Stories

Dear Friends, Happy Spring! It was gray skies that drizzled rain most of this week where I am in California. Yesterday, it felt wonderful to get outside for a hike at one of my favorite places. The week’s weather was evident from the slippery paths but more so from all the brand new, bright green…

Dear Friends, I hope this finds you safe, happy, healthy and hopefully seeing the first signs of Spring! Today is a special day. It is my brother’s birthday! My brother, Jimi, our founder, would have turned 55 years old today. And while it is bittersweet in obvious ways, it always reminds me that he lived…

Dear Friends, It is hard to believe we are already on the last day of February. March and spring are around the corner! We are very happy to see cases continuing to decline in Oregon and that counties are moving to fewer restrictions for all. After three long months of being open outdoors only, we…

Dear Friends, After our first round of snow two weeks ago, we were hopeful that winter had passed. Then the forecast for this week appeared. We had rain, sleet, and more rain with freezing temperatures all day long. Each day we watched hoping to see improvements. It is a holiday weekend and we were sold…

Dear Friends, It was a fun but busy week. I had many meetings with the team. I ate my way through the February menu. Chef Norma and our Director of Marketing, Jillian, crafted a new Valentine’s drink for you. I met with our next two Beyond Brooks partners and spent special time with Dick Crannell,…

Dear Friends, I didn’t intend for my snowy picture of Yellowstone to be a sign of the week to come in Oregon. I made the long drive up here last Monday. Tuesday morning, Heather and I walked the hill. 5 hours later there was snow falling. By mid afternoon, I encouraged the team to go…

Dear Friends, Three years ago this weekend, for my 50th birthday, I went on a National Geographic Photography Expedition in Yellowstone. It was a photographer’s heaven. We are supposed to get snow in the Willamette Valley this week. It is not quite the same as this but gets me in the mood for snow! I…

Dear Friends, Good morning from Cambria, CA. January 17th is a special day for our family. My husband, David, and my son, Ryan, share the same birthday! They will be surprised when they get up to see that the Streamer Fairy, who puts streamers on the door of the bedroom, has found her way to…

Dear Friends, As we all have experienced, COVID has upset businesses and lives across the world. Brooks was greatly impacted too, but thanks to your support of buying wine and visiting us, we have pulled through to take 2021 head-on. One of the greatest lessons I learned last year was how fragile revenue sources can…

Dear Friends, I hope you all had a restful and safe holiday season. While the year on the calendar has changed, we continue to fight the spread of the virus, our front line workers are working harder than ever and so many more people are being diagnosed with COVID. And now, the new strain of…

Dear Friends, I hope that you are enjoying the holiday season. We sure are. It was so nice to have my son home. It was great for all of us and fun to see him and his sister enjoying each other’s company. He left at 5 am this morning to return to school tomorrow. Last…

Dear Friends, I hope this finds you all healthy, safe, and enjoying the holiday season. I love this point in the holidays. We are almost out of time to shop for anything that needs to be shipped. My menu for the week is done as well as the grocery list. One more trip to the…