ADVERTISING: Advertorial — When it’s less about the wine

We were fortunate to be invited to a New Year’s Eve party held by some dear friends. After the holiday rush at the shop, it was great to get out of town for a few days and have the chance to spend the evening with our friends who hosted the gathering but also a chance to catch up with other friends who are equally close and meet some new ones. Our friends who invited us are savvy wine buyers of ample means, and prone to even greater generosity with the bottles they purchase. We’ll just leave it at that, we drank some pretty spectacular wine.

All aspects of this evening of cocktails, passed snacks before dinner and a multi-course dinner were well planned, figured out and fully staffed from valet parking attendants to bartenders, servers and chefs. Even with all of this support it in no way distracted from the intentional intimacy our hosts were able to generate. They had turned their out-door patio into a dining room that accommodated perfectly the sizeable group, and the decorations from the table to lighting were perfectly beautiful and elegant. The event was black tie and their home fit that standard in a relaxed way.

As the evening progressed though what was so great to witness and far better to experience is the party became less and less about the wine, décor and even the food. Don’t get me wrong we loved it all but it was remarkable to see this wonderful community that developed with all the guests. Clearly it was all because of our hosts, they have a lovely circle of friends and because of their spirit and welcoming nature, it really became more about this chance to spend a night of engaging conversation and friendship.

Like any crowd of this size there was a lot of diversity of opinion on all we face and all we have dealt with over the last several years. Just as it transcended the wine though this group of friends, this community gathered to send the old year on its way and bring in the new year, didn’t seem to us to get bogged down in all we have witnessed. There was certainly talk of being weary of the pandemic, amazed at the escalation of real estate markets, and frustration with our politics but it took on a more constructive and collegial tone. No doubt that most any subject, no matter how controversial, is easier to have over great wine with better friends but there was more to it than just friendship, it was a tone set by our hosts and gladly embraced by all in attendance. Granted Mary and I didn’t have the opportunity to engage with all who were there but to a person, both familiar to us and new to us, the good will was universal.

I genuinely wish that more of us still threw parties like this one. In today’s headlong rush to casualness this art of entertaining a large group in a beautiful and thoughtful setting with all of the trimmings seems to get lost. I find that unfortunate. When you put something like this together it is the opportunity to highlight some really delicious wine, but it also allows the wine to almost move to the background, in a way it makes it possible for the setting, the décor, and the guests to all be in harmony. It is no longer about any one piece but about the whole.

Funny in a way, it is and has been what we have tried to do with our small shop. A long time ago when we began our journey with the store it was influenced by many friends who would always say “You throw the best dinner parties.” While I would say that we never got close to this impressive showing at our friend’s home on New Year’s when we have hosted parties, this gathering clearly enforced our vision for what we aspire to.

This lovely evening for us was a once in a long-time event and the feelings it ingrained in us will be there for a long time. We hope to be invited back some time, and it certainly will inspire us to throw great parties of our own, we can only hope to create this same ambience and genuine feelings among our guests, and with the shop it is our blueprint for our mission every day.

If you do wish to hear more about the individual wines we tasted we are happy to share that with you next time you are in the shop.

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George Balling is co-owner with his wife, Mary Lancaster, of the dinner party, a wine and gift shop in Coeur d’Alene by Costco. The dinner party has won the award for best wine shop in North Idaho twice, including for 2018.

George is also published in several other publications around the country. After working in wineries in California and judging many wine competitions, he moved to Coeur d’Alene with Mary more than 10 years ago to open the shop.

You can also follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/#!/dinnerpartyshop.