Almost on the NFL Progressive, Kittens in the Casino, Tax Time Coming, More

Our Penny Progressive Jackpot hit last night at $76,304!!  This handsome year-end bonus went to a local who asked that we not use his name or picture today and we always respect such requests. He sure was a happy camper and he would have looked great in a picture! Hint to all CVI winners who play using your INN Club card: Check the article below about requesting a 2014 "Win/Loss" statement!!

Is It a Sports Car, a Jet Fighter or a Video Slot? You tell us: The adjustable seat glides forward or back for operator comfort. The communications volume is easily adjustable on the speakers embedded at ear level in the upper back portion of your seat. The rumble (vibration) adjusts to suit your comfort level. And the heads-up display adjusts all the way from straight flat to 3-D. Check back next week for the answer!

We've been adding slots to our floor on a regular basis and some of the new themes have animation and video that are . . .  well, just too cute not to share. The short video above is just a sampling of the scenes from one of our OMG! Kittens slots. 

End of Year Tax Time Looming: We know that our customers are starting to work on (or at least plan for or our worry about) their 2014 tax returns because we've been getting requests for 2014 "Win/Loss" statements. If you will need such a report from us, you might want to download the request form now and get the completed form to us. We'll send you the information we have on file and you can put it with your tax papers so you'll have it when the time comes to do your return . . . which for many of us probably won't be until early April despite all of our good intentions!! Simply click here, download the form, print it, and get the required information back to us.

Happy New Year!

• If you're reading this on Wednesday, here's a quick recap of what's happening on New Year's Eve at the Carson Valley Inn: INN Club members earned 4X points today from 4 AM to 4 PM. The Blues Monsters entertain tonight in the cabaret lounge – free of course – from 9 PM to 1 AM. And if you make it to midnight, we'll have an ample supply of hats, noisemakers and a champagne toast!
• If you are reading this after New Year's Eve, that means it's January and our $50,000 Progressive Giveaways Promotion has started. We are also giving away free 8-packs of Pepsi or Diet Pepsi on Tuesdays and we've added some new pizzazz to the Wednesday Ladies' Nights including a weekly ladies-only slot tournament! 

CV Steak Specials: While the regular menu in CV Steak certainly has something for everyone, we do offer specials that have become quite popular. If you check this blog regularly, you know that every Friday night we feature a Game On special. To help you plan, here are the specials for the next few Fridays. Remember, these are all served with tableside-tossed salad, vegetable and your choice of potato - au gratin, baked, or a one-pound, twice-baked potato:

January 2 - Braised Buffalo Short Ribs: one and a half pounds of American Bison short ribs braised and slow-cooked, finished with natural pan sauce. $29.00

January 9 - Grilled Elk Medallions: two 3 oz. elk tenderloin medallions grilled and finished with demi and sundried cherries. Chef does not recommend cooking temps over medium. $29.00

January 16 - Roasted Stuffed Quail:  with prosciutto, wild rice and plum port glaze.  $28.00

January 23 - Grilled Duck Breast: Maple Leaf Farms 9 oz. duck breast marinated with fresh herbs, grilled to medium rare-medium doneness with natural duck jus. $28.00

Game Not Your Game? No need to get crabby 'cause Sundays in CV Steak we feature one pound of King Crab Legs for $32. And yes, that also includes tableside-tossed salad, vegetable and your choice of  au gratin, baked, or a one-pound, twice-baked potato!

Progressive Pro PK'em in Final Week(s):  Even after all the coaching we put in last week's blog, Greg (probably not his real name) told us Monday morning that he missed hitting all 15 games - and thus winning the jackpot - by one. "I got 14 out of 15, missed the San Diego game," he bemoaned. Greg, if only you had taken that one game and played two cards, one picking San Diego (as you did) and the other picking the Kansas City Chiefs (as you didn't). Five more bucks and the $4000+ would've been yours! Sure, it was reasonable to think that the Chiefs – with their 2nd string quarterback – couldn't possibly beat the Chargers especially after the show Drew Brees put on against the 49ers the week before . . . but it is the NFL and anything can happen! Anyway, this weekend we've got 15 propositions involving the eight NFL wild-card games: Winners, First Half Winners (ties go both ways!), Over/Unders and First Score Type. Bottom-line: $4582 is on the line this week. A winner (or winners) ends the contest. No winner and the jackpot progresses upwards and we try again next week for the NFL Divisional Playoff games.

