So the local economy is supposedly tanking, companies are downsizing … and yet, life is GOOD when you can spend an afternoon sipping wine and tasting great cheeses of all shapes, textures, flavors and colors.

On Sunday, I checked out the final day of the first annual American Cheesemaker Awards gathering, a literal nirvana for foodies at the Fairmont Hotel in Newport Beach.

Thursday through Sunday, Nov. 15-18, the epicurean event brought together top local and national chefs, taste experts and purveyors, and 25 cheesemakers from California, Idaho, Indiana, New York, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin showing off their excellent artisanal cheeses.

There was an official judging and awards dinner, and a series of “Cheese Academy” classes, open to the public, where the best of Orange County’s taste experts, like Napa Rose executive chef Andrew Sutton, Sapphire Pantry cheese monger Starr Cornwall and The Island Hotel’s executive chef Bill Bracken, offered tips and lessons on cooking with cheese and pairing it with other foods and wine.

But the ultimate reason to be there was to TASTE some 100 of these amazing cheeses. What an incredible feeling to pick up a wine glass, a small plate and napkin, and then walk into a huge tent to see table after table of cheddar, mozzarella, goat cheese, plus perfect pairing goodies from Bristol Farms’ bounty, from fig spread to olives to truffle butter (sinfully indulgent!).

My top discoveries:
1. Fiscalini Farmstead cheese from Modesto: specifically, the nutty, buttery, perfect San Joaquin Gold, which was “intended to be a fontina but developed into a unique cheese” as their literature put it; and the Vintage Bandaged Cheddar, a classic English style, aged 18 months for a lovely sharp taste that’s smooth on the finish.
I was especially enamored of cheesemaker Mariano Gonzalez, who took me over to a larger display of the bandage-wrapped cheddar and proudly explained that every day for two months, he turns the wrapped cheese upside down to stabilize the moisture and promote even growth of mold to create the rind underneath the cloth. “This is my baby,” Mariano said with a smile.
The “baby” actually loses weight as it ages and firms up, dropping from 60 pounds to about 55 pounds by the end of the 18 months.
Both cheeses won American Cheesemaker Awards, the San Joaquin Gold for “Best Hard Cow’s Milk Cheese,” the Vintage Bandaged for “Best Firm Cow’s Milk Cheese.”

2. Beecher’s cheese (pictured in the lead photo) is handmade at Pike Place Market in Seattle, one of my favorite places. Beecher’s signature Flagship (billed as “Wine’s best friend”) won the “Best Semi Hard Cow’s Milk Cheese” award. It’s hearty, nutty and would taste great in an omelette or simply with some crusty bread.

3. The Aged Cardona and Cocoa Cardona (aged and rubbed with that rich dark powder), goat cheeses from 105-year-old Carr Valley Cheese in Wisconsin. These are firmer cheeses, aged to taste closer to cheddar than the fresh Chevre usually associated with goat’s milk.

4. Grill cheese directly on a non-stick skillet for a mouth-watering treat — especially if it’s the creamy, mild but flavorful Jersey cow cheddar from the Ballard Family’s Idaho dairy. Steve Ballard showed us how simple it is, and Stacie served up the grilled pieces dipped in lemon, balsamic vinegar and other tasteful accompaniments.

The best news: you can find all of the above cheeses at Bristol Farms (in fact, apparently Carr Valley and Ballard inked deals with the gourmet grocery during the event).

And learning that there are domestic cheesemakers that can compete with the Europeans made me proud to be an American.

With Azmin Ghahreman, the enthusiastic, brilliant chef-owner of Sapphire Laguna & Pantry leading this cheese fest as event chairman, I knew the quality would be nothing but top-notch. But it was even better than expected, and many of the cheesemakers confirmed this, saying they didn’t know what to expect and ultimately were impressed with the attention to detail and quality of participants and crowd.

I’d say the only thing that verged on “cheesy” in its negative connotation were these cheese carvings:

… though, there definitely is some impressive craftsmanship, especially in the turkey!

For more on the American Cheesemaker Awards, including a full list of winners, go to the event web site.

For more on cheese and the best local cheese shops, check out this Party Gal column.

For the Orange County Register’s Monday news story on the event, click here.

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Share your Halloween photos with us by uploading them at squeezeoc.com/photos.

