It's the Holiday Season.

We have a bottle of Royal's Champagne. Or we did.
I'll have to check with H on that.  

The holiday season is upon us. Someone at work mentioned how happy they were that people were telling them Merry Christmas! at the end of phone calls instead of Happy Holidays!, which made me think of something. When has any one person said to another, Seasons Greetings! I guess that ended up as a saying corporations used in emails and newsletters to employees and clients so as not to offend their sensible natures.

At any rate, that means it's time for eggnog! Do you happen to know where the best eggnog in the world lives? Braums. That glorious thick, rich, spiced nog. One day at lunchtime I opened up my maps app and searched for that establishment. Turns out the closest one is two hours away from my house. What a disaster. So what's a Chuck to do in such a predicament?

Eggnog Taste Test. I do learn from the best, and this particular idea comes from my dad. You need to have tiny paper cups, multiple options, and most importantly, you need to make it a blind taste test.

The Setup. 

I picked 8 nogs of different brand and price value, and brought them to work for a proper sample size. Each eggnog was given a different number, people sampled the wares, and a consensus was reached.

The Results. 

Two of my coworkers had never, ever, ever had eggnog. I believe after this experiment, they have been converted. If you look closely, eggnog #2 (Anderson Erickson Classic) was the clear winner with eight out of fourteen votes (that's over 57%, which is positively presidential). If you look even closer, you'll see that one of the nogs was produced by Silk, that soymilk brand. And yes, I was laughing maniacally on the inside while everyone tried this variety. My personal favorite was undecided; I couldn't pick between #2 and #8. Both were of similar consistency, spice, and sweetness. Although, I suppose #2 did have a je ne se qua, a certain richness the others didn't. So in the end, #2 wins.

The Leftovers. 

Now that I knew which was my favorite, I didn't bloody well need eight kinds of eggnog roaming around my fridge at home. I asked people to take their favorite, then I put these two noggins in the fridge for the night crew. And they were never seen again.

Oh! I forgot to mention - I brought pretzels to have as palate cleansers in between the samples. The salt and relative cracker-ness of the snack worked incredibly well to ensure accurate tasting. These were my sorbets, if you will.

The In-Betweens. 

We were lucky enough to attend the Royals' Front Office Christmas Party this past Thursday. The event was held at a hotel near the Plaza, and it was quite lovely. There were a few speeches by the owner, general manager, and manager, followed by a buffet-style dinner.

The tablescape. 

I almost sat down at the Reserved table - turns out that's where the owner and family sit. Luckily, H noticed and directed me to an open table. I still think I could've taken a centerpiece home without anyone noticing.

Our view over the Plaza.

Just sittin' in a sleigh. 

This design was in the lower floor of the hotel. We captured this gem on our way out of the building, with no one around to stop us. As I went to sit down on the "bench", I realized this sleigh wasn't actually meant for sitting on, and had to pop a squat to get this picture. A million times worth it.

I hope every single one of you enjoy your time off from work, your family, and your friends. See you all in the new year!