Wine Notes: A Vintage Holiday
It can be a challenge to match wines for a meal as extensive and diverse as a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. But it is also a great opportunity to experiment if keeping just a few principles in mind.
One wine from appetizer to dessert is definitely a challenge, with sparkling wine being one option that’s both popular and appropriate. A drier Rosé is also an option and will pair reasonably well with several courses. It’s slightly easier to remain committed to either red or white wine from beginning to end, but to do that or to switch between the two is a matter of personal taste. In white wine, Riseling pairs well with well seasoned turkey, dressing and sweet potatoes. Crisp Sauvignon Blanc nicely cuts the richness of turkey and mashed potatoes. Pinot Grigio also holds up well to fatty dishes.
Among red wines, Pinot Noir is a holiday classic that buoys Thanksgiving’s earthier flavors. Zinfandel is a little heartier accompaniment for those so wishing. A peppery or spicy Syrah can add another, deeper layer to the more savory components of the Thanksgiving meal. Beaujolais Nouveau is famously released from France just prior to Thanksgiving in the United States and for a fruity, light wine, actually pairs well with traditional fare.
Whatever you pair throughout the meal, for dessert consider a fortified wine like port or cream sherry – either will put the exclamation point to your pumpkin or pecan pie.
The Trailblazer
Gen. Rita Aragon is the fourth Oklahoma Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Nominated by Gov. Mary Fallin, the retired two-star general was sworn into office in 2011. In 1989, Aragon became the first female commander in the history of the Oklahoma Air National Guard, overseeing the 137th Services Squadron; in 2003, she became the first female in the history of United States Air National Guard to hold the rank of Brigadier General as the Commander and Assistant Adjutant General for the Oklahoma Air National Guard.
I joined the Oklahoma Air National Guard in 1979. At the time, I was a school teacher and couldn’t make ends’ meet. I had two daughters and their dad left us, so we had no additional income. At the time I enlisted, women made up just two percent of the military population. In the Air National Guard, everyone comes in enlisted, and you have to prove you’re going to be loyal to the organization. In 1981 I was made an officer. It took me four interviews before I got an officer slot. After working in an environment with children, I was in an all-adults arena, and it was good for me. It helped my self-esteem and taught me I could do anything I wanted to do, that I just needed to go at it at full speed.
(During wartime I) was a mortuary officer. I had the opportunity to serve at Dover, Del., when they brought bodies in during the Gulf War. I also got the opportunity to serve as a mortuary officer after the Murrah bombing, which was considered to be active duty. I also held other commands in logistics and support. I also served as a support group commander, all while still teaching and, eventually, serving as a principal for 10 years in the Oklahoma City Public Schools district. I was offered full-time active duty role in the Guard, and I knew it was the only way I would make colonel; never did I think I would eventually make general.
We have 350,000 veterans in Oklahoma. That’s about 10 percent of our population. Young veterans face many challenges, including mental health issues. Last year there were 480 suicides in Oklahoma, and of those, one-fourth were veterans. So we make up 10 percent of the population, but a quarter of all suicides. We work with veterans’ outreach groups like the VFW, American Legion and Disabled American Veterans to step up and train people on what we can do to get veterans in to talk. They will listen to someone who has actually been there. They can talk them back down and get them help.
Table Talk
While today, eating soup or a salad out of a “bread bowl” might have some kitsch appeal, when tableware consisted entirely of very hard bread (a “trencher”) used to deliver food to mouth and then subsequently tossed to the dogs, it was decidedly less entertaining. But that was 500 years ago and things have changed since then – although not all that much in western civilization tableware since the 1700s. That’s when the European aristocracy discovered that China was using dinner plates, a German potter learned how to create the porcelain tableware, and companies such as Wedgwood, Royal Copenhagen, Royal Saxon and Spode launched their lines of “fine china.” A custom was born that persists to this day, with not much changing over time.
Traditionally a bride-to-be would get her dinnerware, for which she registered, from her parents and guests at her wedding. The tradition faded as couples began to set up homes – and dinnerware – prior to marriage, and as individual table settings became prohibitively costly. Today, after years of focus on function over form, china is again wildly popular, but with many people instead compiling their china over time, adding place settings and accessory pieces as possible.
Gilded edges and floral patterns have always been popular on china, but the number of patterns, colors, shapes, sizes and pieces can be quite staggering – or inspiring to enthusiasts. Some of the most popular lines today are Lenox, Wedgwood and Waterford, but there are numerous others including from famed designers such as Vera Wang and Kate Spade.
Regardless of choice in lines or patterns of china or the time invested in putting the collection together, rest assured that fine china is meant to stand the test of time. And, better yet, it doesn’t get fed to the dogs after dinner.
Tulsa Oktoberfest
Thursday-Sunday, Oct.18-21
Is it really such a mystery why Tulsa OktoberFest is consistently named as one of the best Oktoberfest events around the world? In its 34-year history, Tulsa OktoberFest has been praised for its authentic German food, hardy appreciation of good beer and wily entertainment. Once again, the big autumn toast to life will be held under the tents at River West Festival Park, 2100 S. Jackson Ave., where guests will find food concessions, arts and crafts, a sports café, the Lederhosen Run, stein carry, bier barrel race, children’s tent, keg rolling, the Running of the Wieners and more. What makes Tulsa’s festival extra special, however, may be that total surrender to the spirit of sharing and fun best manifested in the sight of otherwise sensible people twisting and clucking like chickens in unison to polka music. Hours are …
Thursday: 5-11 p.m.
