{Event Showcase} Dine in the Vines 40th Birthday Party

Recently, my husband and I celebrated our 40th birthday ... twice.  Once with a few close friends, then with family.  Below are highlights from the first party hosted at Pearmund Cellars, an award-winning Northern Virginia winery, where we sampled outstanding wine and enjoyed a relaxing dinner. 

I had a custom crossword puzzle created (by LoveSmartDesign) for guests to complete when they arrived.  They were stumped by a few clues but for the most part, our friends know us well!

Then, we had a wine tasting!  My new favorite white wine is Petit Manseng but most of our guests preferred red wine choosing Cabernet Franc or Ameritage.

The Barrel Room is quite impressive and an ideal spot for dinner.   To enhance the existing table, white linens and gold Chivari chairs, I rented purple table runners and napkins from Select Event Rentals and further embellished with bud vases of purplish-pinkish blue hydrangeas (from my garden!) and made cork place cards.

The napkin fold is called "Bird of Paradise".  Its an easy napkin fold and looks really nice.

And finally, we ate!  The menu, prepared by Fusions Cuisine, included:

Passed Hors d'oeuvres

Compressed Watermelon and Seared Sea Scallops

Minted Melon Balls with Mint Julip Pipette

Fruit and Cheese Skewers

Dinner Buffet

Hardwood Grilled Chicken Quarters

Short Smoked Salmon

Quinoa Salad

Tri Color Rotini

Grilled Asparagus

Poached New Potatoes

Dessert

Strawberry Shortcakes!

Last but not least, we enjoyed live music throughout the evening.  Damon Lomison, a regular performer at Pearmund Cellars, entertained us with his guitar, singing four decades of familiar rock tunes as well as the "Happy Birthday" song. 

Between the wine, food and David's music, we were pretty relaxed and definitely had a lot of fun!