As Always, Interesting, Helpful and Even Useful Tidbits and News:

• Free Entertainment in the Cabaret: The Blues Monsters tonight, College Bowl Games daytime Thursday, Melissa Dru Thursday – Saturday nights, AFC & NFC Wildcard Games daytime Saturday and Sunday, Paul Covarelli Sunday through Wednesday nights.
• Ladies Night: on hiatus for tonight but we kick it up a notch when we start again next Wednesday!
• Jackpot Update:
• The Penny Progressive Jackpot hit last night at $76,304.  This handsome year-end bonus went to a local who asked that we not use his name or picture today and we always respect such requests. He sure was a happy camper!! Hint to all CVI winners who play using your INN Club card: Check the article above about requesting a 2014 "Win/Loss" statement!!
• The Pro PK'em Progressive is $4,582 for this weekend's NFL games.  The pot is still up for grabs . . . thanks to Greg (and perhaps others?) who missed by one last week!

Comments?? Have questions or comments about the CVI? Use the comments section below, shoot us an email or just pick up the phone and call us @ 775-782-9711. Hit "0" when the automated voice comes on and you'll go right to the hotel operator who can get you to the correct person or department.  We have a lot more coming up at the Carson Valley Inn so check our Blog posting every Wednesday morning!

Ski Lift Tickets, Mickey Winners, Poker, Football, New Year's Eve, More

Ski Lift Tickets – Get 'em Here: Are you orsome of your holiday visitors thinking about heading up to Kirkwood or Heavenly for skiing over the coming week? Well, if you don't have an Epic Pass, we can help save you some time. We have both Heavenly and Kirkwood one day lift tickets for sale at our hotel desk. Buy 'em here, and you can skip the standing in line part when you get to the slopes. And if you've seen those lines over a holiday week . . . save yourself the frustration!

Sharkey's Project: Yes, the former home of Jane's Beauty Salon was demolished earlier this week. Truth is, this old and unsafe building was supposed to be torn down years ago. It's part of the "beautification" of that quadrant of the corner of Hwy 395 and Gilman. It will all morph into an attractive parking area for the "new" Sharkey's" scheduled to reopen early spring under its new owner, and CVI owner, Mike Pegram.

Hidden Mickey Contest Winners! What an adventure people had who entered the Hidden Mickey contest. We received some interesting comments about the "looks" people received as they walked slowly through the CVI closely perusing our Christmas decorations as they hunted for the Mickey Mouse ear ornaments. After running all the entries through a random name selector, the winner is Lynne Speir who will receive $100 in Dining Credit for CV Steak. The contest brought so many entries, and turned out to be so much fun for the people who entered, that we decided to give away 3 runner-up prizes of $25 in Dining Credit for CV Steak and these go to Amelia Ritger, Chris Weatherbee and Christine Ritger. What is a "real" Hidden Mickey? Click here for more than you could possibly want to know!

Poker Room Anniversary: Thanks for the incredible turnout for our Poker Room's 10th Anniversary celebration last Friday! As you can see in the picture, we had times (about 4 -5 hours) when all four tables were full and there was a waiting list. We gave away all 100 of our Anniversary Chip Protectors along with dozens of other prizes including jackets, shirts, hats, mugs and more. Lots of people were playing with anniversary cake smudged on their face, even though we had plenty of napkins! The whole day turned into a reunion of many of the folks who have played in our poker room over the last 10 years including some we haven't seen in a long time. Our Marketing Department and poker crew had so much fun, they're promising us more poker room activities and events during 2015.

Some Tips on Our Progressive Pro PK'em: You know the basics - pick all 15 winners and the Progressive Jackpot is yours! This weekend that amount will be $4,467 and, as most know, this is the last week of the regular NFL season.

