Thursday, June 29, 2017 (4:50 pm)

Let’s go behind the scenes at one of the country’s most exclusive wine-tasting competitions, hosted by OC Wine Society, where professional judges swirl, sip and savor entries from California wineries to determine who will win the gold at the 2017 OC Fair. 

The judging process is a sight to behold. The organized chaos works in a constantly flowing circle: stewards pour bottles of wine into glasses, labeling each with numbers for identification, and then serve the judges. After that round of tasting, the stewards maneuver the trays of glasses around to the washers and the dryers while the results are delivered to a group of volunteers who enter the handwritten scores into a computer. Wine is then poured again and around it goes. 

It’s known as a double-blind tasting. The judges know what the varietal is, but not who made the wine, its price, sugar level or any other information – and stewards are in the dark, too. 

The OC Wine Society enlisted more than 70 judges who put their expertise to work over a weekend this month tasting some 2,500 bottles of wine for the annual commercial wine competition. Lucky Fairgoers will be able to taste the winning entries in The Courtyard during the Fair that runs July 14 through Aug. 13. (See complete list of 4-star, gold, silver and bronze medalists.)

“This is the one of the most prestigious competitions in the country because we do only California wines,” said Fran Gitsham, treasurer of OCWS and one of the competition coordinators. “And we’re known to have the highest caliber of judging because we only allow actual winemakers and winery owners and some wine consultants. It’s the elite of the elite.”

Dennis Esslinger, Director of Judges, pairs up the judges to taste the types of wine they’re best known for, so they are well-versed in what they’re critiquing, Gitsham said.

If you’re picturing a bunch of wine snobs trying to one-up each other, you’re wrong.

“You can tell it’s a very congenial event, which I think leads to more thoughtfulness, and there’s no posturing or posing,” said David Stevens, a consultant for Davon International. “You have a chance to evaluate wines exactly the way they are – there are no politics involved.” 

Stephens has been judging for OCWS for 17 years. Many of the judges have been returning year after year to be a part of the competition.

“I always look forward to coming to this event,” said Norman Yost of Flying Goat Cellars. “For me, it’s a great opportunity to fine-tune my palette, and also to taste wine with my peers, which we only do once a year.”

Yost was in a judging panel with Stephens, along with Paul Ahvenainen of Korbel Champagne Cellars and Chris Ehrenberg of Ehrenberg Cellars. In between friendly banter and jokes, Stephens pointed out that the four men have about 100 combined years of experience. Yost has judged for 11 years, and says one of the reasons he returns is because the event is different than others.

“I think that’s the greatest attraction is they make you feel part of a special clique, and not many events allow that to happen,” Yost said. “Plus you get to taste great wines.”

OCWS actually hosts two major annual wine competitions at the OC Fair. The week after the professional judging, about 100 judges evaluated some 600 home wine entries.

While both competitions are run in essentially the same fashion – and with all volunteers – the judging itself is actually quite different. Most notably, the commercial wines are judged by professionals in the wine business while the home wines are judged by trained volunteers. Kevin Donnelly, competition chairman, says all scoring is based on a modified UC Davis 20-point scale. OCWS hosts judging workshops to help the judges stay consistent. 

Another big difference in the competitions is the Best of the Best award in the home wine competition. This is determined through a consensus by the judging panel. Each judge gives an award based on their individual recommendation, and then the panel of four judges gives a consensus award. If all the judges give a gold in the individual scoring, the wine is labeled a double gold, and these top winners are on display in The Courtyard during the Fair.

Orange County is represented well in the double gold winners, with home winemakers from Orange, Dana Point, Mission Viejo, North Tustin, Yorba Linda, Lake Forest, Irvine, Santa Ana and Costa Mesa. (See a complete list of home wine competition winners.)

Esslinger and his wife, Carol, have spent a lot of time reorganizing the competitions, making them what they are today.

“Everything was manual, not state of the art,” Esslinger said. “When we got involved we started applying engineering principles, using computers to get things organized and automated, and put together a whole sequence of events. There’s tons of reports that get generated to verify bottles and boxes, and a lot of the cross checking from start to finish – most of that didn’t exist when we got started.” 

Now, OC Wine Society, with over 1,000 members and 350 active volunteers, hosts competitions that flow like wine. 

“This organization transcends every gender, every sexual orientation, every culture, every religion, every race,” Gitsham said. “This is the way the world should be.”

