how I can start this review so you can see and experience what I did when I stepped into Union Station to enjoy Wine Riot.
First I was one of the volunteers that helped with set-​up and I had the Pleasure of meeting Tyler and Morgan. They are so sweet and humble but they have a vision and their vision is being seen with just about every happy guest that stepped into the space that was transformed into a place that made me forget that 1 I helped set it up… lol and that it was Union Station.
When you walk in you are greeted with smiling faces and wristband after they take your ticket. You are given your Second Glass Wine Glass that you will use throughout the night. The best thing is that it is made of a durable plastic so you don’t have to worry about a bunch of broken wine glasses all over the place. They also give you complimentary bottled water which I was happy about because after doing so much tasting you need to keep yourself hydrated.
When I get my first sip of wine I think I can master each table no problem (next time I’m going to have a better plan)…lol because I did not hit all 40 something tables and 250 wines and the 4 different Saki in the Crash Course.
I will pass on some advice that was given to me The Wine Riot is not a Race but a Marathon so take your time enjoy the wines and Saki and if you don’t like something don’t drink it just to drink it (I didn’t do that at first) because you will be surprised at how those little taste can creep up on you.
Another piece of an advice Don’t Drive after you leave get a cab, Über, Public Transportation or a friend to get you home. (That’s the momma in me speaking)
They had free cheese from the Cyress Grove Chevre all I can say is OMG it was just so smooth and flavorful it made me think I never ate cheese before this or at least real cheese. I will be looking for this brand because it tasted so good paired with the wines. I was told that one block wheel can cost up to 30 dollars and if you can get a taste for free you better go for it… and I did, oh yes I did… lol
I also enjoyed the Crash Courses which start every 30 minutes where they give you information about the wine or Saki that you were drinking. Where it originated, how its made, cost, etc.
The bubbly bar where they taught you about Champagne it was just fun. Have you ever been to a wine tasting event and couldn’t hardly hold your head up wishing they would just give you the wine as you are checking to see how many bottles are left so you can gauge if you can get another taste. This was polar opposite of that people were gathered around asking questions laughing and sampling.
I meant to go to the Instagram photo booth but by the time I thought about it, it was time to go… I still have a sad face about this one.
They had a temporary tattoo booth which was fun and I wished I had got more than one (picture coming) but I will when they come back into town.
Another thing I missed was mail a post card but I won’t next time.
Now, this is why I took a star away there really isn’t a lot bathroom stalls for the women. We were lined up for almost 30 minutes at one point which takes away from your time to taste more wine. I wish they could have made it where we could go to another restroom and get back in with our wristbands. Some women took to taking over the men’s restroom because they had to use the restroom so badly.
They also had food for purchase there and don’t get me wrong the 2 vendors the Tamale Spaceship, and the Slide Ride had some delicious food, but it was 8 dollars for two tamales and 5 dollars for a scoop of guacamole. The sliders were good especially the bread they used but it was 5 dollars for one steak slider, 4 dollars the other two selection they had and 2 dollar bags of chips. I did research the chips which are called Dirty Chips and understood the price point. They are fabulous and I would pay the 2 dollars again for them. Next time I’m going to eat before I go but make sure I have my 2 dollars for my Dirty Chips. I wish they had a couple of more food vendors as well but truly that didn’t take away from the event or my wonderful time with wine, family and friends.
Second Glass will be back on June 14^th for the Riesling Riot and October 17 – 18 for another great Wine Riot. (2014) The tickets are about 60 dollars but it is well worth it!!!
You can start saving now for the one in October you won’t regret it!
Enjoy!

