Wassailfest

One of the benefits of living in the little town of New Braunfels is the strong community spirit. It seems that there is a 'fest for nearly every occasion. 4th of July and Fair days are only the beginning. There is the Metalfest, the Texas Clayfest, the winefest, the Gruenefest, and the famous Wurstfest, just to name a few. There is hardly a weekend that passes without some sort of celebration or another. Last week we were introduced to the Wassailfest.

Wassail, that warm, spicy, citrusy concoction of deep aromas and deeper tastes flows freely around the center of town. Admittedly, my first introduction to wassail was when Stacy and I shared Christmas together. Since then, Stacy and I have developed a definition of wassail that we strive to achieve each year. It seems that all of our preparation has led us to this exact point in our lives. We were to participate as judges. OK, we would judge along with the rest of the town, but we still got a ballot and a vote. And our accumulated expertise had influence.

Every year New Braunfels closes down about 6 blocks of the downtown area including the brilliantly lit traffic circle in the middle of town. Most of the stores stay open late and hold a wassail tasting near the back of the store. The public get free wassail and the stores get people in the doors to see what they sell. There were 47 different wassails to taste this year, each with a different sponsor. People wandered the streets walking from shop to shop sampling all the variations of this warm little beverage while being exposed to Main Street shops.

In addition to the main event of tasting wassail at every turn, there were school bands, singing groups, puppet shows, and other entertainment spread around the streets. The band stand in the middle of the traffic circle was scene of a constant round robin of elementary school choirs, brass bands, and other small town celebrity. Despite the definite German inspiration of the Wassailfest, just to remind us all that we were still in Texas, there was a food kiosk selling chili and tamales.

At one point standing in line to adjudicate another entry into the competition I thought about my favorite Christmas movie and how I was currently living out one of the scenes. At the beginning of A Christmas Story, Ralphie and his family all go downtown to participate in the city festival. Everybody is bundled up and staring in the storefront windows. All the cheeks are rosy and everybody is as happy as can be. And right here in New Braunfels, in our little downtown area, my family and I got to experience the same thing. There was even a little chill in the air that prompted us to wear jackets just to add to the atmosphere of the evening.

At the end of the evening, on the walk back to the car, Alayna proclaimed that we should put this event on next year's calendar and make sure we return. Cavell was very upset that he was no longer allowed to sit on my shoulders and pour hot drinks down my neck. And I in my kerchief, and Ma in her cap, went home to settle in for a long winter's nap. Christmas has arrived in Texas.