Brenda Coates

Wed 8/9 – 4-9 PM, we will offer both red and white sangrias and from 7-9 PM – NC Writers Network and The Brandy Bar + Cocktails present guest poet Reverend Tim Jones as next in their program In the Company of Writers. The program offers a series of personal and conversational dialogues featuring guest writers/poets followed by an open mic forum. These inspirational gatherings will elucidate and entertain those attending. The guest author speaks from 7-8 PM with open mic from 8 -9 PM. The Chicago blues music of Mr. Jimmy welcomes you, continues during intermission, and closes the evening.  The Reverend Tim Jones, a native of Henderson County, has been the Chief Operations Officer for the Hendersonville Rescue Mission since 2001. Ordained in the Episcopal Church in 2010, he serves on the clergy team at St. James. An avid hiker and artist, his nature photographs and paintings have been featured in numerous gallery exhibitions and public installations in places of healing. A storyteller and poet as well, his three books of poetry include Blue Mountain Poems, I Pray You, and Down Where The Soul Is. He’s currently working on a fourth collection about his experiences in Jerusalem. His counsel is “Slow down. Pay attention. Be grateful. Those three movements sum up not only my poetry, but all my creative work.”

Thurs 4-9 PM – Bucket List Cocktails – When Did Folks Start Saying “Bucket List?”  A brief search on Google reveals that this is a new term – believed to have first been coined for the 2007 movie “Bucket List” with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman. It probably derived from the Old English idiom “to kick the bucket” which means “to die.” So credit for the current use of the term is given to the film’s screen writer, Justin Zackham. A May 29, 2015 article in SLATE magazine confirms the credit and cites a column in the Wall Street Journal in which Vocabulary.com executive editor Ben Zimmer and word researcher Hugo van Kemenade acknowledge this origination. However, Bucket List was not included in the fifth edition of the American Heritage Dictionary because “it needs a few more years in usage before it proves itself worthy of addition to the big book.” Nevertheless, the term has been frequently picked up in contemporary usage and cultural coincidences.  Such as on Glee, 17 year old Kurt Hummel, took out his iPhone to make note of the things he intends to do before he dies, one being “arrive at school in a hot air balloon.” Tony DiNozzo on NCIS, shaken by a terrorist attack and worried about his mortality, printed out a list which included “date a Bond girl and/or Miss Universe.”  Doofus Andy on Parks & Recreation listed on his bucket list “winning the lottery, making the best grilled-cheese sandwich ever….”.  Well whatever is on your bucket list, come and join us at The Brandy Bar + Cocktails for our “bucket list.” Bucket List Cocktails: Bucket List – Brandy, Absinthe rinse, fresh lemon juice, honey syrup, cardamom bitters; Harvey Wallbanger – Brandy, hazelnut liqueur, orange juice; Pearl Harbor – Brandy, Midori melon liqueur, pineapple juice; Sex On the Beach –Frost brandy, peach brandy, crème de cassis, orange & cranberry juice; Brandy Collins – Frost brandy, gin, fresh squeezed lemon juice, simple syrup, club soda; 1/2 price on US Flight         

 

Wed 8/2 – 4 – 9 PM – Calling all men out there – treat your partner. When you come in with your partner, we will give you 1/2 price off on your partner’s favorite cocktail drink. Everyone needs to be appreciated!

Thurs 8/3 – 4-9 PM – National Park Cocktails! What are the 5 oldest National Parks in the US? (1) Yellowstone National Park, established March 1, 1872, is the oldest national park in the United States and the second oldest in the world. Created by an Act of Congress signed by President Grant, it is located between the states of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. The park is home to numerous hot springs and the world’s largest collection of geysers, including the iconic Old Faithful.  (2) Established September 25, 1890, Sequoia National Park is located in the southern Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. The park’s natural wonders include Mount Whitney, rising 4,418 meters above sea level. It contains 5 of the 10 largest trees in the world, including the General Sherman tree estimated to be at least 2,300 years old. (3) First placed under deferral protection by Abraham Lincoln in 1864, Yosemite National Park wasn’t officially established as a national park until October 1, 1890. Located in California’s Sierra Nevada, it’s the third oldest and third most visited National Park in the United States. Almost 95% of the park is designated wilderness. (4) Mount Rainier, established March 2, 1899, is an active volcano in the state of Washington, with both Seattle and Portland located within a 300-kilometer radius. (5) Crater Lake in Oregon was established May 22, 1902 and is the deepest lake in the United States. Situated in the crater of a volcano that collapsed over 7,700 years ago, it’s famous for the blue clarity of its water, and with two volcanic islands within the lake.  (5) The best known of all, the Grand Canyon National Park, came later as the 15^th park to be designated on February 26, 1919. It is one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World, and covers 1,217,262 acres. The Canyon is over 277 miles long and over 1 mile deep and 18 miles wide (and getting wider).

