Priory Banquet Staff on Television Next Week

Our Priory Grand Hall banquet management team will be featured on the "Consumer Sense" program on Tuesday, October 11th. The show airs at 7:30 p.m. on PCNC, the Pittsburgh Cable News Channel, from 7:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. PCNC is Channel 35 on Comcast and Channel 9 on Verizon here in Pittsburgh. The show is hosted by Duquesne University marketing professor Audrey Guskey, who is really delightful and who made our staffers feel comfortable while being interviewed for television. Look for our Grand Hall GM Walter Czapliewicz, Heather McDowell, our wedding sales specialist, and Gene Lucente, who does our corporate sales. Tune in on Tuesday! And if you miss it, keep your eyes opened for repeats.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Consumer-Sense/134373836641990?sk=wall

Consumer Sense

Consumer $en$e helps consumers save time and money while getting the inside scoop on consumer trends and marketing tricks. Explore DRAUDREYGUSKEY.COM for consumer reports on a broad range of topics, and don’t forget to tune in to ¢on$umer $en$e on PCNC!

Winter White Wedding Giveaway Coverage

I was recently on KDKA TV's Pittsburgh Live television program to discuss our Winter White Wedding giveaway to a military member who had served in Iraq or Afghanistan. The contest, now in its fourth year, gives away a full wedding reception completely free of charge. The winner is drawn at random from among couples who have submitted an application. The criteria only are that one member of the couple be from the seven county Pittsburgh region and that one member of the couple served in Iraq or Afghanistan as a member of a branch of the military.

You can see the interview here.

Our winners for 2011-12 were Brian Collins and Heather Shearer. Brian, a former Marine sergeant, had served in Iraq.

Night for Tassy II Report

We recently hosted "A Night for Tassy II," a fundraiser to assist in bringing to young Haitian children to Pittsburgh for much needed surgery and medical care. The original Night for Tassy was held last year, and raised funds to bring Tassy Filsaime, a 19 year old from Haiti who was suffering from a massive tumor on his mouth, to Pittsburgh. He had a successful surgery at Allegheny General Hospital here on the North Side and is now attending school here in the Pittsburgh area. The Night for Tassy II was a rousing success, raising more than $20,000 to bring two young children to Pittsburgh from Port au Prince.

Above, from the left, are Priory co-owner Suzanne Graf, former Survivor star and event organizer Ian Rosenberger, Sally Wiggin of WTAE TV, me, Randy Baumann of the WDVE morning show, and Tassy Filsaime.

For a WTAE TV story on the event, click here.

The event was sponsored by Team Tassy, an ad hoc organization founded by Rosenberger and a group of friends, which is dedicated to providing medical aid to individual youths in Haiti, with the goal of using medical care to leverage assisting the whole family. For more information, or to donate, point your browser to www.teamtassy.org.

Toonseum to Expand

The Toonseum, downtown, is expanding as of November. The Toonseum is a museum located on Liberty Avenue in the Cultural District dedicated to the art of cartoons and comics. Founded in 2007, it moved to its storefront location in 2009. The Toonseum is expanding due to growing interest in its offerings, sparked in part by increased development downtown. The Toonseum is a little gem of an attraction located not far from the Priory, and is well worth a look.

Here is a Post-Gazette story on the expansion of the Toonseum.

Head of the Ohio is October 1!

The Head of the Ohio crew race, which is always held the first Saturday in October, takes place this Saturday, October 1. Races start at about 8:00 a.m. and will continue throughout the day. This is a great fall event, and really showcases the beauty of the sport and the conditioning of these athletes. Rowers of all classifications compete, from "Masters" who are well into late adulthood, to Juniors who are just in eighth grade. The event takes place on Washington's Landing, overlooking the Allegheny River, which is only a mile or so from the Priory. It's an easy walk or bike ride. You will need to park by the Heinz Loft apartments and take a shuttle, as Washington's Landing is an island with limited parking and ingress/ egress.

The event is sponsored and run by the Three Rivers Rowing Association.

If you're curious, stop by and check it out. It's a great day out!

Post Deutschtown House Tour Wine Sampling

The Historic Deutschtown House Tour launches this Sunday at 11:00 a.m. from the Priory's courtyard. After the tasting, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., come back to the courtyard for our special wine sampling courtesy of our hotel's Monk's Bar.

We'll be pouring flights (three ounce servings) of your choice of four of six of our favorite wines from our monthly Priory wine tastings in our peaceful courtyard. The cost is $15.00 per flight. We will also be serving a full bar from the Monks’ Bar, and light food will be available.

Date: Sunday, September 25, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. The Monks’ Bar will be open from 3:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. as well.

None of the wines we are serving are available in state Wine & Spirits stores. Se Selections for Sunday's sampling are:

Winemakers 45 RPM (Paso Robles 2009): This wine was featured by the winemaker himself, Ross Outon. Ross was the winner of PBS’s inaugural season of “The Winemakers,” a television program which pits aspiring winemakers of a variety of backgrounds in a series of “Top Chef” type competitions. The winner is awarded the chance to create and bottle the wine of his or her choice. The result of season one was Ross’s “45 RPM,” a blend of grenache, petit syrah, zinfandel and mourvedre grapes. Upon drinking, one picks up cherry, vanilla, licorice and black pepper on the nose. Medium bodied and fruit forward, the middle part of the wine shows cherry and other soft red fruit. With subtle tannins, this is an easy drinking wine. It is not available at all in Pennsylvania; we had to special order it for the tasting.

Altura 1024 Cabernet Sauvignon (Mendoza, Argentina 2007): This is a medium-bodied, easy-drinking Cab with a very with a bold thrust of plum and blackberry fruit flavor, followed by a slight note of acidity upon the finish.

James Mitchell Cabernet (Lodi 2009): Robust and flavorful, and with a touch of oak, this meaty Cab is all about lush fruit – black cherry, black currant and spice notes.

Kunde Sauvignon Blanc (Sonoma 2009): 91% Sauv Blanc, 6% Semillon, and 3% Vignonier, the blending grapes of this wine add subtle complexities and body. The main body of the Sauvignon Blanc features grapefruit, pineapple and a hint of Mexican guava.

Hahn GSM (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre blend) (Central Valley 2009): This deep hued blend opens with intense aromas of dark fruit and berries, vanilla and cloves. Flavors of black cherry cola, blackberry, fig and pepper are supported by a refreshing acidity and structured tannins.

Hahn Pinot Gris (Monterey 2009): Full bodied and rich, this wine is pale straw colored and crystal clear. It offers waves of Bosc pear, green apple and Jamaican banana on the nose.

We hope that you can make it!

Alfresco Wine Tasting - Jack London Explores Four Continents

Please join us on Thursday, August 18th from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. for an Alfresco Wine Tasting - Jack London Explores Four Continents - in The Courtyard at The Priory, with wine host Reid Vogel from Capital Wine & Spirits. Enjoy four wines from all over the world.

La Marca Prosecco, Italy

Conquista Torrontes, Argentina

Aramis Shiraz/Cabernet, Australia

Kenwood Jack London Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma

Wines will be paired with a light hors d'oeuvres from Priory Executive Chefs Mike Henney and Pete Philipy.

Tickets are $50. To purchase, contact Gene Lucente at 412.323.9394 or gene@thepriory.com, or visit The Priory Website. Call for information on our overnight package too!