Definitely a poorly trained waitperson if he/she tops the glass too often and too high up the glass. Also annoying is when, at a certain level of restaurant, the waiter (and sometimes even someone higher up the management scale) expects to be doing all the pouring but doesn't show up when it's time to do so. So when I begin pouring for myself or guest he comes running over with a worried/bothered look and tries to grab the bottle out of my hand to then begin pouring...

I have to agree. They wantt o get that bottle emptied as soon as possible.

Dmcker, I am with you there as well. It's gotten to the point that I frequently just tell the waiter that we will be handling our own wine service and to not worry about it. Of course almost all of that wine is BYOB so they aren't as invested in the whole process but in any case I try and keep their involvement in my wine geekery to a minimum.

If the waiter or waitress overpours the first glass, you have to stop them right there. If they don't overpour the first glass, put the bottle somewhere they can't reach it easily. That usually works except once this guy came over and reached all the way across the table before I was able to fight him back.

But it's not always the fault of the waiter or waitress. One guy filled my glass all the way to the top. It was one of those little round goblet things. We all asked him why he did that and he told us that management wanted him to. I understood because this was an outdoor bistro kind of place and people who went weren't wine hounds. Consequently they thought they were getting cheated if the glass wasn't filled. Thus the tiny glasses and the pour to the very top.

In other places, it's considered "good" service to take care of you and allowing you to pour your own wine is flawed service!!!!!

Of course, it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever because the staff at the restaurant does not butter your bread, cut your meat, or otherwise "serve" you in the same fashion. For the same reason they want your order quickly and then no matter when your dinner comes, they bring the wine right away. If they don't get the second bottle on the table before the entree comes, the chance that you'll order another bottle goes way down. So now, if I don't bring my own, I just tell them that we haven't decided yet and the when they bring the rest of dinner, I tell them what we want. That kind of works too because they're sweating over whether or not you are going to order and then when you finally do, they're so relieved you actually get better and much quicker service.

Yeah, Eric, especially when it's a very special, aged bottle and there's little left, at a larger table, and you can't just reach and tap the turned-away waiter on the arm or shoulder. I've been tempted to raise my voice once or twice...

YES. This summer in NJ we went to a newer "hot spot" that subsequently was even raved about in the NY Times. I ordered a great bottle of Livio Felluga Pinot Grigio (over priced but at least I knew what I was getting). I watched silently in horror as the waitress practically filled my glass - and then came back and topped us up! That was it - 4 pours! Color me a wine snob but that was awful... I should have stopped her but I was just so dumbfounded.