Highlights from our Sip and Shop

First things first, thank you to everyone who came out and showed your support. Our Sip and Shop on October 30th was a chance to make new friends and reconnect with old ones.

Not only were we celebrating 2 years in business, but we were advertising our move to Temecula, California. It is famous for its antique shopping and wineries. We thought it was the perfect opportunity to introduce our new location at Fourth Street Antiques and make a special Sangria for the event. We were very excited to host a Sip and Shop, but wanted to make sure that we adhered to all COVID-19 regulations. Lucky for us, Fourth Street Antiques has an outdoor patio that we were able to decorate for the event.

 To decorate, we used old lace curtains and table cloths that we cut into strips and hung from the ceiling. It had been very windy for the week leading up to our event, so we added in some branches that had fallen from the trees, a couple of lanterns and some globe lights and we were ready to celebrate! 

We kept the table settings simple and beautiful, black table cloths with a buffalo check print runner on top, some beautiful flowers and all of the food individually wrapped to protect our wonderful customers. Hand hygiene was a must, so we had hand sanitizer available and only allowed 6 people on the patio at a time. We wanted everyone to feel safe during these uncertain times, so masks were worn while people mingled and shopped in the store.

We had a live musician and even did a giveaway! A free of wine topper of their choice to one lucky winner.

My Chai-Spiced Fall Sangria was a huge hit! I wanted to make something different, after all Sangria is everywhere in Temecula, but not this recipe. I got the recipe from www.thesaltymarshmallow.com and as soon as I saw it, I thought it was perfect. Believe me, it was. Customers said it tasted like Fall in a glass, which is exactly what I was hoping for!!! The recipe is down below.

Chai-spiced Fall Sangria

• 1 cup Apple Cider
• 1 cup water
• 4 Chai Tea Bags
• 2 Apples, sliced
• 2 Pears, sliced
• 1Orange, sliced
• 1 750 ml bottle of your favorite White Wine
• 1/2 cup Orange Liquer
• 2 Cinnamon Tea Bags (optional)

This is not the exact recipe, but I did want to give credit for the inspiration. I boiled the water, added all 6 tea bags and let it steep for a bit. Then I added all the ingredients, let it chill and we served it that night over ice. You guys...the smell of the Sangria...it smelled like all of the great things that you love about fall. Sweet and fragrant, spice and comfort. It was absolutely perfect. I have had numerous requests for the recipe, so I thought that I would share it. Thanksgiving is just around the corner and this would be the perfect addition to your table. We had even talked about serving it warm, like a mulled wine. Enjoy!

Thank you to www.urbanfloristontario.com for their donation of a beautiful arrangement of flowers that we gave away at the end of the night. The generosity and hard work of all the vendors and other small businesses really helped to make this night a success.