• Here's the part that's interesting: on a few weeks, we have had people hit 13 out of 15. We even had two weeks with  a 14 out of 15. That's pretty close – like hitting the first three 7s and the fourth reel lands one stop past the 7. It's just $5 to enter and you can enter as often as you like. Looking back at the people who just missed, if they had played one or two more cards, with just one or two of the lines changed the other way, their additional $5 or $10 spent would've yielded them a few thousand dollars.
• So, here's just something to consider: after you've made your choices: go back and look at those one or two games that have you a little indecisive. Then play another card with those one or two games going the other way. Does this guarantee you'll win? Of course not! Is it a smart move? You be the judge!
• Perhaps you are among those who say "I'd rather play the progressive at a casino that has a much bigger jackpot!" On the surface, it seems like your return might be higher. However, last year on one of the weeks that our Jackpot hit, our sole winner took home more than any of the individual winners in a much larger "Brand X" statewide Progressive jackpot that hit the same week. Why? Because with so many people playing their contest at so many locations the pot was much larger than ours . . . but after splitting the pot among all who made the correct picks, the individual shares were smaller.  Is ours a better deal? Again, you be the judge!
• Why do we choose this week to share all of these ramblings? Because we must give away this jackpot soon. If it isn't won this weekend at either the Carson Valley Inn or Bodines Casino, you'll find us making some creative attempts to give it away either during the NFL Playoffs or on Super Bowl weekend. 
• Here's the bottom line: Whether it's this coming weekend or during the NFL postseason, someone will win this jackpot either at the Carson Valley and or Bodines!

Very Last Minute Christmas Stuff:

• Last Minute Christmas Gift: Carson Valley Inn Gift Cards can be purchased at our hotel front desk – open 24 hours!
• Christmas Day Poker: Our Poker Room will open at 4 p.m. on Christmas Day and we will have our usual Thursday night hold'em tournament! The Crew in the Poker Room invites you to wear your new "Ugly Christmas Sweater!"
• Christmas Day Dining at the Inn: Regular menus plus Christmas Day Dinner Specials in Katie's (Specials 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.) and CV Steak (serving from 4:30 p.m.).

New Year's Eve: this is what's considered a preemptive strike - if you are considering having dinner in CV Steak on New Year's Eve, please make your reservation soon by calling 775-783-6650.  As of this morning, we did have some openings. However, as the week goes along, that won't be the case. And as a reminder, both CV Steak and Katie's will be serving all the regular menu items plus New Year's Eve Dinner Specials. Katie's New Year's Eve specials start at 4 p.m. and CV Steak is serving from 4:30 p.m.

As Always, Interesting, Helpful and Even Useful Tidbits and News:

• Free Entertainment in the Cabaret: Steve Lord appears tonight, Steppen Stonz is here Thursday, Friday & Saturday nights, Jonathan "JB" Barton entertains Sunday – Tuesday and The Blues Monsters will be kicking up a storm on New Year's Eve next Wednesday.
• Out-of-town visitors? Reminder that the Carson Valley Airporter is a great way for them to get to and from the Reno Airport, especially if holiday-week demands leave you with limited time to provide your usual personal yet time-consuming taxi service.
• Ladies' Night: Due to other commitments by our elves over the holiday weeks, Ladies' Night is on hiatus for tonight and next Wednesday. We'll pick it up again on January 7 with some new giveaways and a weekly ladies-only slot tournament. Watch for more information next week.
• Jackpot Update:
• The Penny Progressive Jackpot was over $68,200 when we checked early this
  
  morning. We've mentioned this before, but it bears repeating: This progressive is not a multi-casino jackpot. It can, and eventually will, only be paid to someone playing at the Carson Valley Inn!!
• The Pro PK'em Progressive is $4,467 for this weekend's NFL games.  But, you should already know this if you read the article above regarding this jackpot.
• This Week's Game-On Fridays special in CV Steak is Grilled Game Brochette,with marinated lamb and elk tenderloin, antelope and alligator sausage, finished with a red wine demi, As always, served with tableside-tossed salad, vegetable and your choice of potato - au gratin, baked, or a one-pound, twice-baked potato . . . all for $28.00! 

Comments?? Have questions or comments about the CVI? Use the comments section below, shoot us an email or just pick up the phone and call us @ 775-782-9711. Hit "0" when the automated voice comes on and you'll go right to the hotel operator who can get you to the correct person or department.  We have a lot more coming up at the Carson Valley Inn so check our Blog posting every Wednesday morning!

