A Little Grumpy~Favorite Fridays

We are getting closer and closer to moving day.  In just three weeks the moving truck will pull up outside our house and pack our memories up in a whirlwind of bubble wrap and newspaper.  

It seems like I just started my Favorite Fridays post, which details the things that I will miss about this Madison suburb in which we have lived for the past decade-plus.  

But time continues to tick by, and soon we will be settling into our home out west. Before we go, I have a few other "favorite things" to chronicle about the Mount Horeb, WI area;
The Grumpy Troll, New Glarus Brewery, Botham Vineyards, and Wollersheim Winery.  

These four destinations, all close to, if not in the center of, Mount Horeb have become favorites of my family.  Their uniqueness, quality of product, and memories that they've brought to us are unmatched.  Whenever we have out of town guests, you can rest assured that we will bring them to at least one of those stellar places, if not more.

While The Grumpy Troll may be a microbrewery, with my favorite brew being the Spetnaz, my favorite thing there is the Grump Chips.  All of the food, actually, at the Grump is, is out of this world.  As a rule, , when Jeff worked on the road, I would call in our take out orders and he could pick it up on his way home.  They recently added a gourmet pizza parlor upstairs, and as good as that is, I'd choose to eat downstairs any day of the week.  

We made up the game "Evie Trivia" when we were there once...they have trivial pursuit cards on the table, and we'd draw the card out and make up our own questions..."Who calls Evie Jo 'Sunshine'?"  She'd say, "Grandpa Dick."  "Correct!"

New Glarus Brewery is perched atop a hill on the outskirts of the Swiss town of New Glarus, WI.  Being in New Glarus, or at the brewery is like being transported to  a little town in Switzerland.  As a matter of fact, the weekned that we move is the celebrated Polkafest in New Glarus...one of our favorite events.  

The most popular of all New Glarus brews is Spotted Cow...however my favorite is Moon Man.  Moon Man, in my opinion, puts Blue Moon to shame.  

The brewery, which recently completed a rebuild, is worth a trip in and of itself...often hosting live music, and always worth the cost to "taste."

Wollersheim, I'll admit, is somewhere that I haven't been lately; but after THEIR reconstruction, I found that I could enjoy time on the terrace, with Prairie Fume and some cheese, while Evie played quite contentedly in a sandbox just next to our table!  I recall it being one of my most hopeful days of her young life, because her sensory issues were at their height and I rarely could relax for even a half hour without having to keep her entertained.  Put her in a sandbox, however, and she could play for an hour without complaint.

Finally, Botham; much smaller in distribution than Wollersheim, but actually more my style.  We have enjoyed concerts in the barn on brisk fall days, warm days overlooking the rolling hills of the countryside on the terrace, and personalized Evie-Jo shows on the stage when live music wasn't available.  

My favorite of the Bothem wines?  Probably the Finis or the Riesling. 

I plan to pick up a few bottles for mom and I to enjoy each night as we road trip out to Nevada.  I'm hoping that Norm and Rita will ship us some bottles as birthday or Christmas gifts too.  *hint, hint*

My Cup Lifted, the name of this blog, originated from my love of wine, and my love of the life with which  God has blessed me.  I lift my glass to Him, to this beautiful town, and to all our friends and family say proudly, as the Hefty family has taught me:

Gsundheit!