For those who are not in the know, dahlings, Beaujolais is the young, refreshing and fruity wine that is so popular in French cafés and bistros. Therese Agnese, who is happily married to top French pastry chef Philippe Agnese, explained to moi, "Following regulations, the first bottles of Beaujolais Nouveau vintage 2001 were made available to wine lovers beginning Nov. 15 this year, the third Thursday of the month. This is the precise time when the wines attained their maturity and concentration. These wines must be enjoyed young, as they are not intended for keeping. This year’s Beaujolais Nouveau boasts of a wide range of aromas, with hints of strawberry and raspberry."
Between Nov. 8 to 13, elegant Air France, naturellement, flew in over 1,600 tons of Beaujolais Nouveau to Asia, the US, South American, Africa and French overseas departments. About 100 flights brought the wines from Paris’ Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports.
Although 856 tres chi-chi hotshots of the French community and their special invitees were expected at the NBC Tent, it seemed as if the number had doubled – or even tripled – once the guests went inside for all the action.
"It’s a fantastic turn out," said a beaming Roger Ferrari, president of the Comite Executif of the popular Le Club (the local French Business Association) while holding his Beaujolais wine glass in hand. He addressed tons of happy invitees who ate their hearts out with the delicious patés, sausages, French perciutto ham, canapés, cheese dips, other finger food, and at least eight kinds of bread.
There were other tables on which were served nothing but the best cheeses moi have indulged in. "The heck with calorie counting!" moi thought. One does not often get to savor excellent cheeses like those served that night. The cheeses were all flown in by Air France and chosen by the talented executive chef of Westin Philippine Plaza Hotel, tres amicable Jean Marie Pougnet, who also did all the other yummies and bread I mentioned.
One beheld a passage way to a vineyard at the Tent’s entrance. The atmosphere inside, meanwhile, was one of a fabulous street-party.
In the center of it all was a huge barrel of Beaujolais Nouveau 2001. Waiters ran around with more Beaujolais wine on their trays, dahlings.
Prizes were raffled off courtesy of Air France, a major sponsor of the event: two fabi Manille-Paris-Manille round-trip Business Class tickets. Le tres charmant Louis Vergeon (who lived in gorgeous Monte Carlo for years) the respected general manager of Air France-Philippines, awarded the tickets to two winners. The lucky gentlemen will soon experience the convenience of a smooth non-stop flight to Paris. They will also enjoy the super comfort of Air France’s popular L’Espace Affaires, with wide seats that recline up to 145 degrees and which are equipped with state-of-the-art amenities. They surely won’t forget their flights, dahlings.
Once the raffle was over, it was dance-till-you-drop time with the super sounds of Spirit of 67 and one-man band, Moise Ouaknine. Their music kept at least 900 of the partying personas dancing and socializing till way past 2 a.m., would you believe?
Having a blast were the Air France clan led by the airline’s first couple, Louis Vergeon and his tres charmant wife, attractive blonde lady, Francoise V.; smart, good-looking bachelor, Bingo Braganza, Air France’s magnum sales manager; and adorable Therese Agnese, the top-of-the-line executive secretary of Air France’s GM.
Circulating like forever were the heavyweight personas behind the prestigious Le Club: its president Roger F.; vice presidents Christophe Lejeune and Jean-Pierre Etroit; dashing eligible businessmen and directors Jacques Aguirre Dupasquier and Christian Mathieu; Jean-Pierre Gautier, treasurer; another charmant persona Edouard Miailhe, secretary; and Henry Ortiz, administrator. Helping out in every way she could was dedicated administrative assistant Melanie Colas.
It was definitely a fantastic night with a perfect mix of personas; perfect cocktail food and cheeses; perfect music; and of course, perfect wine.
As moi pal Johnny Litton said while emceeing the affair, "It’s the first time we are drinking our wine and not perspiring!" As Beaujolais flowed endlessly, party-philes wobbled out to their cars. Many made it while others just flopped over.
Now, dahlings, that’s partying the French way. N’est ce pas?
Pals have told moi time and again that all the pictures appearing in this column do tell a story – be it a celebration of life, a victory, a commemoration of an achievement, or simply a gathering of pals and loved ones. Moi may name the "Who’s Who" in the crowd, but the person who captures these moments on film and conveys a thousand things through his pictures is moi third eye and Philippine STAR’s photographer par excellence, Alex Van Hagen.
"Taking pictures goes beyond strapping your favorite camera onto your neck and clicking away," reveals the much-loved Alex V.H. "You should also have a good sense of timing, especially if you are covering an event. It’s more important to capture moments that define what really is happening."
True enough, palanggas, behind the glamorous people striking a pose for Alex are tales worth retelling and reliving as time goes by. Apres all these years, one wonders how Alex has managed to keep all his pictures neatly stored considering the thousands of rolls of film he has used.
"It used to be a big problem," admits Alex. "But not since I discovered Kodak Picture CD. Going through my file now is just a breeze."
Alex says that the new Kodak Picture CD helps him to conveniently and safely store pictures. Once the processed negatives are saved in the CD, dahlings, it allows the user to browse through the file using a computer or even create a full-screen slideshow. And with the computer’s basic editing and correction tools, pictures can likewise be enhanced and fun effects can be applied. This feature is ideal for those who like experimenting or testing their creativity.
The pictures can also be easily sent via e-mail, or used to make custom wallpapers for computer desktops. Not bad, huh? Not bad at all!
But most important of all, according to Alex, all pictures stored in the Kodak Picture CD are secured with Kodak’s exclusive Picture guard Technology. "It really makes the pictures last a lifetime," quips Alex.
So now you know the secret to storing brilliant pictures. Gone are the days of rummaging through photo albums, ransacking drawers or even turning your place inside out just to look for a picture.
Take it from the society lensman who tells a tale not with a pen but with his ever-reliable camera, palanggas.
The majesty and splendor of Vienna’s renowned event will be relived at the Johann Strauss Society, Inc.’s Debutantes Ball on Feb. 23 next year at the NBC Tent in the Bonifacio Global City. This will be the second time the society will undertake a debutantes ball following the success of the Vienna Opera Ball where 20 eye-catching debutantes were presented to Cosmo Manille society.
The Debutantes Ball will be presented in cooperation with the Friends for the Development of Arts and Culture Foundation headed by Chito Madrigal- Collantes, no less. The ball aims to generate funds to support music scholarships abroad (especially to Austria) of deserving members of the Manila Symphony Orchestra II.
Like the previous ball, the gala event will gather Philippine society’s most charming young ladies 16 to 22 years of age. They will be presented in a night featuring Austrian waltz music and dance, an Austrian conductor, an Austrian choreographer, and the artistry of the Manila Symphony Orchestra.
Society lady Letty Syquia chairs the elite Debutantes Ball committee composed of Mandarin Oriental’s well-respected GM Helmut Gaisberger; mega interior designer Jun-Jun Ablaza; popular socialites Helen Ong, Mellie Ablaza and Celia Cuasay for the debutantes; Marietta Guanzon-Holmgren (ads and sponsorship); and Ces Manalo (program).
All the young ladies who are interested to participate, palanggas, have until – take note now – Dec. 14 to contact the Johann Strauss secretariat at tel. no. 819-9667 or 734-2112 for details.
Check them out, ladies. After all, a debut is the first biggest event in a young lady’s beautiful life (the next being your wedding day, palanggas).
See you.