– KELLI SKYE

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This bilingual pop-punk band is a KICK to see live, a quintessential Southern California band with goofy-clever lyrics, and tunes that range from cheeky-sweet melodies (like “Pantalon” quoted above) to driving punk beats (”Stalk U,” “Van Nuys (es very nice)”).

We saw the energetic-yet-graceful Lady P and her hombres Thursday night at the Galaxy Theater in Santa Ana, and it was probably the best live music deal in the O.C. that night: for $10 we got a great dose of infectious music, plus the always lively visual show…

…with slender-petite Pilar belting out the hits (”I didn’t, I didn’t, I didn’t mean to stalk u …”) while alternately pogo-ing, prancing, playing the ukelele and crouching close to the crowd; lead guitarist Don Verde and bassist Vira Lata jammin’ and riffin’ while writhing on the floor; and drummer Dulce drummin’ his ass off. For a few more photos, click here.

The band played like they were in a huge arena - tho the Galaxy was only about half-full. Lucky us - it was like we got Los Abandoned to come play at a house party or something.

Even some older, white hippie guys couldn’t stop dancing, making us think: how great that Los Abandoned brings all ages, races and hairstyles together.

Los Abandoned doesn’t get to O.C. that often - saw the group in another awesome show at JC Fandango about six months back - but you can catch them up in L.A. pretty regularly. Next gig: Sept. 14 at John Anson Ford Amphitheatre, as supporting act for Zoe.

Speaking of supporting acts, the second warmup band Thursday at the Galaxy was a lovely discovery: Ceci Bastida, a charming singer-musician from Mexico who’s been backup singer and keyboardist for Julieta Venegas, and started her musical career at the tender age of 15, when she joined ska-punk group Tijuana NO.

If you like Julieta V, Cafe Tacuba and Ozomatli, you’ll dig Ceci’s rhythmic rock music. And you can catch Ceci in Orange County again on Sept. 20, when she, too, opens for Zoe, this time at House of Blues Anaheim.

Otherwise, head to the Knitting Factory in L.A. on Tuesday nights in September, when Ceci is the resident musician.

- Iris

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My friend and I have been exchanging odd gifts for the past couple of months. Our little gifts have ranged from My Little Ponies, parachute men, and Play-doh to sashes and tiaras. My mom and I recently visited the thriving Mecca that is Laughlin, Nevada and I found this little bedazzled frog in one of the Premium Outlet Shops. It was simply too amazing of a gift to leave behind, and far too awesome to not share in this public forum. This little froggy even has a name - he was dubbed “Oswaldo.” Enjoy.

- Kelli Skye

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In his intro for the evening, May said that the reason he wanted to put together the show was to show that the stereotype that only male comics are funny was ridiculous and that these female comedians were “really fuckin’ funny.”

Last night’s line up included May’s better half Lahna Turner (who is also seven-months pregnant with the couple’s first child), Lisa Alvarado, Gayla Johnson, Bernadette Balagtas, Jennifer Murphy and Alysia Wood.

If I had to pick a favorite for the night, it would be a toss up between Turner and Johnson. Turner’s music/comedy act and “Mayonnaise” song had me absolutely rolling and Johnson’s bit using those fake “Billy Bob” teeth almost made me pee myself. Bernadette Balagtas impersonation of her Pilipino mother and how she could get a family of eight Philipino’s into a theme park on one annual pass, was another highlight of the night.

This group of ladies are all very different - some are married, some are single (very single, and they let you know it), and they vary in age and ethnicity.

Definitely check these ladies out, they perform locally quite a bit, either at the Improvs or some of the local venues that have regular comedy nights (like Martini Blues in Huntington Beach or Detroit Bar in Costa Mesa).

- KELLI SKYE

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Professional tennis usually is a shhh sport. Whispers are all that’s allowed. Not so at Newport Beach’s World Team Tennis match Wednesday between Maria Sharapova’s Newport Beach Breakers and John McEnroe’s New York Sportstimes.

The fans were boisterous, the 1970s music loud, and the players loved it.
I’ve been to many pro tennis matches, and this is the first time I’ve seen Sharapova’s personality on the court. She had fun, laughed, talked, smiled … and oh yeah, still grunted on every serve.

Click here to view the embedded video.