Friday: 11 a.m.-11:30 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m.-11:30 p.m.
Sunday: Noon-6 p.m.
General admission is $6. Wunderbar Passes – which includes four tickets, OktoberFest money and more – are $59.95 and in limited quantities. For all the details and activity schedule, go to www.tulsaoktoberfest.org.
Collectors’ Reserve opening
Saturday, Oct. 20
Small paintings and works of art hold all the fun for that prospective buyer taking those first steps into art collection. But even for the seasoned collector, an event like Gilcrease Museum’s Collectors’ Reserve still holds the thrill of acquiring something that could prove essential to the fabric of American fine art. The annual event, which raises funds for the museum at 1400 N. Gilcrease Museum Road, Tulsa, opens this weekend with exhibition of pieces by 70 artists – pieces measuring 16”x 20” and even miniatures ranging in a variety of subject, style and medium. The artworks will be sold at a Nov. 1 sale at the museum, but the pieces can be viewed through the Nov. 4. Collectors’ Reserve: Small Works Art Exhibition and Sale will also feature two artists demonstration events – painters Jerry Ricketson at 11 a.m. Oct. 26 and Virginia Stroud at 11 a.m. Oct. 31. Museum admission is $5-$8. Opening day hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Go to gilcrease.utulsa.edu to see the complete schedule and other details.
OKC Ballet’s Director’s Choice
Saturday-Sunday, Oct. 20-21
Talk about making the most of every performance. Oklahoma City Ballet brings a collection of three pieces to the Oklahoma City Civic Center Music Hall’s Thelma Gaylord Performing Arts Theatre stage. First up, choreographer Anthony Tudor’s austere and elegant Lilac Garden enjoys its Oklahoma premiere. Set in Edwardian society, a young woman dances around her betrothal to a man she doesn’t love. The ballet next leaps into Nicolo Fonte’s daringly original Left Unsaid followed by Cobras in the Moonlight, a rhythmic and stirring piece from Margo Sappington to end the performance on an exquisite and exciting note. Tickets to the show are $33-60. Shows are at 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the music hall, 201 N. Walker Ave. For more about the ballet and to purchase tickets, go online www.okcballet.com.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Monday-Tuesday, Oct. 22-23
Nothing can keep the Red Hot Chili Peppers from total stage domination on their latest tour – nothing except maybe their own feet. The trifecta of rock, rap and funk is still as playfully wanton and loud as for its 1991 breakout album Blood Sugar Sex Magik, but shortly before the band was set to begin its winter tour in January, members announced they would postpone the dates (including March concerts in Oklahoma City and Tulsa) until after lead singer Anthony Kiedis fully recovered from surgery to fix his foot, specifically, a sesamoid bone and a detached flexor tendon. Now that October is here, fans who bought tickets for the original concert dates are itching to hand them over to mosh with the best of them. And although guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, who blogged late last month from San Antonio, Texas, about his broken foot, may still be hobbling in a cast, it looks like the shows will go on. Until then, take it easy, guys. The Red Hot Chili Peppers play Chesapeake Energy Arena, 100 W. Reno Ave. at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 22. Tickets for the Oklahoma City show are $35-$55 (fees may apply). Go to www.chesapeakearena.com to purchase and find more information. The band moves to Tulsa’s BOK Center, 200 S. Denver Ave., for its 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 23, appointment. Tulsa show tickets are $37.50-$57.50, available online at www.bokcenter.com.
Remarks by Robert Gates
Tuesday, Oct. 23, from 4-5:30 p.m.
Searching for job security working for politicians is as futile as a moderator asking for clarity during a presidential debate (you’ve been watching, right?). Some people can achieve it, and Robert Gates is one of them. He’s served under eight presidents in various offices, most recently (2006-11) as President Barack Obama’s Secretary of Defense. Gates shares his insights and stories from his previous position as well as from his tenure on the staff of President George W. Bush, his time as director of the Central Intelligence Agency and his career in national security at the next Oklahoma State University Center for Executive and Professional Development Executive Management Briefings event on Oct. 23 at the Cox Convention Center, 1 Myriad Gardens, OKC.
If you miss him there, you can also hear Gates at the Tulsa Business Forums events (also through OSU) from 10-11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 24 at the Mabee Center, 7777 S. Lewis Ave., Tulsa. Space must be reserved for both days ($75 per person each event). Go to www.cepd.okstate.edu for sponsorship information and other series speakers scheduled for future dates.
Jeff Foxworthy
Saturday, Oct. 20 at 4 and 8 p.m.
Jeff Foxworthy built a career on “redneck jokes,” a formula that starts with “if,” ends with “you might be a redneck” and bridged by something ridiculous enough to verge on the plausible if you’re familiar with rural and country living. Foxworthy has ventured into television with Blue Collar TV, Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader and most recently The American Bible Challenge. He’s never left the stage and live audience, however, and Foxworthy is set to entertain Saturday at the Hard Rock Tulsa Hotel & Casino’s stage at the Joint, 777 W. Cherokee St., Catoosa. Catch his early show at 4 p.m. and the evening performance at 8 p.m. Tickets are $55 and $65. You must be at least 21 to enter. For more, go to www.hardrockcasinotulsa.com.
