For years, Meadowood’s three pools kept peace in the Napa Valley: the kid pool for cannonballing toddlers, the lap pool for Lycra-clad locals, and the lounge pool reserved exclusively for hotel guests.
But trouble bubbled up when winemakers—many of them members of the exclusive resort in St. Helena—were denied access to the lounge pool. Furious at being excluded, they launched a “protest” by crowding into the kid pool in Speedos, pounding magnums of rosé, and ordering endless rounds of French fries—while loudly pretending they hadn’t actually ordered them.
“It was humiliating,” said one Stags Leap vintner. “I make $250 Cab, and yet I’m shoulder-to-shoulder with a toddler wearing Paw Patrol floaties.” When pressed about the false fry orders, the vintner demurred. “Not me.”
Weeks of altercations followed between 9-year-olds and 49-year-olds. “It wasn’t any different than rich parents arguing with their rich kids,” said one pool attendant, who seemed unphased, but was concerned that the winemakers were intentionally throwing off the kids’ Marco Polo games.
Eventually, Meadowood management caved under pressure from the kids, and opened the lounge pool to members. Reactions were mixed: some still cling to the kiddie pool out of habit, while others find the new access disorienting. “Do we lounge or do laps? Drink rosé or play find-the-penny?” one member fretted.
