Cake&Whiskey Joins the Rebellion
Written By: Katie Imler, Legal Clerk at MazurKraemer
On March 19th, the Cake&Whiskey Pittsburgh Ladies held the first Gathering of 2013 at the Wigle Whiskey Distillery. Wigle Whiskey is one of six organic distilleries in the United States and one of two Rye Whiskey Distilleries. The evening kicked off with a tour of the distillery, in which we quickly learned the history of Whiskey. Did you know that Allegheny County used to produce 1/2 a barrel of whiskey for every man, woman, and child in the US in the 1800s? And, until Ben Franklin offered land in Kentucky (and other states) to get people to move there and produce whiskey (actually bourbon because it’s made with corn), most whiskey was made in Pennsylvania? Fun Facts.
Over 40 women attended the event throughout the evening. Many of the woman learned of the event through friends of friends and word of mouth. They were curious as to what Cake&Whiskey is about. And boy did they found out! The overall group was fabulous. All ages, all industries. We had women from the food, restaurants, and bar industries, teachers, lawyers, real estate developers, direct mail firms, Veterans Marketing firms, bed and breakfast owners, photographers, non-profits, and many start ups to name a few. The conversations were amazing and genuine.
After some mingling time, the women got to know each other through an icebreaker. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, the women shared three types of pictures with three new women: a picture most recently taken, a funny one, and the most meaningful picture. This got everyone talking, laughing, and sharing their photos. Afterwards, two free subscriptions to the magazine were given to the woman whose business was most recently in the news and whose birthday was closest. We then toasted to “The Sweet & Spirited World of Business” and ate lots of food! The food was delicious - steakhouse bruschetta, bourbon meatballs, meat, cheese, and olives. Plus, one of the top Pittsburgh Bakeries donated cupcakes and my mom made an incredible Chocolate Bourbon Poke Cake – many women, including myself, had 2 pieces it was so delicious!
Half way through the evening, everyone gathered around for the Hot Topic Discussion. In groups of 5-6, we discussed questions based on the Articles in the Spring Issue of in the magazine. After a couple questions, everyone switched groups and did the next set of questions with a new group. The women truly got to mix and mingle. Questions included:
- "What is behind every good man?" Of course at once everyone shouted, "A good woman!" However, the discussion was directed towards how to interact and influence men in the workplace or home environment.
- Share a time when you had to Rewrite the Rulebooks to achieve success.
- Everyone knows that hindsight is 20/20. What would you write to your third grade self?
- We all want to have our cake (and whiskey) and eat it too. What does "Having it All" mean to you?
- Every woman in this room is a mover and shaker in her own right. What is your Next Advancement? How do you chart that course to get you there?
The conversations that were flowing were incredible. It was such a blessing to hear women connecting on such a deep, real, and personal level. Breaking the groups up from their discussions was a challenge!
The next Cake&Whiskey Pittsburgh Gathering will be in June so mark your calendars! It will most likely be at Cure (one of the best restaurants in Pittsburgh, and highly rated nationwide). We’ll be doing something extra special to celebrate the summer. Marie Petriello, from Stir Society, is going to teach us on how to make the perfect cocktails! Marie’s lessons on mixology are something you won’t want to miss!
Keep up to date with what entrepreneurs and business women are doing all over the country on the Cake&Whiskey Facebook Page.
Thank you to J.Elizabeth Photography for the amazing photographs!
