Ho Ho Ho

The holiday season is rolling. The shelves are stocked(more or less) and the folks are out and motivated. Here is the list of 2010 holiday front runners:

The Jesus Toaster - 29.99  is the clear and early front runner.
It's only fitting, I think, in this season named after him.

The Head Massager - 4.99 is definitely a contender .
Last year this was last year's winner.

The Nespresso espresso/coffee maker - 199.00
is the most coveted item this year.

Finally it's a toss-up between the Buddha Board - 39.99


and...

The fondue set 44.99

Are You You Ready For The Second Toasting?

When we got the Peace Toaster I thought that we were pretty cool. Then we got the Hemp Leaf Toaster and I said "Wow, how edgy." I was even surprised, although I'm not sure why, we do live in Vermont after all, when the target market turned out to be moms buying them for their kids. Fantastic right?

I was feeling especially good about it too, because the company who brought these two funky items to market were local entrepreneurs from The Kingdom.  Owen and Ian, two great guys, who make Ben & Jerry look like a pair of of corporate suits, came in to pitch the toasters to me. The whole staff loved the idea right away so we bought our first dozen. I asked the guys for 12 Peace toasters. It was back to school time and I thought that the kids would really dig them since toasters are one of the few appliances allowed in the dorm rooms.

A couple of days later the toasters arrived, delivered by hand I might add. As I was pricing them I realized they had shipped me 9 Peace Toasters and 3 Hemp Leaf Toasters. Oh no I was thinking, how am I going to pull this off. Folks can get pretty touchy about this stuff and I am in the customer service business not the political statement business. So, I decided to tuck the pot leaf downstairs in a display in the home office / school department. Well, in about two days I was on the phone to Ian to get more leaves. Ian was not at all surprised.

It turned out however, that the men from Danville had one more ace up their sleeves. You may have seen it in seven days, you may have heard about it on VPR you might have even learned about it on FOX News(on second thought probably not). Well here it is and the folks are loving it. Holy smokes Batman it's Jesus Toast.

I have only one thing to add to this.  

There are only 65 days left until Christmas!

Coming Up For Air!

    The students are back with a vengeance. It has been non-stop here at Homeport. If you've done any driving downtown then you know what I'm talking about. Nowhere to park, the restaurants are packed with a wait, and no one on the roads has a clue where they are going.
    Well you can relax and reclaim your city. The kids are ensconced and they won't pop their studious little heads up again until parent's weekend and then not again until the holidays. If you're curious what catches the eye of the students these days here's the short-list. :

1. Duck Shower Curtain
2. Shower Caddies
3. Peace Toaster
4. Indian Hand Printed Tapestries
5. Portable Canvas Closet 

Sidewalk Sale

Sidewalk Sale is in full swing. Tomorrow is the last day to take advantage of this great Church Street tradition. All up and down the pedestrian mall merchants are outside showing off their stuff and breaking out some terrific bargains. For our part we've got shower curtains at $9.88, basic wine glasses at $3.48 a pair as well as heavy duty coir doormats for $9.88 just to point out a few.

It's a fantastic excuse for a nice walk in the sunshine!

Whoop-Ass Steak Sauce

Every once-in-a-while one of my snooty preconceived notions gets thrown right back in my smug face; or, as in this case my mouth. When I saw the Whoop-Ass line of sauces and marinades I thought it was just a gimmicky, somewhat "cheesy" sauce line geared towards the gift market focused all on form and devoid of function.

Jalapeno Steak Sauce

After all, the clunky box packaging slash western outfit, the cartoon cowboy faces, and the tacky plastic cowboy hat, even the name ...really ... I mean come on!
Well, we have been selling bunches of this stuff for years now with me scoffing all the while.
I really am a food snob you can ask anyone. I love to cook, I am especially concerned with subtleties of flavor. I have a fairly discerning palette, I have traveled to France and Italy where food is everything etcetera, etcetera, etcetera

So, the other day the store manager, Beth,  gives me a bottle because the cowboy's chapeau has gone missing. Apparently they don't sell if their little outfits aren't just so. I have 8 people living in my house and as a result I never say no to free anything; besides their ravenous appetites and plebeian tastes won't care at all. That evening I grilled up some nice steak. In my opinion well prepared beef shouldn't require anything after it has been served; however, curious I splashed a little on my plate just to see what passed for flavor among the "great unwashed". As I sure you have surmised by now I found the  Whoop-Ass Jalapeno Steak Sauce to be quite delicious. It was not unlike the British steak sauce HP (not to be confused with the American version with the same name). It has a slight hint of citrus and the unmistakable flavor of jalapeno without being too spicy. So if you love great food I really recommend that you give it a try.

How Sharp Are You?

   I have just finished revamping our knife section and it got me thinking about how rarely I see really good home cooks using decent cutlery. I am talking about friends and relatives who really love to cook and and take great pride in their skills and are able to put the proof in their puddings.
   Yet there they are laboring away with tools that should be embarrassed to be in the service of such fine workmanship. So...this gives me the idea, next time I am invited to the home of one of my favorite cooks, I am going to skip the wine and flowers and instead bring a gift that not only will endure but that can turn a chore into a real pleasure, ...oh yes and hopefully get me invited back.
   If you have ever used a really fine knife then you know exactly what I'm talking about. There is nothing like slicing veggies with a really sharp  Wusthof 8" Cooks Knife. Last Thanksgiving my dad got me a 12" carving knife from "Chef's Choice" This is a great knife at a great price. Chef's choice is now making their knives right here in the United States. They use the German methods of fine cutlery making and for the moment they are one of our best value propositions.
   Far and away our most exciting new line is Kikuichi. This group of knives is definitely on the pricey side and is only for those of us who are really into the art of cooking. However, setting aside the craftsmanship only found in a family that has been producing sword grade steel for 700 hundred years, these pieces are truly works of art. Worth their price simply for their beauty, these kitchen tools can really make the experience of preparing a fine meal a joy from the start.

Jazzfest is going on right in front of Homeport

 Well, It's been pretty busy around here. The short-list is as follows:

1. Jazzfest is going on right now.  There is lots of free music to hear all over the Marketplace. You should make it  a point to come downtown and enjoy some of it. 
2. We have officially launched our online gift registry. Couples can create and manage their own registries on line and their guests can shop from anywhere whether they plan to attend the event or not.
3. Believe it or not the back-to-school action has begun. Students living off campus are signing leases and are beginning to outfit their apartments with cool decor from Homeport. 
4. The fruits of our spring buying are starting to sprout on to the shelves and on to the floor. So, there is a lot of fresh new merchandise to look at. 

All-in-all it's a very good time to be on Church Street the cafes are all out and when the sun is shining the is no better place to enjoy a day. When you do come down we sure hope that you'll stop in and say hi.