Thousands upon thousands of people do the rounds of the wineries every year, regardless of the weather.

It is such a winner that many people regularly travel from as far afield as Melbourne to enjoy the festivities, including the popular grape crush in the centre of town.

People enjoy it very much in the spirit in which it is intended. Unlike most events, where alcohol is freely available, the idiots tend to stay away.

But that does not mean police do not have to keep a close watch on what’s going on.

They have again made it clear that they will not tolerate any drunken behaviour from revellers.

That is especially when this impacts on others’ enjoyment of the walkabout.

As Sergeant Brian Curran says, with about 20,000 people turning out over the weekend “there is always the potential for trouble”.

It has to be said that the numbers who do cause trouble are usually what police describe as a very small minority.

That’s a great credit to the organisers and to the loyal crowds who return year-after-year, as well as the new generation of devotees.

But it only takes a few fools to wreck things for others, so people should make sure they’re sensible about the day and not drink too much.

The consequences have been made abundantly clear though for anyone who fails to heed the message.

The police have already revealed they will be bringing portable cells to Rutherglen to cater for wrongdoers.

And they will have plenty of eyes and ears out at the wineries, on the roads and in town to ensure the event runs trouble-free.

That includes the rostering of officers from surrounding stations to assist with patrols and to ensure liquor licensing laws are not breached.

In other words, drink too much and you’ll be nabbed. But the police clearly cannot be everywhere, so look out for your friends so they don’t end up in the cells.

And though it hardly needs to be said, the temptation to drink and drive simply shouldn’t be there for anyone.

Have a designated driver or make sure you take one of the many buses running between the wineries and back to Albury-Wodonga.