Tag: Canadian

Uncategorized, Wedding Bartender

Three Day Wedding Event at the Galvan Estate

shakennotstirredinla
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Father walks bride to her wedding at the Galvan Estate

Last weekend I provided bartending services for three days at the Galvan Estate in Palm Springs. I arrived on Thursday night to bartend the rehearsal dinner, showed up again Friday for the wedding, and then wound up the weekend bartending the pool party on Saturday. It was my third time doing an event at the beautiful Galvan estate.

The hosts of the wedding were from Winnipeg, Canada, and most of the guests had either flown in or driven from there. They say it a 33 hour drive from Palm Springs to Winnipeg. Westjet offers direct flights to Palm Springs from various destinations in Canada. As I am learning, Palm Springs is a favorite destination for Canadians. One of the guests at this event flew all the way from Thailand.

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Guests mingle in bar area

The rehearsal dinner was a breeze and I served a lot of red and white wine, beer, and simple mixed drinks. The next day for the wedding, I brought in an extra helper. We made two signature drinks for the arriving wedding guests. So I made 40 drinks in about fifteen minutes before the ceremony. Later we prepared just as many glasses of champagne for the toast. Everything was smooth sailing from then on.

Galvan Estate Wedding

  • Heated pool
  • Large wet bar outside
  • Another bar inside
  • Large area for ceremony
  • Big outside dining area
  • Gas barbecue grill

For the pool party we had a keg, and I served blended margaritas. It was a very nice crowd to serve for three days, and everybody seemed to have a good time. I had another wedding going on in Lake View Terrace that night, and I send another bartender to do that one. Once the pool party was over I drove back to LA and stopped by that wedding to help out a bit.

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Groom and groomsmen share cigars

This weekend I am returning to Palm Springs to bartend an all day pool party. I have events coming up later this month in Westwood, Brentwood, and Stevenson Ranch. Please follow Shaken Not Stirred on Instagram.

Wedding Bartender

Palm Springs Wedding Canadian Style

shakennotstirredinla
Father walks bride down the aisle
Father walks bride down the aisle

Friday, Shaken Not Stirred was the chosen bartending service in Palm Springs at a wedding reception where the bride and groom were from Canada, as were all of their guests.  The wedding participants and guests were all happy to have a brief reprieve of the brutal cold of Calgary, Alberta. I know what that is like, growing up in Wyoming. Especially, in March, when you live up north, any escape from the cold weather is certainly something to look forward to.

I learned something new as I bartended this wedding. Virtually every person who ordered a drink, ordered it as a “press”.  A press, in bar terminology means with water added. I was serving Canadian Club, and people would say, “I’ll have a rye and coke press,” In American English, that means a whiskey and coke with water. The Canadians want more water than coke added. The same goes for vodka drinks – a screwdriver, for instance, is also ordered as a press.

I told some of the guests that Americans would never go for this. They would send their drinks back as “watered down.” The Canadian wedding guests told me it is a sure fire way to avoid hangovers. I don’t know about that, but it can’t hurt. It was a hot March day in Palm springs, so I think the Canadians got their money’s worth of warm weather by coming to Southern California.

Make that a "press"
Make that a “press”

There was a photographer, Alan Gough at the party who is also originally from Canada. I wasn’t to mention him, because I think his service was outstanding. He shot pictures the entire day at the wedding, then quickly edited the pictures and put on a slide show, complete with music at the end of the event. No waiting around for weeks with this guy for edited photos. The guests loved his presentation, and the photos were great. His company is called and here is a link to his website.

After I post this, I will start getting ready for a James Bond themed house warming party in Brentwood this evening. I am bringing glassware rentals to the party and will be serving real martinis. I always like real glassware for that reason. I can get all kinds of glassware for your party for roughly $1 a glass. On Monday, I am traveling back to Palm Springs to complete a special corporate project I was contracted to do.  I will be delivering 300 premade drinks to a conference at the Palm Springs Marriott.

Hurry sundown!
Hurry sundown!