Poker Room Giveaways, Gift Cards, Food Drive Champs, Eagles & Ag, More

Eileen points out a Hidden Mickey

Hidden Mickey Contest Winding Down:  Just a few days left to get in on our Hidden Mickey Contest for $100 in Dining Credit for CV Steak. You're entered once for each Hidden Mickey (Mouse Ear Christmas Decoration) you find in our indoor Christmas decorations. There are 9 total, just jot down the locations and send us an email by clicking here. The deadline is noon on Tuesday, December 23 and we'll announce the winner in our December 24 Blog.

Eagles and Agriculture Registration Open:

• Registration is now open for Eagles and Agriculture, a very popular annual event geared

  

  Angry eagle takes on much larger cow on the fly!

  around the annual visit to our area by Eagles and other species who find plentiful winter food during the calving season. Produced by a large committee of enthusiasts under the umbrella of the Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce, most, if not all of the Eagles and Ag events sell out every year. So, this would be a good time to dive into the details for events like the Owl Prowl, the Ranch Tour, Friday Dinner and more. The event is headquartered at the Carson Valley Inn.
• Also on the same weekend is our Annual Carson Valley Inn Clay Shooting Outing which also draws a large crowd. The evening activities for these two events are on different nights, so it all fits in. 
• The two groups have been visiting the CVI on the same weekend for almost 20 years and it's the same thing every year on Saturday morning: the Sporting Clays folks depart with their expensive shotguns to protect the world from flying clay targets (fake birds) . . . and the Eagles and Ag enthusiasts leave with their expensive cameras to "shoot" live birds in a totally harmless manner.
• These two events combine to make this our second busiest weekend in February. The busiest weekend? Super Bowl, of course!!  

Poker Room Anniversary This Friday, But . . . As we mentioned in last week's blog, we're celebrating the 10th Anniversary of our Poker Room this Friday with cash giveaways, free cake and champagne, and a free 10th Anniversary Commemorative Poker Chip/Card Protector while they last for all who play in our poker room on Friday. Rather than feeling guilty about fudging a little, and certainly rather than getting caught on a technicality by an astute reader or player, here is our full disclosure: Today (December 17) is our actual 10th anniversary. Kurt Hildebrand, editor of The Record Courier, remembers how our 2004 opening was right after a meeting he had attended where everyone talked about how poker was the hip new thing and that it should be on the front page. Then reporter Jo Rafferty wrote the article about our grand opening and Kurt remembers placing the article on the front page along with a photo of a huge stack of chips. So, with Kurt's help, we dug out the article about our grand opening which ran on December 9, 2004. Were you here on the day we opened? Let us know in the comments section below.

What do you get Pat for Christmas? Who is Pat, you ask? He or she may be your husband or wife, aunt or uncle, best friend, coworker, anyone for whom you are considering a Christmas gift. Back to the question at hand: what the heck are you going to get Pat for Christmas? How about the versatility and flexibility of a Carson Valley Inn Gift Card! If Pat is a local, the CVI Gift Card can be used in Katie's, CV Steak or Job's Perk. If Pat visits you from out of the area, the CVI Gift Card can be used for accommodations in our hotel, motor Lodge or RV Park. And wherever Pat is from, he or she can use their gift card for a round of drinks for you and friends at any of the CVI bars . . . or even for gas at the Carson Valley Market. If Pat is heading north to Carson City or Reno, he or she can also stop by Bodines Casino and use the CVI Gift Card in Bodines Restaurant or either of Bodines bars. Sound like this might solve one or more of your gift dilemmas? You can buy Carson Valley Inn Gift Cards in person at the Hotel Front Desk or by calling them at 775-783-6670. We do make it easy by providing an envelope and nice greeting card to go with the electronic gift card; all you do is personalize it with your own note!

Holiday Dining at the Inn – A quick Summary:

• Christmas Day: Regular menus plus Christmas Day Dinner Specials in Katie's (Specials 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.) and CV Steak (serving from 4:30 p.m.).
• Christmas Dinner to Go for 8 – 12 people: Order by December 23 through the Katie's supervisor, pick up Christmas Day 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
• New Year's Eve: Regular menus plus New Year's Eve Dinner Specials in Katie's (Specials from 4 p.m.) and CV Steak (serving from 4:30 p.m.). 

