Kathleen Hill: McDonald's recall, Cabernet Day and great tequila

Alert: McDonald's recall No, they have not recalled the 'Gilroy Garlic Fries.'|

Alert: McDonald's recall

No, they have not recalled the 'Gilroy Garlic Fries.' But seriously, and importantly, this week McDonald's recalled 32.8 million Step-It Activity Bracelets that were included in its Happy Meals because the wrist bands burned or irritated the skins of some people. If you or kids around you have one, take it back or throw it away.

National Cabernet Day

In case you needed an excuse, next Thursday, Sept. 1 is National Cabernet Day according to cabernet producers Betsy and Peter Spann.

Spann will be pouring five cabernet-based wines in their new Kenwood Village tasting room, right across from Palooza Gastropub, Aug. 26 to 29, and Sept. 1 to 4. They encourage bringing a picnic or get a pizza from Palooza's wood fired oven and sit at picnic tables. $15 tasting fee refunded with any wine bottle purchase.

According to Peter and Betsy, 'cabernet franc was the original grape of Bordeaux. It had an affair with sauvignon blanc and gave birth to what is now the world's most popular wine grape, cabernet sauvignon. Cabernet franc also fooled around with two other grape varieties and gave birth to merlot and carménère. We grew up on Bordeaux wines (Betsy moved there when she was 18) and love cabernet franc and all its' children.'

'Cabernet Day was created by our good friend and social media guru Rick Bakas in 2010 as a day when people all over the world could taste cabernet franc or sauvignon and share tweets about their experience.'

St. Francis Cab too

St. Francis Winery & Vineyards launches its '30 Days of Cabernet' program with a pre-release party on Thursday, Sept. 1 celebrating the winery's 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon from Lagomasino Estate Vineyard. Winemaker Chris Louton will host with appetizers and live music. $30 non-club members, reservations required.

Your next opportunity will be a blending workshop and lunch with winemaker Louton and hands on blending session where you blend your own bottle to take home. $72 non wine club members. For more information, more events, and signups go to stfranciswinery.com.

Transcendent Transcendence weekend

The Transcendence weekend started Wednesday and Thursday of last week with hilarious Sonoma Speakeasy fundraisers at Cornerstone, staged with the help of Julie Atwood Events. Guests had to prove their secret identities and reveal an emailed password to be admitted through a guillotine like door and walk past the Sunset test garden to Fred and Amy Groth's gin cocktails in the older barn on the property.

Everywhere were Transcendence actors offering fake cocaine and generally jollying up the guests. Especially fun was the actress in a green dress acting drunk and appearing to pick wild fights and chases with other actresses who played as if they were random offended guests in the crowd.

After cocktails the crowd walked to the recently relocated tent where a band played old-timey music with lots of dancing by the cast and audience. I have to admit one especially fun moment for me was being pulled up to watch and then accompany 'Knuckles' on the piano. I got to play one sticky key several times on his cue, and then he changed my note. Great fun.

Eventually the crowd moved on to the Tyge William Cellars Barn for a dinner of Kale-Waldorf salad, grilled filet with Bordelaise sauce, buttermilk mashed potatoes, carrots and onions, followed by a white peach mousse with brandied cherry compote and pecan lace tuille, all prepared by Ramekins Culinary Center. A fabulous show by Transcendence players entertained all who were there.

Transcendence Theatre Company's Broadway Under the Stars' 'Call of the Wild' show came to a rousing 'Dance the Night Away' culmination last weekend with cheering crowds from around the Valley.

VIP guests enjoyed small tuna or chicken salad sandwiches with lots of wine, and hundreds of other people feasted on picnics or food from the Fig Rig or Tips Tri-Tips Trolley, as well as Glen Ellen Star ice creams from a cart near the theatre entrance to Jack London's winery ruins, where more wine was served.

Another remarkable point about the 'Dance the Night Away' show was the nearly tear-jerking performance of 'To Make You Feel My Love,' a love song sung in this case by two men, Bryan Bushcer-West and Nick Dalton, to each other. Only in Sonoma.

Next opportunity to join in the joy of Broadway Under the Stars will be the company's Gala Celebration from Sept. 9 through 11, blending music and dance of Broadway showstoppers, holiday favorites with modern twists and more. Get tickets and info at 546-3600 or broadwayholidayshow.com.

Ladies of Magnum Force celebration

The super cool ladies of the Magnum Force dancing group gathered at Gloria Ferrer Caves & Vineyards last week to celebrate their years rehearsing, laughing, crying and sipping together to perform and raise money for others at the Harvest Wine Auction.

Chandra Friese organized the melancholy-filled evening with Eva Bertran of Gloria Ferrer, one of the original dancers.

Jonnie McCormick, then executive director of the Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers, created the idea and the team, named Ladies of Magnum Force by Jean Arnold Sessions. Their first performance led by Suzy Fridell was Cell Block Tango in 2004.

Through the years, the Ladies, all involved in some phase of the wine industry, collected magnums of wine to be auctioned off as a lot. The pinnacle of their success was when Bob Friese and Rick Miron competed and ended up each paying $50,000 for the wine (and skit), with a lifetime total of $450,000, all of which went to charitable organizations.

Some of the skits through the years had sexy themes of old movies, Las Vegas, the Wild West, hippies, goddesses, beach party and Bollywood for starters. Together the group practiced about 1,000 hours everywhere from the SVVGA parking lot to Hanna Boys Center.

Most of the fun skits have been eliminated from this year's Harvest Wine Auction program. But the Ladies of Magnum Force will live on in deep friendships and with great thanks to choreographer Suzy Fridell and Squire Fridell, who choked up while reading his script for the upcoming video of the group by Melania Mahoney, which will be shown at this year's auction.

Horatius coffee brewing in Glen Ellen

Horatius coffee shop opened this week at the south end of Glen Ellen's Jack London Village to instant success. Horacio Gomes of Sobre Vista has created a real coffee house where many of us would feel comfortable sipping a cappuccino and reading a book either inside or on the shady deck overlooking the creek.

An early retired graphic designer and ad agency owner, Horacio has designed Glen Ellen, Horatius and Jack London Village shirts and carries very well-priced Portuguese olive oils and vinegars,mugs, soaps, and Portuguese chocolate bars and sodas, with a few biscott and booksi thrown in. Sandwiches to come soon.

Santé winemaker dinner Sojourn

Santé Restaurant at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn is hosting its Sojourn winemaker dinner on Thursday, Sept. 8 for which Chef de Cuisine Andrew Cain will prepare a four-course dinner paired with Sojourn's highly rated wines.

For the lobby reception Cain will serve canapés of forest mushroom 'cigars,' California Osetra caviar on Yukon Gold potato blini, and Maine lobster remoulade with English cucumber vol au vent, all served with Sojourn's chardonnay and pinot noir from Sangiacomo Vineyards.

Dinner will include a 'crab apple' salad of Dungeness crab and poached Granny Smith apple; breast of free range squab with black truffle and pearl pasta risotto with confit leg; Niman Ranch Berkshire pork roast tenderloin and braised pork belly with Black Mission figs; and a Roquefort trifle with Roquefort mousse and tart cherry compote, all with Sojourn wines. $150. 6:30 p.m. reception, 7 p.m. dinner. Reserve at 939-2407.

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