|
Wow! We have mentioned Veranda Time here in the blog several times. It is that time of day when Jerene has stopped working us to death and I wave a shot of Morgan Rum under her nose and she allows us to retire to the veranda and relax a while before they make the long trek home to Long Beach.
I coined the term Veranda Time, because that is what I do. I stand around and think up cool names for stuff. Seriously.
Anywho, after a couple of weeks of experimenting with VT (Veranda Time), we thought we were ready for prime time. We mentioned and sent out a few e-mails to a few folk saying we were going to VT Saturday at 5:00.
We had no plans (Plenty of booze and wine but no plans.). We opened the gates at 4:30 and by 5:00, I was thinking VT was bust. After all it was casual, everyone is so busy, and what's the big deal about something called Veranda Time.
Now Dennis and Jerene and Mike and Patti drove all the way from Long Beach for VT. They knew how good it was and had helped us develop the Beta version.
By six O'clock, I was stunned. Nearly everyone had shown up. About 16 people showed up and Devin had about 22 crackers and 20 slices of cheese. Then about 5:45, Ted and Karen M. showed up with platters of food. The had gobs of shrimp and salami and brie and all kinds of goodies.
I was feeling like Jesus on the beach near Bethsaida (near the Jordan River if you were wondering) and he had about 4,000 folk to feed and all he had was 22 crackers and 20 slices of cheese. Then Ted and Karen showed up and fed the multitudes. (Before I get a bunch of emails, I was not comparing myself to Jesus. We both have beards, but that is as far as it goes.)
So thank you Ted and Karen. (Karen still reads the blog Ted has stopped, but since I am no longer his boss he does not have to suck up to me, so I understand. Love them both just the same.)
As VT rolled along, Ted said "Bocce Ball". Don't know why someone would blurt out Bocce Ball, but it happened. I proceeded down the hill and we began a ninety minute round of Bocce Ball. It was a splendid night of the guys being competitive while throwing hard wood balls on a court made of crushed shell.
The sleeper of the night was Tim T., mild mannered Financial Advisor at UBS, but at night becomes Super Bocce Ball Man. Some of his placements were amazing. Now I know what he does with those long hallways at his office in Irvine.
As we finished, the crowd started to thin and Dennis, Jerene, Mike, and Patti, helped put things back in order. They headed North to Long Beach leaving Devin and I to try and figure out how to shut off the #@&^(&)'n lights all over the place.
I enjoyed the last glass of 2002 Merus (We put away some wine Saturday night. We did the Merus, a 2006 Opus One, a 2007 Roger Sabon Ch�teauneuf-du-Pape Cuv�e Prestige, 2008 Vi�edos Bernabeleva Vinos de Madrid Navaherreros, and 2009 Domaine de la Charbonni�re Ch�teauneuf-du-Pape. It was a great night.
If you are interested in VT time, drop me a note and I will get you on the VT announcement e-mail drop. It will be as much notice as we can give. You have to let me know if you live outside of Coto, if you live in Coto, just look for the open gate and come on in. Let me know if you want to be on the VT list.
We are truly blessed. Here are a couple more shots from Chateau Cronin/Circle D.
| 
