Things to do in Brevard Oct. 31-Nov. 6: wine dinner, concerts, fall fest, musical theater
Single and loving it
Café Margaux will focus on international single vineyard wines for its November wine dinner. Why single vineyard? It’s all about the extraordinary and the exclusive.
“Some vineyards can grow exceptional grapes over time as the vines gain maturity and develop harmony with their location and terroir,” said Stephen Squibbs of Folio Fine Wine Partners, who will give be the featured speaker at the dinner at 6:30 p.m., Thursday and Friday, Nov. 1 and 2.
“When one vineyard tends to produce great fruit year after year, some producers will set it aside and bottle it separately as a Single Vineyard. They feel it would be a shame to blend it in with other sites and water down its unique characteristics.”
Most single vineyard wines are hard to find because they are produced in limited quantities usually reserved for the winery’s wine clubs. Whereas most wines are blended from several sites, the amount of wine provided by these single vineyards is limited to the crop from that year.
“That’s why we are showcasing some of these wines at the upcoming dinner at Café Margaux,” said Squibbs.
“We are going to take people on a culinary and wine adventure to enjoy unique grape varietals from around the world.”
The seven-course paired menu includes roasted corn and shrimp bisque, arugula and frisee salad with fried pancetta and brie and golden apple Dijon sauce, sea bass wrapped in prosciutto, cider-braised pork belly, Manchego and walnut-crusted beef tenderloin, a cheese course of Fontina from Italy and dessert of Granny Smith apple cake with lemon ricotta mousse.
Cost is $95. Reserve at 321-639-8343. For full menu, visit margaux.com.
Café Margaux is at 220 Brevard Ave., Cocoa Village.
What hump?
There is much to love about “Young Frankenstein,” the Mel Brooks musical horror spoof that features hump-shifting hunchback Igor, among the cast of weirdos.
Surfside Playhouse is reviving the classic 1974 film beginning Friday, Nov. 2. Bryan Bergeron directs the zany romp about young Dr. Frederick Frankenstein, pronounced Fronkensteen, in his quest to bring a corpse to life. Anthony DeTrano plays the good doc to Joel Shugars tap-dancing Monster.
“Between our great cast, the amazing sets and the comic genius of Mel Brooks, this show is going to be a monster hit,” said Bergeron.
Performances are at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturdays and at 2 p.m. on Sundays. A special 2 p.m. matinee is also available on Saturday, Nov. 17. Tickets are $25 for general admission and discounted to $22 for seniors, military and students. Purchase at the door or at SurfsidePlayhouse.org.
The show runs through Nov. 18.
Surfside Playhouse is at 301 Ramp Road, Cocoa Beach. For more information, call 321-783-3127.
Painless shopping
Hope Episcopal Church hopes the community will head for its Suntree Fall Festival to snag some interesting and affordable holiday gifts. Forty-five vendors will offer arts and crafts, jewelry, antiques and more from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 3, at the church, 190 Interlachen Road, just west of the Public Plaza on Wickham Road.
The fundraiser also features attic treasure items priced to sell. For a $10 donation, L.A. Davis, valuation expert and author, will evaluate the treasures you bring.
Face painting, music and food trucks, plus the Hope Café, round out the proceedings. The first 150 families receive a free swag bag.
For more information, call 321-259-5810.
Enchanting harvest
The Enchanted Forest Sanctuary will celebrate autumn with the third annual Harvest Festival from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 3.
The free event features guided hikes, hay rides, animal encounters, music by the Freightliners bluegrass band, exhibitors, nature crafts and more.
The Enchanted Forest is at 444 Columbia Blvd., Titusville.
For more information, call 321-264-5185.
Baker Family
The award-winning Baker Family Band from Birch Tree, Missouri, will be in Titusville for a JT’s Bluegrass concert at 7 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 3, at Faith City Church, 5195 S. Washington Ave., aka U.S. 1.
The band features Trustin Baker, 19, on fiddle and banjo; Carina Baker, 16, on mandolin; 14-year-old Elijah Baker on upright bass, mother Carrie Baker on guitar and Joey Shann on banjo and dobro. All of the Baker children sing lead vocals and harmony and Carina also dances the jig.
