Time after time . . .

Ken Hatch, Kemper Freeman, Jan-Patrick Schmitz, Cathi

Last week, Ken and I were invited to a small private dinner by Kemper Freeman at the Westin Bellevue hosted by Montblanc.  Whenever I have thought of Montblanc in the past, I have always thought of beautiful pens.  Now I know the breadth and depth of Montblanc means so much more; star shaped diamonds, sunglasses, exquisite leather goods and truly the most beautiful handcrafted watches in the world.

Irene Retel, Betty Freeman, Jeri Jensen

I was fascinated to learn so much about these very special watches along with other friends attending, Karen & Chuck Lytle, Joan & Bob Wallace, Patty Edwards, Jeri & Jim Jensen , and of course Betty & Kemper Freeman.  We also had the opportunity to meet the Montblanc management team including US CEO and President, Jan-Patrick Schmitz, Vice President of Retail, Mike Giannattasio, Bellevue Square Montblanc Boutique Manager, Irene Retel and Belinda Mayo, who heads the Marketing division.  I was also surprised to learn that Montblanc has been a tenant of Bellevue Square for over the past 12 years.

Cathi & Patty Edwards

Watches were displayed ranging from $10,000 to $275,000.  After cocktails and the chance to drool over the watches and the hors d'oeuvres, we were treated to a lecture and slide show where we learned about the history of Montblanc and its unswerving commitment to quality.  An interesting fact that I heard was that the Montblanc Villeret luxury watch division employs 40 fulltime master craftsmen watchmakers and that they produce only 250 watches per year!  Each watch in this division is an extremely limited edition.  Some of the watches are one of a kind, some are eight of a kind and the largest production is 54 of the same watch style.

Chuck Lytle & Cathi

We were then treated to a lovely dinner accompanied by Pacific Northwest wines.  Though every course was delicious, for me the stand out on the menu was the salad which was young field greens with shaved fennel, asiago cheese and grape tomatoes in a perfectly balanced white balsamic vinaigrette.  My only regret that evening was that because it began snowing very heavily and the snow was sticking to the ground, we left before dessert was served.  I'm sure that the "rustic apple tart with caramelized Granny Smith apples baked with almond cream in a buttery crust" could well have been my favorite.

If Ken asks you what I want for Valentine's Day, let him know to look at a beautiful rose gold Nicolas Rieussec.  Time after time . . .