KTVN Crew with the Food Drive Championship Belt 

Food Drive & Blood Drive Big Success: What a day last Friday as the 22nd Annual KTVN CH 2 Share Your Christmas Food Drive Carson Valley Inn location yielded a whopping 153,986 pounds of food and $48,287 in cash for the Carson Valley Community Food Closet! We easily retained our Food Collection Championship by well exceeding the combined total food collected by the Reno and Carson City locations! Thanks to the hundreds of volunteers and the thousands of donations that made this possible! During the Food Drive, the United Blood Services Blood Drive brought in a higher-than-expected 49 units of blood which will help ensure sufficient blood supplies going into the Christmas and New Year weeks, an always challenging time to attract donors.  Thanks to all who donated!

As Always, Interesting, Helpful and Even Useful Tidbits and News:

• A Toys for Tots donation box is near our Hotel Desk.
• Free Entertainment in the Cabaret: George Pickard appears tonight, Atomika is here Thursday, Friday & Saturday nights, NFL Football has the spotlight Sunday and Monday nights and Steve Lord entertains Tuesday and Wednesday.
• Ladies Night Giveaways: Tonight's Hot Seat winners will receive a Chocolate Shoppe Christmas Gift Basket and the first 150 ladies to check in tonight will receive special white chocolate peppermint.
• Christmas Day Poker: Our Poker Room will open at 4 p.m. on Christmas Day and we will have our usual Thursday night Hold'em tournament!
• Jackpot Update:
• The Penny Progressive Jackpot was over $61,000 when we checked late yesterday afternoon. 
• The Pro PK'em Progressive is $4,362 for this weekend's NFL games.
• This Week's Game-On Fridays special in CV Steak is a repeat of one of our most popular: Braised Buffalo Short Ribs - one and a half pounds of American Bison short ribs braised and slow cooked, finished with natural pan sauce and served with tableside-tossed salad, vegetable and your choice of potato - au gratin, baked, or a one-pound, twice-baked potato . . . all for $29.00! 

Comments?? Have questions or comments about the CVI? Use the comments section below, shoot us an email or just pick up the phone and call us @ 775-782-9711. Hit "0" when the automated voice comes on and you'll go right to the hotel operator who can get you to the correct person or department.  We have a lot more coming up at the Carson Valley Inn so check our Blog posting every Wednesday morning! 

KTVN Food Drive Friday, Mike's Horses, Sharkey's Casino, Christmas Dining, More

Mike's Horses and Sharkey's: Tiz Midnight, with jockey Victor Espinoza aboard,  won the $200,000 Bayakoa Stakes at Los Alamitos last Saturday for owner Mike Pegram and trainer Bob Baffert . . . that's two weeks in a row with one of Mike's horses in the winner's circle! And in the middle of those two weekends, Mike and the local community were the winners of another sort when the lack of other bidders landed the now-closed Sharkey's Casino in Gardnerville in Mike's hands. Watch for extensive renovations, a refreshed look inside and out, a fun business plan and a solid employer on the main corner in Gardnerville! When? March of 2015 if all goes well . . . and we'll keep you updated on the progress and the employment possibilities in this weekly blog! Back to Mike's horses - a couple more are running this weekend at Los Alamitos . . . we'll keep you "posted."

KTVN Channel 2 Share Your Christmas Community Food Drive: The Carson Valley's largest food drive is this Friday right outside the Carson Valley Inn at the entrance to our RV resort where you can drive-by and donate food and/or money anytime between 6 AM and 6 PM. The KTVN crew and hundreds of volunteers will be here rain or shine. Even though it looks like the "shine" part may be minimal this year, please come by and donate anyway . . . Possible inclement weather this Friday doesn't change the need to help feed our community's hungry over the coming year!

