Due to the inclement weather and the progress that we had made on two seasonal brews, I was given Friday and Saturday off.

I decided to go to Stowe. Most of the snowfall had finished and Samantha drove up from Boston. We rented a cabin and skied heavily that weekend. I could see something different in Samantha's eyes. She was maturing by the day it seemed into a beautiful Irish woman.

Up at the top of the slopes, I made a proposal; literally. I had gone to Zayas Jewelers and purchased a small diamond in an antique setting. It was actually an antique piece that someone had upgraded to another setting. I was able to get a 1 and 1/4 carat diamond in an antique setting for under $3000. At the top of the mountain, I expressed my desire for Samantha to be my wife.

She excitedly accepted, and we talked all weekend about an appropriate date. I proposed that we have a fall wedding in either this fall or the following. The following was probably going to work out better as I was committed to Chateau Montelena for a harvest season. Even the following summer would work if we didn't want to wait, but fall was each of our favourite seasons.

We laid by the fire that evening and talked about honeymoon destinations. Since we both liked winter and winter sports, we talked about the Swiss Alps, Whistler, Canada, and other remote places for a winter destination. I had never been to Switzerland, or even Europe for that matter, but a trip abroad seemed appropriate.

As the flames burned with crackling and popping, we talked until the "wee hours" of the morning. We would sleep in front of the fireplace, as we had done so many times. At dusk, I took a short car ride to the grocery store. I got some eggs, bacon, milk, and English muffins. I made coffee and breakfast and woke Samantha up around 6:45 AM. It was Sunday, and I was ready to hit the slopes with her again to reconvene and remember the exact place where I had proposed the nite before.

As she gazed in my eyes over a sip of coffee; I could tell that she was burning with a desire to marry me. And at that very moment, it was the only thing that mattered.