Tuesday, June 27, 2017 (4:47 pm)

A new program will help as many as 1,000 children visit the 2017 OC Fair – children who otherwise might not have the means to attend. Students from Title 1 and other programs will receive a free bus trip to the Fair, carnival ride coupons and a gift card as participants in the OC Fair Kids Club.

Most Wednesdays and Thursdays during the 23-day Fair, busses will arrive before the Fair opens and children will get the opportunity to enjoy special activity stations at Centennial Farm. They will also learn about Heroes Hall veterans museum, which will be open during the Fair for the first time this year.

Organizations had the opportunity to apply to participate in OC Fair Kids Club, a program that is fully funded by the OC Fair & Event Center to provide a chance for children in underserved communities to enjoy the Fair.

“When I was meeting with a nonprofit manager earlier this year, I heard that families served by the organization couldn’t afford to come to the Fair and I knew I wanted to do something to change that,” said OC Fair & Event Center CEO Kathy Kramer. “In this first year we will help 1,000 children experience the Fair and we want to keep expanding OC Fair Kids Club annually. These community programs are so important.”

OC Fair Kids Club is the third community give-back program aimed at making the Fair more accessible and more charitable. OCFEC was honored earlier this year by the Western Fairs Association for its Friends of the Fair and We Care Wednesday initiatives.

Friends of the Fair

The Friends of the Fair program provides a free, private fair experience each summer for guests with special needs. The event is held in the morning before the fair officially opens and participants enjoy carnival rides, interactive experiences with first responders and visits to livestock areas. On July 20, more than 8,000 people are expected to participate in the program that was launched in 1989.

Without the usual number of visitors on site, Friends of the Fair guests with wheelchairs and other assistance devices can more easily enjoy the attractions. Event attendance is limited so visitors can also enjoy the experience at their own pace, in a calmer environment.

Thanks to a partnership with Ray Cammack Shows, Friends of the Fair guests have fun on midway rides that might otherwise be difficult for them to enjoy. Employees of the carnival company arrive early to operate the rides and assist participants.

During their visit, guests tour Centennial Farm to learn about fruits and vegetables and see the resident farm animals. They also explore the competitive livestock area and petting zoo. Local police and fire departments and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department have partnered with the fair to showcase their ground and air vehicles and allow guests to take pictures from the driver’s seat.

We Care Wednesday

On We Care Wednesdays, guests receive free fair admission and one complimentary carnival ride when they bring donations for partnering nonprofit organizations. The donations support a different nonprofit every Wednesday between noon and 3 p.m. during the run of the Fair.

July 19 – donations of five nonperishable food items per guest benefit Second Harvest Food Bank and the OC Food Bank. 
July 26 – donations of three new or gently used children’s books per guest go to Think Together. 
Aug. 2 – donations of five clothing items per guest benefit Goodwill Orange County. 
Aug. 9 – donations of school supplies valued at $5 or more (receipt required) per guest go to Share Our Selves.

In 2016, the We Care Wednesday program provided 28 tons of food to the Second Harvest Food Bank, more than 56,000 new and used books to Share Our Selves, some 37,000 pounds of clothing to Goodwill Orange County and more than 150,000 school supplies to Think Together to assist low-income children.

The popular We Care Wednesday program was launched in 1999 and attracts more than 20,000 Fairgoers each week. Every three years nonprofit organizations have the opportunity to apply to become a We Care Wednesday partner.

Wednesday, June 21, 2017 (4:45 pm)

Kiel Johnson is on a mission: build the world’s largest garden out of construction paper during the 2017 OC Fair.

But he doesn’t want to do it alone. Johnson needs the help of Fairgoers.

“I want this to be a collaborative project where people come in and add pieces to it to make a beautiful thing,” Johnson said.

As a featured artist at this year’s OC Fair, Johnson’s exhibit, Garden Variety: A Collaborative Paper Garden, will be on display in the Visual Arts Gallery throughout the run of the Fair, July 14 – Aug. 13.

A full-time artist based out of Los Angeles, Johnson started his artistic journey about a decade ago and uses everything from metal and plastic to cardboard.

From Dubai to Orange Coast College, Johnson has spread his artistic vision around the world. He’s created everything from a life-like cardboard airplane to a laser made out of plywood, pine, plastic tubing and a bicycle wheel.

“I just want to have a creative life,” Johnson said. “I really love being a Johnny Appleseed and working with the community.”

