Whoopee for fall! As temperatures descend to more manageable levels — for which you can stop carrying antiperspirant pretty much everywhere you go — it's prime time to let loose and have fun on the town, indoors and outdoors.
On the schedule this week is a melange of happenings welcoming a new spirit in honor of autumn. Start with a date auction that benefits the city's canopy, check out a concert of young trailblazing composers of yesteryear, drink beer al fresco, support local vendors and enjoy a wine tasting event that will challenge your taste buds — and ego.
Click on the link below each event suggestion. I have put together a helpful listing with additional intel that includes where to eat, drink and shop en route to your outing, with a nifty feature that downloads the deets to your electronic calendar.
RedBuds Membership Drive and Date Auction
Single and not loving it? Buy yourself a little fun while feeling good about it at this young professionals gathering. RedBuds, the supporters who believe in the mission of Trees for Houston, has gathered a clique of fetching guys and gals who are on the block for a potential love connection.
Up for grabs is a trio of CultureMap's most eligible, Ashley Wyatt, Crystin Pactor and Rozel Jones, alongside Ernst & Young CPA Dustin Menniti, chef Kevin Naderi, attorney Adam Curley, engineer Kristen Atherton and investment analyst Travis Cook.
Da Camera presents "Twenty-Something: Mozart and Schubert"
Think of the composers of yore: Do you picture old men wearing white wigs? Perhaps it's the gravitas associated with the refinement of the genre that conjures up images of seasoned tunesmiths at their respective instruments, pensively taking notes from a magical muse.
Reality check, y'all. Composers were at one point babies, they went through their awkward tweens era and had to deal with acne. Before they turned 30 years old, Schubert and Mozart had already birthed some of their greatest oeuvres. And that's a good thing since their time ran out when they were in their 30s. Discover them with Da Camera at this carefully curated concert, courtesy of artistic director Sarah Rothenberg.
The skinny: Friday, 8 p.m., Wortham Theater Center; tickets start at $28.
2013 Brenner's Fall Beer Fest
A collection of local craft beers, great grub and a bucolic setting that whisks you away to a mountain scene somewhere amid the Rockies — in a nutshell, that's Brenner's Fall Beer Fest.
I can't help feel like I am lounging in a rustic, lodge-like ski resort when I visit Brenner's Steakhouse on the Bayou. The backdrop is a lovely way to usher the official beginning of autumn with suds, food and live music.
Bravado Spice hosts "Good Vibes Party Round 3"
Now that MasterChef contestant James Nelson is back in Houston, he's managed to balance techie life working at Apple with nurturing his business, Bravado Spice, and fulfilling his penchant for a good party.
The company's "Good Vibes Party" has grown exponentially since the inaugural bash two months ago such that the hot sauce dude and business partner Jeremiah Tallerine needed to move the proceedings from Liberty Station to Cottonwood. Think of this soirée as a farmers market after dark with bad ass music and alternative folks doing their best to support local endeavors. I say join in the party.
The skinny: Saturday, 3 p.m. to Sunday, 2 a.m.; Cottonwood; free event.
Old World vs. New World Wine Dinner at La Colombe d'Or
The battle lines have been drawn for this wine challenge that pits two traditions of happy juice. One one corner, "old world" French wines at the top of their game. On another, it's newcomer "new world" American varietals.
Sébastien Laval, the French maitre d' at La Colombe d'Or, and Restaurant Cinq chef German Mosquera have designed a four-course menu with wine pairings from both terroirs, including vintages of repute. These will be compared side-by-side blindly so that wine and food aficionados may draw their own conclusions. The question becomes: Are you for Team USA or Team France?
The skinny: Saturday, 7 p.m.; La Colombe d'Or; tickets are $199 per person.
Staff writer and in-house food savant Eric Sandler's pick: Blacksmith by Night pop-up dinner with Manabu Horiuchi
Eric says: "Montrose coffee shop Blacksmith continues its monthly pop-up series, Blacksmith by Night, Sunday. Kata Robata's celebrated sushi master Manabu Horiuchi will serve a seasonally inspired menu of dishes that feature a wide variety of ingredients. I don't know what an uni (sea urchin) croquette is, but my life suddenly feels incomplete without it. Pork ribs with yuzu koshu slaw sounds pretty good, too.
"Still hungry afterward? There's always the MangiaMaccheroni pop-up at Camerata after."
The skinny: Sunday, 5 p.m.; Blacksmith; pricing a la carte.
Discover the music of young Mozart and Schubert with Da Camera courtesy of artistic director Sarah Rothenberg.