• Here are some last-minute tips for making donations at other locations which will wind up at the food drive this Friday - but remember, we would also like to see you this Friday!
• You can buy a bag of groceries valued at over $25 at Raley's for $10 and here's a bonus: the register receipt from Raley's clearly shows the $10 is a tax-deductible donation.
• The Towns of Minden and Gardnerville are both collecting food this week on your regular trash days. Check the details in the carsonvalleytimes.com article at this link.
• If your trash is picked up by Douglas Disposal, they also have a program going on this week and details are on their website.
• As for our KTVN On-Air crew and the question we posed last week:  Chloe Beardsley enjoys
  
  coaching basketball and working with animals, Adam Varahachaikol enjoys cooking and traveling to San Francisco, and Arianna Bennett harbors a healthy obsession with Lake Tahoe!
• Blood Drive Also Friday: If you are able, please donate at the United Blood Services Bloodmobile this Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the site of the Food Drive. To schedule an appointment or find out more, click here. 

Hidden Mickey Decorations Drawing Interest:  Our Hidden Mickey Contest for a CV Steak $100 Dining Credit is definitely drawing interest and entries. So, if you are visiting CVI, why not throw your name into the hat (up to 9 times) for this drawing? The more Hidden Mickeys (Mickey Mouse Ear Christmas Decorations) you find, the higher your chances of winning! All it takes to enter is to wander around the CVI, keep your eyes open as you look at our Christmas decorations, jot down the location of the Hidden Mickey Christmas decorations, and send us an email by clicking here. You'll be entered once for each correct location you identify before our drawing on December 23 - we'll announce the winner in our December 24 Blog.

Christmas at the Inn:  let's start with the assumption that on Christmas Day, you are either going out to eat – as in to a restaurant – or you're eating at home, whether it's your home, at a friend's house or you're going over to the relatives. If you plan to go out to eat, we have two Christmas Day dining choices: Katie's or CV Steak. Both are serving their regular menu choices at regular everyday prices on Christmas Day – plus both restaurants have Christmas Day Specials for an additional holiday touch! If you plan to eat at home or at someone else's house, you – or someone – is faced with a lot of work buying the food, prepping, cooking and tackling one heck of the cleanup project both as you go along and after everyone is finished. We have a way to minimize a lot of this work: choose one of our three Christmas Dinners to Go . . . Prime rib, turkey, or ham for 8 to 12 people! Is there a little bit of heat-up preparation? Sure, but our instructions tell you just how. Do you still have dishes to cleanup afterwards? Yep, but the overall process is a whole lot less time-consuming than doing it all yourself!  Whether you choose to go out to a restaurant or have Christmas dinner at home, we have a number of choices here at the Carson Valley Inn . . . so, consider letting us help you enjoy more time with your family and friends on Christmas Day!

Poker Room Celebrates 10 Years:  it's been just about 10 years since we started dealing live poker here at the CVI so our Poker Room is celebrating its 10th anniversary on December 19! We'll have cash drawings, free cake and champagne, and the first 100 players in the poker room on December 19 will receive a free 10th Anniversary Commemorative Poker Chip/Card Protector.

Best Sandwich Contest Crowded: The carsonvalleytimes.com "Sandwich Wars" now has over 50 sandwiches in the running including four Katie's favorites: The Big Bird, The French Dip, The Nevadan and The Monte Cristo. We are not fans of ballot box stuffing, but will gladly accept your vote for any of these four sandwiches that you feel are worthy. Thanks!

As Always, Interesting, Helpful and Even Useful Tidbits and News:

