Jenn Post

Friday Feature: Jennifer Post

How long have you been working at Willow Creek? About 5 months

What is your position? Administrative Assistant

What is your favorite part of the Willow Creek family? How hard we all work, and how much we laugh and have fun together

What do you hope to accomplish within the company? To get more familiar with all departments and taste my way through the wine list

What is your favorite wine? Blackberry Merlot

If you could switch jobs with anyone at Willow Creek, who would it be an why? Any of the hostesses. Those ladies work so hard, but make it look so easy. I’d love a day in their shoes to see what they really deal with. Or Barbara so I could learn the business side of things.

Gabby (left) Jennifer (right)

What is your proudest moment so far at Willow Creek? Winning Best Non-Traditional Ugly Christmas Sweater at our 1st Annual Ugly Christmas Sweater Party.

What advice do you have for new hires? Be patient, be kind, be Wilde.

And last but not least, if Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would you like to see cast as you? My girl crush, Blake Lively.

Wine Cocktail Wednesday – Prestige Spritzer

Wine Cocktail Wednesday: Prestige Spritzer

INGREDIENTS:

1/4 Cup ice

2 Tablespoons frozen berries of your choice

2 oz Wilde Cock Prestige Gold

6 oz sparkling water (La Croix recommended because of it’s subtle flavor and no added sweetness)

DIRECTIONS:

Pour ice into a glass. Add frozen berries. Pour in the wine, then the sparkling water. Sip and enjoy.

Melissa

Friday Feature: Melissa Jablonowski

How long have you been working at Willow Creek? 8 months

What is your position? Hostess with the mostest

What is your favorite part of the Willow Creek Family? Contests! Having fun with each other [insert ugly sweater pic]

What do you hope to achieve within the company? I would like to be more involved with events (planning)

What is your favorite wine? Blackberry Merlot

If you could switch jobs with anyone at Willow Creek, who would it be and why? In another life, Ariella.

What if your proudest moment so far at Willow Creek? Working and organizing gift shop and front of the house

What advice do you have for new hires? Take initiative, but be respectful. We are all a part of the same team.

And last but not least, if Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would you like to see cast as you? Emily Blunt

Wine Cocktail Wednesday – Blushing Beauty

Wine Cocktail Wednesday: Blushing Beauty

INGREDIENTS:

1 Tablespoon + 3/4 teaspoon unflavored gelatin (2 packets)

1 C water, divided

1 C sugar

1 bottle Wilde Cock Blush

DIRECTIONS:

Sprinkle the gelatin over ¼ cup of the water in a small bowl. Set aside for a few minutes to rehydrate.

Combine the remaining water and the sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat.

Add the gelatin to the sugar syrup and stir to dissolve. Combine with the wine in a medium mixing bowl or a 9-inch square baking pan. Refrigerate for 3 hours, until set.

Serve with fresh whipped cream and berries!

Barbara’s Favorite Flowers: Yucca

Barbara’s Favorite Flowers: Yucca

Yucca is a genus of perennial shrubs and trees in the family Asparagaceae, (asparagus). Yucca, of the agave family, native to the warmer regions of America, has pointed, usually rigid, sword-shaped leaves and clusters of white, waxy flowers. It is also the state flower of New Mexico. They are native to the hot and dry (arid) parts of North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean.

A cool fact is that Yucca is known in the United States as “ghosts in the graveyard,” as it is commonly found growing in rural graveyards and when in bloom in the twilight or dark, the flowers appear as a glowing apparition floating.

Yuccas have a very specialized, mutualistic pollination system. They are pollinated by yucca moths (family Prodoxidae); the insect purposefully transfers the pollen from the stamens of one plant to the stigma of another, and at the same time lays an egg in the flower; the moth larva then feeds on some of the developing seeds, always leaving enough seed to perpetuate the species.

Medicinally, Yucca is used for osteoarthritis, high blood pressure, migraine headaches, inflammation of the intestine (colitis), high cholesterol, stomach disorders, diabetes, poor circulation, and liver and gallbladder disorders.

This Yucca gets included in the list of “Barbara’s Favorite Flowers” because I like the exotic tropical edge and geometric height it gives to a garden. It’s pretty maintenance free, though I like to remove the lower dead fronds, giving it more of a palm tree shape. My mother always despised the flowers as she does Hosta flowers. She viewed them as secondary to the leaves. I personally love the huge charge of bellflowers you get two to three times a year when not much else is blooming, and the height is great too.

Gabby

Friday Feature: Gabrielle Mayberry (Gabby, Gabs)

How long have you been working at Willow Creek? 5 months

What is your position? Administrative Assistant

What is your favorite part of the Willow Creek family? The unique family bond

Kate M (left) Gabby (right)

What do you hope to achieve within the company? To continue in advancement in my position and learn everything I can from each department.

What is your favorite wine? I have two. Blackberry Merlot and Prestige Gold

If you could switch jobs with anyone at Willow Creek, who would it be and why? Chuck. I would love to learn how to make wine.

What is your proudest moment so far at Willow Creek? Taking over the Adopt-a-Vine program.

What advice do you have for new hires? Never say no to learning a new position here.

And last but not least, if Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would you like to see cast as you? Kiera Knightly

Wine Cocktail Wednesday – Honey, Grab the Apples!

Wine Cocktail Wednesday: Honey, Grab the Apples!

A Widle Cock Apple wine cocktail infused with the flavors of honey and lemon.

INGREDIENTS (1 cocktail):

1 1/2 Tablespoon honey

1/2 Tablespoon hot water

2 tsp – 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice

4 oz Wilde Cock Apple wine

DIRECTIONS:

Dissolve honey in hot water. Add lemon juice and wine; stir. Fill glass with ice, pour in wine cocktail, and garnish with lemon slice!

Barbara’s Favorite Flowers: Aster

Barbara’s Favorite Flowers: Aster

This is fall blooming Aster, Symphyotrichum oblongifolium, (Aster novae anglias). It’s name comes from the greek meaning “star”, which of course the flower shape is reminiscent of. The Aster is yet another easy peasy perennial that grows wild all along my woodland, and wetland borders. As its name implies, the fall Aster blooms in fall providing a colorful and bright lavender display when other flowering plants have run out of steam. They say it needs well-drained soil, but from my personal experience it’s not picky at all, and grows just about anywhere. You can use this in a formal border or a wild garden. It’s a real bonus when there is not much flowering in the garden! So plant and enjoy it!

Jenny M

Friday Feature: Jenny Moore

How long have you been working at Willow Creek? 15 months

What is your position? Hostess and Greeter

What is your favorite part of the Willow Creek Family? The dedication to the success of WC and the camaraderie

What do you hope to achieve within the company? Long term relationship and part of the team, doing what I love: Greeting guests with a smile and getting them started on their WC experience.

What is your favorite wine? Prestige Gold

If you could switch jobs with anyone at Willow Creek, who would it be an why? Wouldn’t want to switch with anyone!

What is your proudest moment so far at Willow Creek? Nothing in particular, just proud to be associated with this beautiful place.

What advice do you have for new hires? Watch and learn from senior employees, ask questions, always always be pleasant and helpful to guests, never let ’em see you sweat.

And last but not least, if Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would your like to see cast as you? Jennifer Aniston

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