The head sommelier at a top Scottish restaurant was caught behind the wheel of a broken-down car while nearly three times the legal alcohol limit.
Frenk Trouw, chief wine waiter at Restaurant Andrew Fairlie in the Gleneagles Hotel, was found by police, smelling of alcohol, in the driver’s seat of a Citreon C3, parked at the side of the M9.
The 30-year-old appeared at Stirling Sheriff Court and admitted being in charge of the vehicle while over the drink-drive limit on April 1, this year.
The court heard he was being driven to work by his girlfriend when the car’s tyre blew out just before the Keir Roundabout.
She managed to steer the car off the road, before her boyfriend climbed into the driver’s seat.
Trouw, of Abbey Road, Auchterarder, was spared a driving ban.
He was fined £600 and had 10 penalty points added to his licence.
A ‘strange set of circumstances’
Fiscal depute Sean Isles told the court: “This happened on the M9, between junctions 10 and 11.
“At 7.40am police on mobile patrol noticed a vehicle on the soft shoulder of the motorway.
“They noticed that it had a punctured tyre.”
Mr Isles said: “Police spoke to the accused and noted he smelt strongly of alcohol.”
Trouw was breathalysed and arrested.
He admitted being in charge of the vehicle with 60 mics of alcohol in his system. The legal limit 22 mics.
His solicitor told the court: “This is a strange set of circumstances.
“It’s not quite clear what happened but the tyre blew out on the nearside when his girlfriend was driving the vehicle.
“She managed to get it over to the hard shoulder but the vehicle became stuck on the soft verge.
“They called for roadside assistance and Mr Trouw took control of the vehicle.
“He was sitting in the driving seat when the police arrived.”
The agent said: “There was no likelihood of him driving because he was over the limit.
“But I can’t exclude the possibility he would have moved off the soft verge to the hard shoulder to change the tyre.
“His girlfriend had only been driving for a few weeks and wasn’t an experienced enough driver to do this.”
Working ‘unsocial hours’
The court heard Trouw had been drinking the night before.
Asked by Sheriff Derek Hamilton if Trouw had mentioned his situation to police, the solicitor said: “No.
“The girlfriend was in the car at the time and she was visibly upset.”
He urged the court not to disqualify his client, who works “unsocial hours” in the hospitality industry.
The sheriff told Trouw he would deal with the case with penalty points, rather than a driving ban.
Rotterdam-born Trouw, who has been working in hospitality since he was 14, was an intern sommelier at the Gleneagles Hotel, before becoming head waiter at the independent Restaurant Andrew Fairlie – the only Scottish restaurant to hold two Michelin stars.
He was made Head Sommelier in July last year after four-and-a-half years as assistant restaurant manager.