• A Toys for Tots donation box is near our Hotel Desk.
• December Blackjack Tournament Winners: it happens every month on the second Tuesday and last night's blackjack tournament winners were David Bailey (1st for $625), David Myers (2nd for $375) and  Richard Leigh (3rd for $250). It's just a $25 entry fee and the next monthly contest is Tuesday, January 13.
• Free Entertainment in the Cabaret: Paul Covarelli appears tonight, Jo Mama with Special Guest Stew Stewart is here Thursday, Friday & Saturday nights, NFL Football has the spotlight Sunday and Monday nights and George Pickard entertains Tuesday and Wednesday.
• Ladies Night Giveaways: Tonight's Hot Seat winners will receive a Costco gift basket and the first 150 ladies to check in tonight will receive a bracelet. Reminder, Ladies' Night now starts at 5:30 p.m.  To have your business featured on one of our Ladies' Nights (we do pay you for the prizes); call Stephanie at 775-783-7711.
• Jackpot Update:
• The Pro PK'em Progressive is $4,222 for this weekend's NFL games. That'll buy Christmas gifts for the whole family in most cases. Just a $5 play is all it takes to have a shot!
• The Penny Progressive Jackpot was approaching $57,000 late yesterday afternoon. That will buy a new-car type Christmas present if it hits on a max-coin (90 pennies) bet! 
• This Week's Game-On Fridays special in CV Steak is Roasted Rack of Venison with Cherry Port Sauce: A 4-bone venison rack seasoned with fresh herbs and roasted to your specs (Chef Patrick does not recommend cooking temps over medium). As always, served with tableside-tossed salad, vegetable and your choice of potato - au gratin, baked, or a one-pound, twice-baked potato . . . all for $32.00! 

Do You Talk Back?! Have questions or comments about the CVI? Use the comments section below, shoot us an email or just pick up the phone and call us @ 775-782-9711. Hit "0" when the automated voice comes on and you'll go right to the hotel operator who can get you to the correct person or department.  We have a lot more coming up at the Carson Valley Inn so check our Blog posting every Wednesday morning!

Snow Arrives, Valley Horses Do Well, Food Drive, New Community Center, More

Now That We Have Some Snow in the Area:  Keep doin' the dance 'cause it's working as we saw some significant snow in the Tahoe area this week and the ski resorts are opening more of their terrain every day (see proof on Heavenly web cams).  We had no doubt (OK, we had a little doubt), so the Carson Valley Inn's 2014/2015 Ski Packages are ready to book!  We also have a special Epic Pass Hotel Rate for those who have one of the 2014/2015 Epic Passes for the northern Nevada Vail Resorts properties which include Heavenly, Kirkwood and Northstar.  Also, keep an eye open for a special ski package on the weekend after the Super Bowl . . . more to come.

California Chrome Wins Big, CVI Owner Mike Pegram's Horses Also Do Well: Horse racing had quite a local tie this past weekend from California to Kentucky to New York! Mike Pegram's colt Hoppertunity, a 2014 Kentucky Derby favorite who was scratched days before the Derby with a foot bruise, roared back with a win in the Grade 1 $500,000 Clark Handicap at Churchill Downs last Friday. On Saturday, Mike's past Breeders' Cup winner Secret Circle finished 2^nd in the Cigar Mile at Aqueduct Park in New York. Meanwhile, on the West Coast, Steve and Carolyn Colby's California Chrome won the Hollywood Derby at Delmar. And on Sunday, Midnight Hawk came in third in his race at Delmar. "Hawk" is owned by Mike in partnership with Chicago Blackhawks Coach Joel Quenneville, Blackhawks assistant coach Mike Kitchen, Altanta Falcons offensive line coach Mike Tice, and John Sikura's Hill 'n' Dale Equine Holdings. Oh, one more: Mike's SECRETSATMIDNIGHT won the previous Saturday, November 22 at Delmar.

It's Christmas Kickoff Weekend in the Carson Valley with plenty of visual and experiential events guaranteed to get you into the holiday spirit.

• Here at the Carson Valley Inn, Candy Cane Lane is lit up nightly through December – enter at the large electronic sign and follow the lighted arch. Inside the CVI, our Christmas decorations are all up, so be sure to check them out.
• The Dangberg Home Ranch for the Holidays Toy Exhibit runs through December 10 from 10 am to 4 pm.
• The Gardnerville Christmas Tree Lighting and Fireworks are Thursday evening at Heritage Park.
• Caroling, Tree Lighting and Santa are all on the docket Friday evening in Genoa.
• The Minden Gazebo and Tree Lighting Festivities are also Friday evening in Downtown Minden and Minden Park, just a short walk from the CVI.
• Breakfast with Santa is Saturday morning at the Genoa Town Hall
• The Douglas County Historical Society Annual Holiday Gala is midday Saturday at the Carson Valley Museum and Cultural Center
• The Carson Valley Chamber's Annual Parade of Lights is Saturday evening ending in Downtown Minden.

