The Perfect End to a Perfect Weekend

Remember the great time we had at the Taos Summer Wine Festival? That was only our first day! After partying it up with new friends in the lovely Taos Ski Valley, we got to bed nice and early, ready to continue the fun in the morning.

Did someone say champagne brunch?

I advised SN that jeans and hiking boots are not appropriate attire for a champagne brunch at 192 at The Blake. He donned his fanciest hat to appease me.

We arrived early, hoping to nab a table for 2.

Success! We even had a lovely view of a bubbling stream right outside the window. Luxury condos too, which led to a potentially expensive discussion about real estate investments we should be making.

Shortly after being seated, we were brought a tray of some of the tastiest pastries I've ever had in my life. Even better than in Paris? Absolutely! There was a flaky cinnamon roll and these homemade croissants contained shreds of fresh orange. I may have eaten 3 of the 4 while my husband gazed outside at the view, certain more were coming.

More were not coming. (Sorry, my love!) It took every ounce of restraint I had to keep from eating his only pastry.

The endless bubbly was a nice distraction.

We placed our orders. At the recommendation of our server, SN requested a ribeye sandwich. (Very breakfasty!) I knew what I was going to order days in advance, back when we were at home in Albuquerque and I'd pulled up the event menu online.

Pecan Waffle Mountain

Fresh Berries, Bananas, Toasted Pecans, Whipped cream, Blueberry Coulis

(It sounds amazing, right??)

Our food arrived. It looked and smelled delicious...but I was sad.

One waffle. One waffle is not a mountain.

If there were a mountain in front of me, you would not be able to see SN's food. I stifled my disappointment, drank another glass of champagne, and dug into my meager serving of brunch.

Yes, lots of complaining. And, yes...

...I was too full to finish all of my too small waffle. Touché, Taos Wine Fest.

Now, you know it's not my style to get through a fancy champagne brunch in a beautiful restaurant without having at least one embarrassing moment. A nice woman came over to refill our glasses and we waved her away, babbling that we'd already had too much. She insisted and we all had a laugh, beaming at each other as my glass was topped off again.

I felt very fancy. I wanted to sit up a little straighter in my booth seat, sipping my champagne in the most elegant way I could muster. I pressed my feet against the table to push myself up.

And nearly sent the entire table, champagne and all, toppling over with a loud scrape I'm certain was heard throughout the restaurant.

Orange juice suddenly appeared!

(And no more champagne!)

Well, maybe just a little more champagne. I wanted to make a mimosa! As I mixed my drinks together, SN lectured me that I was going to like the champagne better on its own and like the orange juice better on its own.

I hate when he's right.

Our meal ended with a strange dessert called The Chocolate Red Chile Soup, which we were told has won several awards for the chef. I've actually made this exact same thing before at home quite a few times. It's easy. You just scoop some chocolate ice cream into a bowl and let it melt.

Okay, that's not very nice of me. We actually did have the best time ever at the Taos Wine Festival champagne brunch. It was the highlight of our weekend! And that's really saying something because every little part of the weekend was absolutely fabulous.

Have I mentioned there's also a Taos Winter Wine Festival? We'll be there with bells on.

After our meal, SN and I ventured out to find more of the Taos, NM charm we'd heard so much about. We didn't have to look very far. Check out the wallpaper from the 192 at the Blake women's restroom:

Deer holograms! Where can I buy this?

Here are a few more photos from our weekend getaway:

Free plug-in parking for our Volt! We heart Taos.

Rottenstone Pottery in Arroyo Seco, NM

This was a very dangerous shop for us to visit with a house under construction. (And a luxury Taos ski condo in the works, for investment's sake, apparently.) Pretty much everything they were selling was perfect for our new home. I don't know how we have any money left at all.

We loved the Taos Summer Wine Festival so much, I decided to try my hand at designing the event poster for 2018. Let me know what you think.

Official poster of the Taos Summer Wine Festival, 2017, above.

(Hmmm...I maybe shouldn't have placed my website on this one.)

Official (well, maybe one day) poster of the Taos Summer Wine Festival, 2018, below.

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