Demeter the Greek Goddess of Harvest and Wine
Tomorrow we get the unique pleasure of dressing up in costumes and getting paid for it. No we are not putting on a Shakespearean play at the winery, instead we are readying ourselves for a wine themed Halloween gathering. On Saturday, October 24th from 6-8 pm we will be doling out sweet treats, pouring delicious wines, groovin’ to local «One Hum» musical ensemble and strutting our stuff in creative wine inspired garb. As an added incentive for dressed up guests we will be holding a costume contest with the winner receiving a reserve wine of their choice for only $1!
Now I typically tend to be the person scraping odds and ends out of my closet the day before Halloween attempting to piece together some semblance of a costume, but this year I put a little time in and came up with what I think is a decent attempt. Since I was guided by the necessity of association with wine I began running through the gamut in my mind; bunch of grapes, wine bottle, vine, cork . . . none seemed to fit the bill of thinking outside the box. Suddenly it dawned on me. From my classes in college I knew of the Greek god of wine, Dionysus. What about the feminine beauty of wine; where is she expressed? As with so many of the answers to questions in my life the information I yearned for was uncovered on wikipedia.
Demeter is the Greek Goddess of Harvest. However, when specifically referring to the goddess of wine, she is also known by her surname Amphictyonis. What better costume than to get to be a goddess for one evening? Her name arises from the Greek word De (meaning Earth) and Meter (meaning Mother). Therefore, she is the goddess representing the purity of the cycle of life and death. As we wind down the 2009 harvest season I can reflect on the gifts reaped from our “Earth-Mother” and understand why ancient Greeks placed such great respect and honor in those they deemed responsible for their fortunes. I am definitely looking forward to an early Halloween celebration and hope that you will join us.
Salud,
Courtney Black