Last month, Trustin won the 46th annual Grand Master Fiddler Championship, held in Nashville at the Country Music Hall of Fame. In 2016, the band won the International Country Gospel Music Association’s Bluegrass Band of the Year award.
“Walking a Straight Path” is the title of the group’s new album, with a song of the same name included in their concert playlist. The song by Mark Brinkman is currently number five and climbing on Singing Radio News bluegrass gospel charts.
Tickets are $21. Call 321-222-7797 or visit JTsBluegrass.com.
Heartfelt tribute
The program in the Space Coast Symphony Wind Orchestra’s “Lord of the Rings” concert includes composer and guest conductor Joshua Hobbs’ “Many Hearts One Pulse,” an elegy for those lost in the Pulse nightclub tragedy in June of 2016. The moving work will be performed by Juan Berrios, virtuoso horn player from the Dallas Brass, one of American’s foremost musical ensembles. Hobbs’ music has been performed by groups that include the United States Air Force Band, Dallas Wind Symphony, Summit Brass and the Saint Louis Brass.
The concert also includes Johan de Meij’s epic “The Lord of the Rings,” the incredible 1988 work the made de Meij’s name world-renowned as a top composer for wind orchestra.
“He was inspired to put Tolkein's story to music decades before the movies were ever conceived,” said artistic director Aaron Collins.
The program begins at 7 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 3, at Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy’s Scott Center, 5625 Holy Trinity Dr.
Tickets are $25 in advance. Purchase at SpaceCoastSymphony.org or in-person at Marine Bank & Trust in Suntree. Tickets at the door are $30. Students 18 and under or with student ID are admitted free.
For more information, call 855-252-7276.
The ladies of the club
Join the ladies of the Cocoa Beach Woman’s Club at 3:30 on Thursday, Nov. 1, at the Cocoa Beach Country Club for a meet-and-greet. The club has several upcoming events, including a Nov. 17 lunch and Bunco party and a Dec. 6 Christmas luncheon. New members are welcome.
For information, call 321-544-0633.
With much fanfare
The brand-new Space Coast Symphony Youth Orchestra debuts with “Fanfare and Salutations,” a free concert at 5 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 4, at Highland Avenue Fellowship, 1591 Highland Ave., Melbourne.
The youth’s Philharmonic Orchestra open with Shostakovich’s ‘Festive Overture.” The concert also includes Dvorák’s Ninth Symphony.
For more information, call 321-652-4913 or visit SCSYO.us.
The Nutcracker and the tortoise
Enjoy a private showing of several dances from “The Nutcracker Ballet” when Brevard Ballet performs at 6 p.m. at the Tortoise Island Clubhouse, 727 Loggerhead Island Drive, Satellite Beach.
The fundraiser includes hors d’oeuvres, live entertainment, raffles and cash bar.
Tickets are $50 per person and $90 per couple. Purchase at BrevardBallet.com/fundraiser.
Take a stroll
Join Eau Gallie Arts District artist Nancy Dillen on a one-hour stroll around the neighborhood to discover the murals, mosaics and sculptures in the area. Meet at 9 a.m., Saturday, Nov. 3, in the lobby of the Eau Gallie Public Library, and don’t forget your camera.
For more, see dillenart.com.
Fab Four
Enjoy “Across the Universe,” billed as the ultimate Beatles tribute band, during First Friday by the Bay, from 5 to 10 p.m., Friday, Nov. 2, at Celebration Square, U.S. 1 and Port Malabar Blvd., Palm Bay.
Beer, wine, food trucks, vendors and bounce house will be there, too. See pbfl.org/firstfriday.
Insta star
If you love looking at beautiful food almost as much as you love eating it, check out chefsalert.com, a site that promotes gorgeous food photography. The site currently is running its Fine Food 50 contest, and two dishes by chef Ercan Ekinci of Green Turtle Market are in the running.
Photos were selected from the best posts on the ChefsAlert Instagram feed. The contest runs through Nov. 30. The Fine Food 50 will be spotlighted on ChefsAlert's Instagram starting Dec. 1. Vote at chefsalert.com.
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