There are lots of reason we like to travel to the golden State; 1, it was our home for ten years, and 2, it’s the biggest market in the US for our Heavenly spirits products. On this occasion we had the opportunity to participate in the first ever LA Cocktail Classic, sponsored by Eat, Drink, Play, so that was more than enough reason for us to go. In order to get the most out of our trip we decided to stop in the San Francisco Bay area on the way. We were not the only ones. We soon discovered from the police lined streets as we entered the city, that someone was following us. We pulled over to see what was going on and two minutes later President Obama and his convoy drove past. I have to admit, I was a little disappointed that the special welcome wasn’t just for us. None the less, we felt plenty welcomed when we visited our distributors and some of the fine retailers who carry our products. We showed a number of products wherever we went, including La Troussepinete, the wonderful French aperitif new to America from the Vendee region. We were pleased to find out that everyone who tried it loved it as much as we do. (We learned it even goes well with Spam.) For our last night in the North, we poured a variety of Heavenly Spirits for a very appreciative crowd of consumers at K&L in Redwood City. Our thanks go out to David & Kyle for organizing that event.
After a quick presentation of La Trousse to the the Epic team, we left at mid-day on Friday, destination LAX. For the first time ever, we had a well meaning but over-zealous United check- in staff member question how we packed our bottles in relation to their new system. This guy ended up gifting himself a sample bottle of a wonderful new coffee flavored liqueur, produced in Northern California, called “FIRELIT.” As disappointing as this loss was, we were lucky enough to come into a replacement bottle later that evening at the LA Cocktail Classic, via Eric at the Bock table next to ours . Held at the Vibiana, a former cathedral located in Down Town Los Angeles, the Cocktail Classic tasting was indeed a class event. We had a perfect location for our table outside on the well lit patio, plus we had the pleasure of Lanee Lee Neil @wanderlushdiary, a talented LA lifestyle writer/blogger helping us pour. The temperature was perfect, the music was good and all the attendees looked like movie stars. It’s an event we thoroughly enjoyed and would like to do again next year. See our gallery for more photos and see this link for more info: (http://www.thrillist.com/bars/los-angeles/ca/90012/downtown-/la-cocktail-classic_bars_cheap-drinks_great-cocktails_events).