Wine by Design

We are determined to try a wine tasting event. After a first attempt, we feel more ready this time and we are working harder to let you know about the event so you can reserve some time. With the artisan, little guy movement that is being celebrated everywhere, bringing an artisan wine event to the Aqualand Ale House seems like a good idea- a great way to offer something new and fun to our new friends and Ale House family. After being found by a wine guy who is the direct importer of a line of small batch artisanal, non-sulfite/low sulfite organic Italian wines, we are excited about the offerings we have selected. With the holiday season looming, what a great opportunity to find gift wines, celebratory wines, classics and something different, something new. Besides all this very important stuff though, I am excited because I am going to use this as a first experiment in bringing one of the skills from my other life to the Ale House- decorating! I love to theme a table, setting a mood for a special event. I confess I have spent considerable spare time all my life prowling thrift shops, antique shops auctions, garage sales and okay- yes, I have been known to be on a first name basis with a dump guy or two. I once fell into a dumpster behind Cambridge Pottery's retail shop in Cambridge, Wisconsin. You would not believe the great stuff I got though and as you can see, eventually I did get out. My favorite souvenir from our trip to Paris is a bit of bric-brac that I pulled out of a trash can as we walked along Rue de St. Germaine...I know I'm hopeless. The plan is to play around with setting the table for our wine tasting attendees- splurging into my stash of vintage table cloths (I have over 60) and candling up the joint. I may grab a thing or two from the basement, the woods and may even spelunk for a conversation piece or two in my Dad's shed, which is a treasure trove of things you may never have known you needed (what- do I hear some muttering about the apple not falling far from the tree?)...Sometime when you are in the Ale House dining room, take a look up into the dormer that faces highway K. The goofy deer mount located there is one my dad lent us and has a strangely lop-sided rack. But mostly, I love his eyes- they are blue and buggy, looking crazily at you from wherever you move in the room. You can see that he wants to rear up and can almost imagine his nostrils flare...thanks Dad!? :) The wine event, like everything involved in birthing the Aqualand Ale House, feels meant to be- I am looking forward to seeing friends and enjoying what feels like it could be more of a dinner party than a night a work. My collecting and stage setting began at a very young age. I started off building little fairy houses under the princess pine in the play forest beneath the big pines in our yard on county K near Aqualand. I spent a decent amount of time outside just waitng for Peter Pan, though I could creep myself out when I thought about what Tinker Bell would do if she found out about Peter's love for me. (Similar to his brief infatuation with Wendy, but much stronger since I already believed I lived in Never Neverland). Then as an adolescent, Mom and Dad decided that we needed a little more family togetherness and for several summers we spent evenings after supper driving down the old railroad grades, which were not yet all bermed shut in the 1960s, looking along the grade in the ditches for old treasures, bottles, crocks and who knew what else. We dug at old logging camp sites too, using the old camp maps. Once we had our destination, it was easy to discern from the grassy bump footprint of the old foundations where the kitchen dumps had been. This was where we would dig with hoes and long-handled gardening tines, working our way beneath leaves and needles to uncover bits and pieces left by a generation gone by. The other place we found goodies was actually in the latrine pits- long since cleansed by years of snow and rain, it was clear evidence of the other activity the guys participated in at the camps where alcohol was not allowed but the two-holer provided a semi-private spot to sneak a sip(yes, sip, smart alecs). It also offered a great way to dispose of the evidence of transgressions when the bottle was empty. I could be known to wander around the whole site, constantly surprised by the random and completely undamaged cast-offs that were just laying exposed in the forest. What if I bring out a few old bottles for the wine tasting- of course I have hung onto a few. We can enjoy our tasting, which we intend to compliment with chef Darren's appetizer pairings in the atmosphere decorated into a something more like home and less like business. As we head towards the season of snuggling and sipping, visiting and leisure, gifting and hugs, come and join us as we venture into this new territory of celebrating the artisan, the craftsman- the little guy! RSVP today and plan to join us on October 19th. Space is limited to a maximum of 30 for this event, so please sign up today! there will be a small cost, but we promise to pour on the special for our premiere event, which runs from 4 to 5:30 on Saturday. More details will be posted on our facebook page, in the FYI, on the radio and on our sign out front. See you soon! (and don't tell Wendy where I am okay?!)