No, seriously. Get out. Now.

[KiaKat]

This....person....comes to the door, and bangs on the glass. Hard. My coworker is in the back, unloading her bag and coat, so I go to the door and crack it, to ask him how I can help him. He pushes his way in, and starts asking 'what wine you got' - to which I say 'I'm sorry, but I'm not quite sure what you mean. Could you clarify?'

At which point, I get a whiff of his breath, and the yeasty BEER smell coming off of him. Not terribly difficult, as the 6ft-something man was INCHES from my face. I stepped back behind the tasting counter, and asked if he'd been drinking.

The Cast
Me: Your local, lovely, (white) wine pseudo-expert
CW: My gorgeous, friendly, (black) co-worker.
DSP: Drunk Scary (black) Person

The Play
DSP: Yeah, and so?
Me: I'm sorry, I can't sell alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person.
DSP: Yo, give me your mos' 'spensive wine.
Me: I'm sorry, I can't sell alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person. *gestures to WARNING poster saying just that*
DSP: Wat?
Me: I'm sorry, but I can't sell alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person.

DSP starts to get visibly upset and starts ranting at me.

DSP: What book you get that from? Huh? Where'd you learn that?
CW: I'm sorry, but we can't sell alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person.
DSP: You're gonna be like that too?
Me: I'm sorry, sir, but you need to leave now.

He got right up in my face, at which point I started moving towards the counter, to grab the phone if necessary.

DSP: Just sell me some wine, damnit!
Me: Sir, you need to leave.
DSP: What? No, I'm not leaving!
Me & CW: Sir, you need to leave now.
Me: We are not selling you wine, and you are currently trespassing. I will call the police.
DSP: I'm not 'fraid of no cops! Go ahead and call them!

I walked to the phone, grabbed it, and started dialing 911. At that point, he got the idea, and stormed out, cursing both of us and calling us various race- and gender-based names.

Wasn't that fun, boys 'n' girls?

Next time, I trust my instincts, and I don't even crack the door for someone I don't trust. I hate it when scumbags masquerade as potentially decent customers.

[jedimaster91]

Potentially decent customers would have read your hours listed on the door (if applicable), and/or knocked politely and patiently waited for your or your CW's return. Not bang on the door and shove their way in. What a jerk.

[KiaKat]

Sadly, my potentially decent customers usually come up to the door, pull on it DAMNED hard (the lock needs to be replaced because it's warped, after 16 months of use), and then knock on the door, rather than ringing the doorbell THAT WE HAVE A SIGN FOR. >.<

They don't read. Hell, some of them will return and DO IT AGAIN, even after I've told them that we have a doorbell, and all the tugging is breaking our door!

[Ree]

While race is normally not supposed to be an issue or of any relevance in the stories, I assume you have pointed out the races here, because of the fact that the SC started spouting racial slurs.
In that case, pointing out that he and your coworker were both black and you were white does help to paint a better picture, then.

Just a reminder to members...if something in a post upsets you, or you feel it is an irrelevant reference to race, then use the report button.
We do not allow people to call each other out in the threads.

[crazylegs]

It horrifies and disgusts me that companies and individuals set up off licences and fail to provide the staff with panic buttons and emergency help points.

There's no excuse to not look after your staff. None whatsoever. A phone just doesn't cut it, they can be pulled away from the person but emergency wristbands and panic buttons attached to counters are much more secure.

[KiaKat]

I apologize for not putting a note in, but race was absolutely relevant, although I should have elaborated more on just how many slurs this guy threw out, at both me, and my coworker. When she jumped in and started repeating the line about not being able to sell him alcohol, he gave her an attitude of 'how could you go against someone of your own race.' All in all, I heard more racial swears from this person than I had heard in nearly a decade of working food service and retail jobs.

Basically he was a waste of fifteen minutes of my life that I'll never get back. Ah well.

Crazylegs, our store isn't really big enough to warrant having either panic buttons or emergency wristbands. We have a buzzer system to let people in, and we're taught that it's better to turn away a potential customer who looks dangerous than to put ourselves in harm's way. This is the first time I've ever had to consider calling the police on someone in the store, although I have called it before on someone who threatened to 'break the window and smash my (racist slur) face' because I refused to let her in.

[crazylegs]

Crazylegs, our store isn't really big enough to warrant having either panic buttons or emergency wristbands.

Hmm, part of my job entails liaising with all premises that sell alcohol and even th very smallest stores that only ever one member of staff on at any one time have them (normally both).

Different culture, different rules I guess.

[PepperElf]

I'm sorry, but we can't sell alcohol to a visibly intoxicated person.

I suspect he was too drunk to immediately understand what that means.

sometimes you gotta drunk-it-down for the intoxicated people... "Can't sell you booze when you're already drunk!"