it's been a while since i've thrown a party. the last one was for our second anniversary back in ye' olden days of 2024. that was out at camp meade, and, frankly, it exceeded every possible expectation i had for the day. the weather was just perfect, zach nugent's dead set played a magical set, so many amazing friends showed up to set up vending stations, peaceburger slinged food, and NOT ONE KID died in either bounce house. that's right, there were two bounce houses.

which is to say, i felt really lucky. and i am a quit while you're ahead sort of guy (i'm not actually, but humor me for the structure of this story, please) so i haven't dared to throw another party since then.

but josh & the rest of the crew can be pretty convincing when they want to be. i won't say they begged (because they didn't) but there was some arm twisting and a little flattery (which goes a long way). so, here we are, throwing a BAZZAR HOLIDAY PARTY with our friends from 5th quarter.

and what is that? a great question, thanks. on december 17th, we'll have the tasting room DECKED OUT in more christmas lights than you've ever seen in one place (maybe) and inside the room, we'll have FIVE AMAZING FOOD STATIONS WITH WINE PAIRINGS! and not just one wine per station. it's a party, you guys. two wines? NO THANK YOU! three wines per station! that's right -- fifteen different wines to go along with the TASTY TREATS!

more about the TASTY TREATS -- do you like caviar, oysters, jamon iberico, panettone croque monsieur, or big wheels of hot, melty cheese? i mean, yes, of course you do. OH, AND THERE WILL BE HOT DOGS!

does it sound like i forgot about dessert? I DID NOT FORGET ABOUT DESSERT! once you're done making your round of the tasting room (this is a stand and mingle event), you'll exit into the shop where you'll find our friend from mad river distillers with a night cap PLUS our friend from goose chase cake design with YOUR DESSERT!

to bring in as many of our friends (that's you!) as possible, we're offering three different entry times: 5:30, 6:15, and 7 -- and to MAKE THIS EVEN MORE ENTICING, all the food & wine served during the event will be available for pre-order (for pickup either in middlesex or waitsfield) FOR 10 PERCENT OFF! that's basically free.

we're assuming you're going to want to order some food & wine, so we're making the tickets as affordable as we possibly can for an event this stupidly difficult to coordinate (gosh, the staffing logistics alone...hence the prior mentioned arm twisting)...BUT ENOUGH BEHIND THE SCENES TALK...tickets are JUST THIRTY BUCKS A PERSON.

that's right. you didn't have a small seizure. FIFTEEN WINES, TONS OF TASTY TREATS, PLUS DESSERT AND ACCESS TO AWESOME DISCOUNTS -- plus the fun, you guys, i forgot to even mention that this will be fun -- ALL OF THAT FOR JUST THIRTY DOLLARS!

tickets are available now for wine club members (so join today!) and will release for everyone else on saturday, november 14th at noon.

-- sam