His garden project had a trial run during Imaginology at OC Fair & Event Center in April, where some pieces were created, but Johnson is aiming even bigger for the Fair’s exhibit.

Johnson will lay a foundation by creating the base of the garden, a couple of wooden trees, and a veggie cart. He wants the garden to look like it’s on a rooftop in Brooklyn, but Avatar-style. He will include a couple of his own pieces, like a plane and a yacht that he made for two separate projects, to add to the beautiful chaos.

Once the basics are in place, it will be up to OC Fairgoers to create flowers, cars, and anything else their heart desires using only construction paper, scissors and glue.

“I know some people will want to take their creations home, and I will set aside a few days toward the end of the Fair to pick up their stuff,” Johnson said. “But I want to encourage people to leave their stuff behind so that everyone can see what a beautiful piece of art everyone helped make.”

Using your imagination for the creations is also encouraged.

“There are templates there if you really need them, but I want to emphasize that there are no rules,” Johnson said.

The garden will be open all 23 days of the Fair. Fairgoers can come in and create pieces even when Johnson is not present.

Johnson began creating pieces for the garden project on June 12. Follow his progress on Instagram @kieljohnson.

The 2017 OC Fair is July 14 through Aug. 13 and will offer 23 days and nights of entertainment, food, rides, shopping, exhibits and more. The Fair is open Wednesdays through Fridays from noon to midnight, and Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to midnight. 
2017 OC Fair promo photos: bit.ly/2OCFair17photos

Press credential requests: bit.ly/ocfairpress

Friday, June 16, 2017 (4:44 pm)

The 2017 OC Fair won’t just be a fried food frenzy. Award-winning pastry chef and master chocolatier Stephané Tréand will showcase his talents in the OC Promenade during the Fair’s run from July 14 through Aug. 13.

Tréand, a Tustin resident, is the owner of The Pastry School and St. Pâtisserie Chocolat in Costa Mesa. His next adventure will be a booth at the 2017 OC Fair.

From chocolate to croissants, macarons to meringues, Tréand will have a large variety of French treats at his booth. The big item will be a macaron gelato sandwich, which is a first for the OC Fair. He will also have a chocolate orange tarte to represent Orange County and the OC Fair.

Tréand’s demonstrations will feature tartlets, chocolate bonbons, truffles, caramels, macarons, cookies, marshmallows, profiteroles and more.

On Sunday, July 30, he’ll be on the Main Stage creating a highly technical sugar art sculpture right before your eyes! Keeping with the OC Fair’s Farm Fresh Fun theme, Tréand will use the power of a fire torch to glue large pieces of the sugar together to create one magnificent piece of art.

“My piece has to be unique for the Fair,” Tréand said. “I don’t recycle ideas.”

Tréand will also hold cookie decorating classes for kids and teens on July 27 and August 6. Although the cookies will be baked a head of time, it will be up to the kids to create their designs using the variety of colors of royal icing, edible pearls and more.

“They won’t have to follow a recipe or anything, they will have total freedom to be creative,” Tréand said. “The creative freedom allows kids to create something they can feel proud of, so I think it will be really great for them.”

Originally from Paris, Tréand got his start as an apprentice at a local pastry shop in Northern France, all while taking pastry courses one week per month in Vincennes, Paris. Tréand opened his first patisserie tearoom, Pâtisserie Tréand, in Brignoles in Provence in 1989. A few years later, he decided to share his passion of pastries with others and became a teacher at the CFA of St. Maximin.

Tréand’s knack for sweets isn’t the only special thing about him. In 2004, he won the coveted Meilleur Ouvrier de France (M.O.F.), which is the most prestigious award given by the President of France to a professional in a certain trade.

Tréand led a stage demo at the 2016 OC Fair and was a huge success. This year he’ll have his own booth in OC Promenade.

“People are very curious about the art of patisseries here,” Tréand said. “I’m looking forward to educating people and making people aware of working from scratch, artistry and French pastries.”

Thursday, June 15, 2017 (5:03 pm)

Congratulations to the La Habra culinary team for winning the Cooking Up Change challenge!

The contest, sponsored by Kid Healthy, was held on June 12 and featured a total of seven teams. 

Centennial Farm hosted a workshop for Orange County’s Cooking Up Change students early in the season. Kid Healthy is one of the programs Centennial Farm’s supervisor Evy Young and Culinary Arts supervisor Pam Wnuck have supported because they promote agriculture, nutrition, culinary initiatives and healthy eating.

Read more about the competition on OC Register