She looked like a runway model in a tennis skirt, a 6-foot-1 blonde beauty who towered over her female counterparts and looked eye to eye to most of the men. Living in Manhattan Beach, she made the easy drive to Newport on Wednesday to play WTT. She teased McEnroe about his ‘two shades of blue’ pregame outfit, and McEnroe amazingly took it quite well.

McEnroe, now 48 years old, showed a bit of humbleness before the match, saying for the first time in his life he feels like Father Time has a two-set lead on him. He still posseses those magic hands at the net, and his sweet backhand volley in men’s doubles secured the match that gave the Sportstimes an easy victory over the Breakers in the final match of the season.

McEnroe, once known as The Brat for boorish attitude on court, was as sweet as could be Wednesday. After hitting a 116-mile serve for an ace, he rolled up his sleeve and flexed his muscle for the sellout crowd. A fan yelled ‘Johnny Mac!’ and McEnroe turned and said ‘(Rafael) Nadal is jealous.’

There were six other players on the court on Wednesday, four on each team, including Laguna Beach’s Rick Leach who played for the Breakers, but no doubt the fans bought tickets to see Sharapova and McEnroe. And they didn’t disappoint.

Every fan 16 years and younger received a free tennis racket and ball. After the game they were invited to get autographs.

The line lasted 25 minutes. The players didn’t seem to mind.

The three week WTT season will resume around this time next year. Sharapova plans to return but McEnroe wasn’t as sure.

- SCOTT ALBERT and LAILA D.

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Which is the worst tan on a SqueezeOC staffer?

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It was Kids Day at the fair, and children ages 12 and under were admitted free, a promotion running Tuesdays through July. (In my excitement about the freebie offer, I overlooked that kids ages 5 and under are always free. But I’m still glad we went).

I was excited but nervous about our venture. Kids, hot weather, and crowds/long lines can prove a disastrous combination. But the day was easy, and we had a blast!

We spent the day at Kidland and the animal pavilion. And there are lots of free activities for the little ones, many based on this year’s “Cowabunga!” theme.

Here are the highlights:

Cowabunga Beach is a surf-theme pavilion in Kidland that offers a large sandbox “beach” where kids can dig in the sand with shovels and pails. There’s also free games like a water balloon splat, balloon blast (pumping a balloon with air till it pops), and beach ball basketball. The Toddler Tidepool is a calm area where little ones can play with developmental toys. The adjacent Cowabunga Stage offers fun shows, like juggling acts.

Our favorite activity was the kid-size Ralph’s grocery store. Kids can stroll around with a pint-size cart and shop for 10 items or less, which includes plastic and real groceries. It was interesting to observe what my boy shopped for, which surprisingly included a plastic cucumber and French bread loaves. An employee “rings up” the items with a play cash register and bags the groceries, which the kids then put away themselves.

And my boys also loved the Prehistoric Pets area, where you can get up close to pythons, iguanas and other reptiles (housed safely in terrariums), and touch giant tortoises.

Tips for a fun day at the fair:

• Bring bottled water
• Wear sunscreen (and a hat)
• Bring travel-size hand sanitizer
• Bring snacks
• Play kids music in the car for the long wait to get a parking spot
• Pay the $10 for preferred parking, which puts you close to the entrance. (Trust me, you’ll be happy you did!)
• To save more cash, go for the $20 wristbands (sold till 5 p.m. Tuesdays-Wednesdays), which gets you unlimited rides till 8 p.m.

~Cynthia

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Five brave SqueezeOC staffers will be embarking on a journey to downtown Fullerton this Friday from noon-1:30 p.m. for the Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream’s Rocky Road Lunch Break Challenge. We’re not quite sure what to expect but were told that it involved teamwork, fun, and a scavenger hunt on the streets of downtown Fullerton.

All we needed to be told was that there was FREE ice cream involved and SqueezeOC was all in. This event coincides with the celebration of national ice cream month and is also an event created to bring about a sense of community and teamwork amongst co-workers and local businesses. Participants will have to complete wacky stunts and a mad-dash search for clues and a race to find the scavenger objects.

Two runners-up will receive an ice cream party from Dreyer’s and all participants will receive a $20 Dreyer’s gift certificate.

Come on down to Villa Del Sol (305 N. Harbor Blvd.) in Fullerton to help cheer us on and enjoy some free ice cream treats from Dreyer’s!

-Kelli

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