I won! I won! I won!
I’m not a betting kind of gal, so it’s no wonder I never win anything. However, I was exceptionally grateful to win a pair of a tickets to this event. I had a great time with some Unilocal friends while trying some new wines.
This event was very cool and unique. The Great Hall at Union Station is a perfect setting for it — there’s lots of space to walk around, stand and chat, stand and drink, or dance around — without being bumped by the tons of people that were here. We had some trouble finding the entrance to the event, as many entrances were blocked. I was more than a little annoyed — a lot of people took the Metra to get to the event, but then we had to go outside and walk around the block just to get inside Union Station again. Oh lame. Signage, Second Glass! Signage!
I was a little grumpy when we walked in, as I don’t like disorganized chaos, but after a few wine tastes and bumping into some friends, I was back in the fun zone.
The wine was never ending. There were 30+ vendors, all of which had at least 2 – 4 options to taste. All of the vendors seemed friendly, although I wasn’t chatty with any of them, and the pours seemed tiny but added up fast. We stayed 4 of the 5 hours of the event and made our way to each table, but didn’t sample every single wine. There were some familiar wines like Naked Grape and St. Michele, and some were not so familiar like Bonfire Wines and Milestone.
The highlight of the day really was the cheese booth featuring 4 different samples of goat cheese, and I kept going back for more. I know I wasn’t the only one, so yay for no shame! I took one of their stickers so I’d remember their name. Truffle Goat Cheese, you will be mine!
The only other food option was Tamale Spaceship. My husband loves tamales, and I’ve never had one, but we tried the combo of the peppers with cheese and the barbacoa chicken, and they were fantastic. I’ve been missing out! If I had paid full price for my tickets, I would have been disappointed at the lack of food options. I probably would have smuggled in some of my own crackers and brie.
The tattoo booth was a fun addition, as was the photo booth, but I wasn’t feeling the $ 10 pricetag. So now that you don’t I don’t bet, I’ll add that I also do not pay for cheesy, vacation-​like photos. I take enough photos of my own. If I spent all my money on tickets and photographs, I wouldn’t have any money for that goat cheese, see? Priorities.
I would have liked to see more food options, because drinking that much wine did leave us both feeling quite drunk, which became clear when we later got into an argument about crossing the street. Taking the Metra made everything a lot easier though. Parking in the area is pricey, and I don’t know who would’ve drove us home anyway.

Wine Riot Chicago May 2014 — 5 Stars: what a treat for those who like wine and like to smooze a little on a weekend. Maybe two dozen wineries gather around a number of booths putting their wares on display for unlimited tasting by the imbibing public. Situated in the Great Hall of Union Station in downtown Chicago, this two-​day, three-​session event was well planned and carried off seamlessly. The Great Hall has enough room to gather hundreds without crowding … there were a lot of people but enough room to really pass from booth to booth with ease. Four ways to get in … Entrance is $ 60 per at the door, $ 55 if you bought early online, Free if you volunteer to work a session, and Free if you got Unilocaled in by Community Kingpin Candice G (Thanks again). No matter how you get here, the price point is worth it.
The process is you pick up a little plastic glass on your way in and begin working your way around any booth, each of which has four or so different wineries stylin their stuff. Each winery offers a couple to a half dozen wines… usually half red and half white. You get a tasting of what interests you, talk with the merchant/​representative if you like, spill any leftover into the containers provided on each table, and move on. While the sip you get with each wine is small — just a tasting — remember that you’ll probably taste 50 to 100 before you are done.
While this event is really a millennial smooze fest, absolutely any age will feel comfortable. Maybe 75% of the peeps were between 25 and 35 — and many of the younger set came in groups and had a ball working their way around the Great Hall. Great event for couples also. This event was also a lot of fun for geezers like myself. PS: Don’t forget to stop at the Unilocal stand and check out their swag, especially the red socks for Elite Unilocalers.
The hit for me was the Crash Courses. Since they bill this event as the antithesis of being a wine snob, the Crash Courses they offer fit in perfectly. These crash courses are put on by some of the Wine Riot movers and shakers (in particular, co-​founder Tyler Balliet who was wonderfully engaging) where they showcase a particular wine or region in a short 15 to 20 minute presentation with — as if you couldn’t figure this out — a tasting of each wine discussed… usually four. I sat in for the Italian wine course (learning the differences among and tasting a Chianti, a Barbera, a Nebbiolo, and a Lambrusco). I also sat in for a course on Saki and Spanish wines — each of which also had four tastings.
Two notes — 1. There is very little food here — I saw one cheese tasting table and there was a stand selling a variety of tamales… so have something to eat before you show up… everyone needs a foundation. 2. Since it is in a train station, try and take the train to get here ($ 7 round trip to Union Station on weekends); while you still have to exit the building and come in on the Jackson Street side… it is not a big deal and the benefit is you won’t be driving when you shouldn’t be. If Union Station doesn’t work for you, Northwest (Ogilvie) Station is just a few blocks down the street. Take the train.
Lastly — Wine Riot has tasting shows in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago every year. The second Wine Riot for Chicago will be at the same place on October 17 & 18, 2014. This was fun, give it a try. Highly recommended.