            Coming even later as National Parks go, we cannot forget our North Carolina Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Although the National Park Service wanted a park in the eastern United States, it did not have any money so a Commission was appointed in 1925. Though Congress had authorized the park in 1926, there was no nucleus of federally owned land around which to build a park. However with combined help from private citizens, businesses, and government, lands for the park were finally purchased and established on June 15, 1934.

Yellowstone Cocktail – Applejack, cherry brandy; Sequoia Cocktail – Brandy, grapefruit juice, simple syrup; Yosemite -. Courvoisier, dry vermouth, Campari; Mount Ranier – Brandy, rum, Cointreau, fresh lime & cherry juice; Crater Lake – Brandy, rum, agave syrup, fresh lime juice & bitters;          1/2 price Fruit flight   

REMINDER – Wed 7/9 – NC Writers Network returns at 7-9 PM with Reverend Tim Jones, a native of Henderson County, who has been the Chief Operations Officer for the Hendersonville Rescue Mission since 2001. He shall read from his 3 books of poetry.                                                                                  

Wed 7/26 – 4-9:00 PM – These hot summer days beg for an ice cone – slushy. So we have taken this to a new level. You may choose any fruit brandy for a pour-over on crushed ice. You can suck, sip, and drink from our sno-cones with a fruit of your choice to your heart’s content. Watch out!

Thurs 7/27 – 4-9:00 PM – US Women’s Soccer Cocktails –   We hardly know anything about Women’s Soccer, but we do know we’ll support and shout out for our US team. The FIFA Women’s World Cup is a professional association football tournament contested by senior women’s national football teams, organized by FIFA. The tournament, held every four years and one year after the men’s World Cup, (First played in 1991 in China), and has since been expanded to 32 teams following the 2023 decision. The tournament is contested with eight round-robin groups followed by a knockout round for 16 teams. The defending champions are the United States having won the previous two 2015 and 2019 tournaments. The event will take place from July 20 through August 20 in Australia and New Zealand. This Women’s World Cup represents a series of firsts: (1) the first co-hosted tournament (2) first seniors World Cup to be held across multiple confederations (3) first seniors’ tournament to be held in Oceania, (4) first Women’s World Cup in the Southern Hemisphere and the 3^rd to be held in the Asia-Pacific region. This is the 9^th event of the FIFA Women’s World Cup. The final event will take place on August 20 at Sydney Olympic Stadium.

    The match schedule was announced by FIFA on 12/1/21 with kick-off times confirmed on 10/24/22, 2 days after the final draw. The group stage fixtures are split between the co-hosts with New Zealand hosting Groups A, C, E, and G, and Australia for Groups B, D,F, and H. The United States is in Group E. Because of the Ukraine war, Russia will not be participating this time.  This year’s total prize pool is $110 million, $80 million greater than the last one. Previous tournaments (including men’s) have paid total prize money to the national associations but for the 2023 Women’s they will give prize payments directly to the players as well as the associations. The US belongs to the CONCACAF confederation (North America, Central America, Caribbean). The allocation of slots for each confederation was confirmed on 12/25/2020 with the CONCACAF receiving a total of 6 slots. For the draw 32 teams were divided into 4 pots with the US placed in Pot 1 with New Zealand and Australia (co-hosts).

     Oh….and we do have 2 NC women from the NC Courage Team: Casey Murphy and Emily Fox. Other members: Goal Keepers Aubrey Kingsbury, Casey Murphy, Alyssa Naeher; Defenders: Alana Cook, Crystal Dunn, Emily Fox, Naomi Girma, Sofia Huerta, Kelley O’Hara, Emily Sonett; Midfielders: Savannah DeMelo, Julie Ertz, Lindsey Horan, Rose Lavelle, Kristie Mewis, Ashley Sanchez, Andi Sullivan; Forwards: Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, Trinity Rodman, Sophia Smith, Alyssa Thompso, and Lynn Williams. Now let’s go out there and root for the US WOMEN’S TEAM!!

US Women’s World Cup Cocktails: US’ Our Old Fashion – Muddled orange & cherries topped with C & K Brandy and ice; Brazil’s Caipirinha -Leblon, muddled lime, sugar; Italy’s Negroni – CB Frost, Douglas Fir, Campari, sweet vermouth; France’s Les Bleus 75 – Courvoisier, lemon, simple syrup, topped with Champagne;  Norway’s Blackberry Fir – Douglas Fir, Blackberry liqueur, lemon juice, simple syrup; 1/2 Price Worldly Flight