Happy (Belated) Summerween

I was surprised that I had never posted about Summerween before.  I felt like it had been around relatively long, as it's come up a bunch of times during my blog-material searches over the years, but I never gave it much more thought than that.  I think I was of the school of thought that celebrating Halloween outside of the traditional time frame was just not something I'd want to do.  That it somehow seemed irreverent (I'm extremely uptight).

Then a good friend of mine asked me if I wanted to do a Summerween cookout.  My first instinct was that she was putting me on.  She informed me of the origins of the odd informal cultural holiday.  Back in 2012, an animated series called Gravity Falls once had an episode that dealt with a town that loved Halloween so much it celebrated it twice a year.  The summer varietal of the holiday took place on June 22, and it was celebrated with jack-o'-melons, costumes, trick or treating, and loads of candy.

I agreed to a low-key version (no carved watermelons), but plenty of cocktails, mummy hotdogs, Halloween tunes, and a visit from a Witch.  As the haze from the Canadian forest fires began to clear in this region, we (uncomfortably) added our own smokey fog with a fire pit and way too many smoke bombs.  We were a month late, but it was a nice little party and a cool reminder that the real Halloween is getting ridiculously close.

Click here to watch the episode that started it all.

Here are some of our pics...

Now Playing: I've Got My Love To Keep Me Warm

A really great remix of an old classic.

Click below...

And click here for the song on youtube.

Weekend Libations

At Noir Dark Spirits...

Graverobber Unholy Rye Whiskey

It's baaaack! Friday, September 13 will mark the resurrection of Graverobber Unholy Rye Whiskey (750ml, 80 proof, $34.99), a wickedly delicious spirit crafted with maple syrup tapped from mature maple trees grown amid a colonial era graveyard on New Hampshire's Great Hill Farm — right down the road from Tamworth Distilling.

Revived due to popular demand just in time for Halloween, the sinister sipper is now available in a larger and scarier bottle – year-round! Previously, it was a limited-edition annual release hand-bottled at 200 ml and sold out quickly every year. Tamworth Distilling, known for its innovations and unique flavor inspirations, refined and upgraded processes to bring this highly sought after whiskey to a bigger audience.

Brave imbibers are encouraged to order a bottle if they dare…. Graverobber Unholy Rye is available now  for pre-sale, and will be on shelves in New Hampshire state liquor stores soon after. 

Click here for their site.

Party City

Had a nice day of Halloweening.  Started out with some pumpkin spice coffee on the road and ended up at a Party City which was fully decked out for the season.  Ended the day at a cozy place in Lambertville, NJ...

Noir Dark Spirits

Back in February 2023 I blogged about a Scranton, Pennsylvania bar/restaurant called Noir Dark Spirits.  The gothic atmosphere looked to be off the charts.  Since that blog post, Noir moved to a new and larger location.  On Saturday we took a road trip to see if something called Noir Dark Spirits could live up to all the expectations we placed upon it.

It did.

Located in the old lobby area of the historic Ritz movie theater, the bar appeared to be one of those places you'd see in a movie or an old 90's series about vampires - one of those places you'd wish were a real thing.  A real gothic vampire bar.  Something with gloomy red lighting and long dark shadows wherever you looked.  There were alcove booths along the wall, each table with a metal plaque in the center listing one of the seven deadly sins (our table was Pride). 

We ordered our first round of drinks:  The Emperor for me (their version of an Old Fashioned [with a flaming sugar cube]) and for Jenna - The Confessional.  The friendly server informed her that the drink would be served in a small black confessional box.  Upon its arrival, we were told, Jenna would have to confess a sin.  The cocktail arrived in a tiny gothic church-shaped box, glowing red from an LED tea light.  The beautiful drink was bubbling with the help of some dry ice.  The presentation was flawless and hilarious.  

A sin was confessed.

We ordered some more drinks and some eats:  the Devil's Board (a really tasty charcuterie board) and the Phlebotomist Dough Injections (dough skulls stuffed with three cheeses and served with syringes poked through the eyes...syringes filled with marinara diavlo).  The second round of drinks arrived, and you could spot Jenna's from across the bar.  Called The Re-Animator, it was glowing green from a tiny glowstick hoop and bubbling frantically like a potion Grandpa Munster would make Herman drink.  

For dessert - a delicious raspberry cheesecake skull, with a thick outer layer of hardened white chocolate.  It came with a metal mallet...  so you can bash your dessert's head in.  

Despite the theatricality of the cocktails and food, they were actually quite good.  Everything was.  I think I was a little worried it would be style over substance in there.  Every aspect of our visit was a blast, and the best way I could describe it would be that it's like having the option to attend a really hip Halloween party literally whenever you chose to do so.  The mood, the atmosphere, and especially the music, make Noir Dark Spirits a really special place.  We wish it were closer than a couple hours away, but I have a feeling we'll be having this particular Halloween bash about two or three times a year.  It really was that good.

Below are some photos Jenna took, and definitely CLICK HERE to see some more images and a couple of neat videos over at her Instagram.

Click here for their website.

Williams Sonoma Halloween 2024

Some really nice stuff this year (not really looking at the prices... just window shopping).

More items here.