My friend and I went to Second Glass Wine Riot last weekend and we had a great time! We weren’t too sure what to expect but I really enjoyed the event.
Some booths were better than others, some wines were better than others.
Tattoo Booth — really friendly workers and got a cool drinking octopus temp tattoo. The lady told me it was the most popular one of the day, so silly!
Photos — super fun sayings, great background and quality. 3 for $ 10 or $ 5 each. The guy taking the photos was kinda eh. He took the pix while on his cell phone, printed them while on his cell phone, ’twas a bit off putting. However the girl helping us view pix and explaining costs and such was super nice. We ended up with a super awesome picture! hehe
The Naked Grapes ladies were the most friendly, most informative and I loved their wines! My friend and I seeked them out following the event and they are surprisingly super cheap! Less than $ 10 a pop! Their moscato and summer white blend are delicious!
Mionetto’s booth had a ton of options to try and we really loved everything we tried.
Lynfred Winery is a tried and true favorite of mine so I was happy to see them reppin’.
Loved the comparison booth. Everyone there was super nice (shoutouts to the girl with the cute boots who complimented my cheap purse haha) and helpful in their teachings. I really did learn a bit at the booth.
Props to the vendors that had little cards or papers we could take to remember the wines we just tasted.
Tamale Spaceship was there, but more food options would have been a plus for me.
Their app which they were promoting the heck out of didn’t work for Androids. Lame! I don’t know why they didn’t fix it so we could actually use it… would have been very helpful to keep track of our wines.
Thanks, Candice and Unilocal for the tickets!!! :D It was great talking to some of my fellow Unilocalers. Overall a lovely afternoon event that I’d attend again.

This was probably the coolest wine tasting event to which I’ve ever been. There were tons of wine vendors from all over the world, two wine classes every 30 minutes, an app, and other fun activities (I loved sending two free postcards to some lucky friends). I found that most of the vendors were friendly, down to earth, and willing to explain their wines. We were buzzed (if not drunk) after two classes, eleven vendors, and a table of eight wines designed to teach me how to taste wine.
There were some things that I really didn’t like. For example, getting to the event was kinda tricky. Although there are multiple entrances to the Union Station Grand Hall, we could only enter through one. It was long and cumbersome and could have been avoided if only directive signs had been posted at strategic locations.
I also was not a huge fan of not having many food options. I probably could have kept tasting wine (beyond eleven vendors) if there were some bread or crackers or SOMETHING to help absorb the alcohol.
Lastly, the Android app didn’t work. They explained that it was a problem they’d run into for the past two days. They encouraged me to use their mobile website instead. It worked okay, but I suspect that the app would have been better. The app was to be used for tracking vendors and the wines they offered.
Beyond those hiccups, everything was pretty cool. I would have loved staying longer and trying more wines and taking more classes. I found it to be super informative and a lot of fun. I even found some wineries that would make for a fun road trip!

Special thanks to Second Glass for all the complimentary tickets they made available and another thanks to Unilocal Chicagoland for making my dreams a reality. I won a pair of tickets to Wine Riot through Unilocal’s Event + Twitter giveaway and I had a blast!
My friend Katy M and I met up with Lori L, Megan G, Maria F, Dallas H, and Jeff B for a fabulous way to spend a hot time in the city. We were all surprised at how open the venue was and that lines to try wine were never more than a few people long. It gave us a chance to try a little bit of everything and chat with the vendors without feeling rushed. We took the most advantage of the photo portion and I can’t wait to see how the pictures turned out.
I’m a sweet drink kind of girl, so St. James Winery was the clear cut wine-​winner for me. I’ve seen their bottles at Binny’s, so I’ll make sure to pick up a few of the flavors next time I need a bottle for BYOV. We also enjoyed NV Charonge Wine with the orange slices and I won a bright orange shirt when I guessed how many gummies were in their jar (it’s totally getting cut up and made into my new Zumba shirt). Andrew Quady was another favorite along with 90+, Lynfred Winery & Sweet Wines Limited. Thanks for the swag! I looked and felt like Mardi Gras.
We were a little disappointed that we weren’t able to take any of the wine home. A few wineries would have been more than willing to part with a few bottles, but apparently that was a big no-​no. However, we drank more than our fair share after scoffing at the «how to taste wine» poster that suggests you spit or pour your wine out (amateurs). We were also sad when one of the employees came up to us and asked us to attend a seminar on Riesling and when we tried to go, it was full and we were turned away. But all in all, it was run very well and we learned more than enough about wine from each vendor. We liked the plastic tasting cups with the thumb mold and hope Wine Riot will maybe consider handing out glass souvenir cups when you leave next time.
Again, thanks to Second Glass and thanks to Unilocal!We had a great time and will recommend this festival to all our wine-​loving friends!
P. S. — Please, please, please have the temporary tattoos again next year. That was one of the highlights. I got the double glass Second Glass logo on my cheek. I call it my teardrop tat. It represents the glasses I killed at this killer party!