As I have mentioned in previous posts, Halloween is my favorite holiday of the year. It gives me the opportunity to be someone I’m not for a small fraction of time. Another person who names Halloween as their favorite holiday is John Jordan, CEO of Jordan Winery. Jordan Winery is located in the beautiful Alexander Valley (Healdsburg, California). A few years ago, John began throwing these lavishly-themed private Halloween parties for friends at his family's mansion-style winery. Eventually, the parties got bigger and now they’ve become a way for him to thank the hundreds of wine industry members (media, press, wholesalers, retailers etc.) who help spread the word about Jordan wines.
At the beginning of September, I received my invitation to this year’s party. A box arrived in the mail and in the box was a wooden coffin with the word “Glampire” etched on it covered with a chain bracelet and heart on it. Upon opening the coffin, I found a cross-shaped flash drive and a scrolled paper invitation. I had planned to be out in wine country that same week so after playing the flash drive and seeing all the creepy things that were about to happen, I gladly sent my RSVP to the winery!!! (The invitation can be seen below. However, those of us who were invited received a different version of the one shown below. The wording on our video is altered below since the party was not open to the public. The winery posted this video on YouTube as a Halloween tribute…)
After putting much thought in to my costume, I decided to attend as “Miss Guided”, the beauty pageant princess who gets murdered. After all, the invitation did say “Blood Required.” I couldn’t wait to go! It was certainly going to be a highlight during what I am now calling one of the BEST WEEKS OF MY LIFE!
I thought October 23rd would never get here! The full moon rose over Sonoma County and the pouring rain and the somewhat treacherous drive on the mountain roads from St. Helena to Healdsburg made the beginning of our evening unbelievably creepy and awesome!!! I felt like I was in a horror film! Thanks to our GPS, my friend Amanda Hagood and I finally arrived at the gate to check in. We drove past the perfect hedges up a windy path to the parking lot and the first thing I spotted was the word “Glampire” in red lettering blazing off the side of the winery! How cool!!!
All I can say is a lot of thought, preparation and lavish detail was put into this production! It was absolutely amazing and once we got inside, we were greeted by friends and party-goers alike and lots of libations such as J Rosé sparkling wine (J Vineyards & Winery is owned by John's sister Judy) , martinis concocted just for this event (Loved the "Glam-tini!!!"), Jordan Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon, oysters, caviar and all kinds of appetizing hors d‘oeuvres!
The almosphere was a beautiful mixture of red and black costumes, fog, cigars, beautiful but creepy décor (yes, there was even a casket you could climb into!) and the wine casks and barrels held surprises at every turn…
We ate, drank, danced and networked and had an amazing time!!! John Jordan and his mother Sally walked around greeting and mingling with the guests! (John told me his mother was from Iowa so I thought that was kind of interesting…) A great time was had by all who attended!!!
I want to thank my good friend Lisa Mattson, Communications Director for Jordan Winery and John Jordan for inviting me to such a lavish and wonderful event! I hope you both had as great of a time as I did! It was truly an awesome event and a great way for me to celebrate my birthday in wine country! I really can’t wait to see Jordan Winery during the day and am looking forward to coming back in a few months! See you then!
Jordan Winery is located at 1474 Alexander Valley Road in Healdsburg, California. Appointments are required. Please check out their website at jordanwinery.com for more details, videos and photos.
"You Saw It Here First"...This post was created solely for "Cellarmistress' Cellar Talk" by Grace Hoffman. Grace is an Italian-born, American-bred wine blogger/educator with an all-consuming passion for wine and all it encompasses.
Looked like a great time. Just like their wine...... first class.
ReplyDeleteCheers