The KTVN Channel 2 Share Your Christmas Community Food Drive is coming up fast on Friday, December 12 at the RV Park entrance from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.  United Blood Services is again holding a Blood Drive from 11:30 to 5:30 at the site of the Food Drive. To schedule an appointment or find out more, click here.  And if you absolutely can't make it next Friday to donate food, you can always buy a $10 bag (or a few) at the Gardnerville Raley's – all that food winds up at the Food Drive that afternoon.  As for our KTVN On-Air crew of Adam, Chloe and Arianna . . . guess which one enjoys cooking and traveling to San Francisco, which one enjoys coaching basketball and working with animals, and which one harbors a healthy obsession with Lake Tahoe?

Hidden Mickeys Can Bring You $100 Worth of Food and Beverage in CV Steak: This is a pretty simple "contest." Mixed in among the many hundreds of Christmas decorations inside the Carson Valley Inn are 9 Mickey Mouse themed Christmas ornaments. In Disney parlance, these are called Hidden Mickeys. So how does this tie to $100 Worth of Food and Beverage in CV Steak? For every correct location you identify (shoot us an email by clicking here) before the deadline, you'll be entered once into our Hidden Mickey contest. We'll hold a drawing on December 23 and the winner will be notified by email. $100 in CV Steak goes a long way . . . So why not look around and let us know where you see our Christmas Hidden Mickeys.

Reno Shuttle Going Well: The folks at Amador Stage Lines told us that the Carson Valley Airporter scheduled shuttle service between the Carson Valley and Reno is going very well. Make you plans now to use this service if you are flying out of town for Christmas or New Years.  Also a great way for out-of-town visitors to get between the Reno Airport and Carson Valley!

New Senior and Community Center: Congratulations to Douglas County on the long-anticipated opening of the Douglas County Community and Senior Center this Saturday! The Grand Opening and Open House starts at 1:00 p.m. at the impressive new facility at 1329 Waterloo Lane in Gardnerville. A great opportunity to tour the 83,000 sq. ft. building which includes a wide variety of services and state-of-the-art amenities.

Throw Down for Best Sandwich: The carsonvalleytimes.com "Sandwich Wars" started earlier this week with four Katie's favorites on the nomination round ballot: The Big Bird, The French Dip, The Nevadan and The Monte Cristo. Still plenty of time to add more of your Katie's favorites and start voting! Need a reminder on what Katie's offers? Click here to go to the lunch and dinner menu.

As Always, Interesting, Helpful and Even Useful Tidbits and News:

• Special Poker Game Expanded: The new daytime no-limit game we covered in last week's blog quickly proved both popular and fun, so the crew in the poker room added another day and you can now jump in on this lower-risk no-limit game at 1 p.m. on both Wednesdays and Fridays! Word from the Poker Room is that the Saturday hourly High Hand Contest is also creating some extra interaction as the end of each hour closes in!
• Ladies Night New Start Time: Ladies' Night now starts at 5:30 p.m.   Tonight's Hot Seat winners will receive a valuable Yankee Candle gift basket and the first 150 ladies to check in tonight will receive a Yankee Candle Votive. To have your business featured on one of our Ladies' Nights (we do pay you for the prizes); call Stephanie at 775-783-7711.
• Jackpot Update:
• The Penny Progressive Jackpot was approaching $53,000 when we checked late yesterday afternoon . . . sure starts climbing at a faster rate when it tops $50k. As a reminder, this jackpot is all at the Carson Valley Inn, so no worries about someone hitting it elsewhere!
• The Pro PK'em Progressive is $4,096 for this weekend's NFL games. That's just about where it was when it hit for the first time last year . . . just sayin'.
• This Week's Game-On Fridays special in CV Steak is Grilled Maple Leaf Farms Duck Breast served with tableside-tossed salad, vegetable and your choice of potato - au gratin, baked, or a one-pound, twice-baked potato . . . all for $28.00!

Fire Back at Us! Have questions about the CVI? Use the comments section below, shoot us an email or just pick up the phone and call us @ 775-782-9711. Hit "0" when the automated voice comes on and you'll go right to the hotel operator who can get you to the correct person or department.  We have a lot more coming up at the Carson Valley Inn so check our Blog posting every Wednesday morning!