I Like Pie. A short story.

So, this e-mail arrives offering a free pie.  Not just any pie, but a "very special" pecan pie.  Delete.  Why?  Because I know it's just spam, and even if it isn't, ultimately the sender wants something. But then something odd happened, another e-mail.  I was a surprised.  Typically, those "send you something to try" e-mails are one and done.  Again, I delete it. To my shock, there's a third e-mail.  This time I scrutinized it.  Not only did it look legit, it actually looked like a personal message from the sender.  I figure anybody persistent enough to send three e-mails must be confident in their product? So I respond, acknowledging that I'll try the pie. After all, I like pie.  And if I didn't like this one, I just wouldn't write anything, right (spoiler alert)?

Fast forward a couple weeks.  Getting ready to have a house full for a celebration, any thought of a complimentary pie had long since been forgotten.  Pulling in the driveway from yet another trip of hunting and gathering, I spied a package on my front step.  It was a medium size box, not tall enough to be a shoe box, but wider.  I wasn't
expecting any deliveries.  So I retrieve it and discover it's decently heavy considering the size.  Then I read the shipping label.  Hell,it's that Goode Company Brazos Bottom Pecan Pie just as promised.

I carried it into the kitchen, opened the box, and found this very
cool branded wooden box proudly proclaiming that it's contents were
made in Texas.  When I slid back the lid, I discovered a pecan pie.
Not just any pecan pie mind you, but a beautiful 9" specimen with the
most perfect pecans displayed on top.  Those pecans had to be hand
picked and placed. There's no way that many perfect nuts end up on a
pie by accident.  What can I say?  First impressions are very
important and so far this pie was pretty impressive.  Thinking back,
I'm still amazed that a pie could be shipped part way across the
country and arrive in such perfect condition, but it did.  Now, I am a skeptic, and it takes more than just looks to win me over, let alone motivate me to write a glowing product review.  What
did I do?  Well, I tried the pie right then and there.  Wouldn't you?

Plain and simple folks, the Goode Company Brazos Bottom Pecan Pie
rocks.  I know a thing or two about eating pie.  My mother made pecan
pies.  Folks raved about them.  Her recipe was straight off the Karo
syrup bottle, but that was our little secret.  My grandmother is the
serious pie maker of the family.  Like giving two people halves of a
$100 bill, she taught my wife to make the crust and me to make the
filling.  We've gone on to win many awards with those pies.
Specifically, what I liked about this pecan pie was it's balance.  (I
know, I know.  I might stop reading a pie review if the writer dropped
the idea of balance in pies, but hang in there).  You know how some
people will kill you with kindness, using over the top sappiness to
get on your good side?  Pie makers often do the same thing with
sweetness.  Too often pies are over the top sweet, with no substance
or flavor.  Not so with this pie.  As sweet as most pecan pies are
these days, people eat them without any topping.  As good as this pie
was alone, it would be great with a dollop of fresh whipped cream, or
even better, a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream along side. Don't get
me wrong, I can't imagine anybody complaining about a nice slice of
this pecan pie.  It's the perfect finish to any barbecue meal.

Make it a little easier on yourself this year for the holidays.  Order
a pecan pie from the Goode Company.  It'll mean one less thing to do,
allowing you to focus your attention on smoking the perfect bird and
creating the perfect sides.  Or better yet, send one to someone this
holiday. From a guy who spent twenty years in an industry making sure to never use the phrase "I promise", this pie will be the hit of yourdessert table or the gift they won't soon forget.  I promise.