Get your taste buds ready, the third annual Taste TV Los Angeles Luxury Chocolate Salon will be held on October 11th 2009, 11am-5pm at the Pasadena Center. It's even bigger this year, with over 16,000 square feet, over twice as much room as last year. Participants include over over 35 chocolatiers, confectioners, wineries and other culinary artisans, such as: Choclatique, Happy Chocolates, Rushburn Toffee Co., The Tea Room chocolate, Quady Winery, Chocolatl, Alter Eco Fair Trade Chocolate, Helen Grace Chocolates, Mignon Chocolate, TCHO, Amano Artisan Chocolate, Plush Puff Gourmet Marshmallows, Sweet Beauty Organic Chocolate Spa and many more. In addition to the delicious sampling opportunities there will also be demonstrations, chef and author talks, wine tasting and a chocolate chef competition. Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 at the door.

At the Pavilion Visconti in Milan, French champagne house G.H. Mumm just unveiled a special edition gift box designed for the recent Italian Grand Prix Formula One championship, won by Brawn-Mercedes driver Rubens Barrichello. Made from carbon fiber with gold plate details and a black velvet interior, the limited edition G.H. Mumm F1 Box will be available to order in Italy only for €5,000, or about $7,300. It's the cornerstone of a collection of champagne accessories commemorating the famed race designed exclusively for Mumm, founded in 1827 and now owned by Pernod Ricard.

[via BornRich]

Sir Roger Moore, famed for his portrayal of James Bond in the '70s and '80s, helped launched Swedish boatmaker J Craft's "Bentley of the Seas," the J Craft Torpedo (above), at the Monaco Yacht Show the other day. The Swedish boat building tradition is one of hand shaped hulls, rock solid construction and meticulous craftsmanship. The bespoke 42-ft. motorboat takes this practice to its extreme in every detail. The eco-friendly mahogany deck is lacquered 18 times for the perfect combination of gloss and strength. Every detail is meticulously hand finished, from the stitching on the leather upholstery to the finish of the bow chocks. No two Torpedos are exactly alike. Its Volvo Penta IPS engines can push the vessel up to speeds of 44 knots, the hand made steering wheel is from the same manufacturer that made the Ferrari 250 GTO a winner on racetracks and it even comes with a set of silver cutlery designed by HRH Prince Carl Philip of Sweden.

These days museums are struggling harder than ever to make ends meet and one way to host weddings and other events. The Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia takes this to a new level. The museum had a $100,000 makeover and has a designated website, Events at ISM, that includes information on the variety of spaces available including not just the galleries but a theater that seats 63, a 530-seat auditorium and outdoor space that includes a 3,000-square-foot amphitheater patio. The museum has partnerships with a variety of vendors for offering related services.

In profiling the changes, the Philadelphia Inquirer quotes museum president Lori Dillard Rech who said she wants the museum to "become the top-rated and top-used, unique rental space in the city." The Seaport Museum courted meeting planners, wedding consultants and other party professionals at a gala to show off the renovated spaces.

The museum's move to brand itself as an events venue may also be a way to distance itself from past scandal. A couple of years ago former the former museum president, John S. Carter, pleaded guilty to charges of fraud and tax evasion, accused of appropriating more than $1 million in funds from the museum and is currently serving a 15-year prison term.

There are many ways to measure progress in Iraq. Most of them tend to involve unpleasant and horrifying metrics, with the goal to keep them as low as possible. But, every now and then, it's possible to find something to celebrate. These days, it's an increase in upscale Iraqi weddings. More than mere nuptials, the country has seen a spike in elaborate and well attended ceremonies.

During the week following Ramadan, a holiday called Eid al-Fitr, approximately 630 couples tied the knot in Baghdad's six most luxurious hotels, according to the Tourism and Antiques Ministry. This rivals the number of weddings at these hotels conducted in both July and August.

In past years, the high volume of weddings, particularly during Eid, wouldn't have been possible, as potential celebrants would have feared insurgent attacks, suicide bombers and other threats to safety. Though precise data isn't available, September is estimated to be the busiest wedding month since the war began in 2003.

Wine, food and beautiful surroundings are the lures of the Taste Of The Beach Florida event. The four-day culinary and cultural celebration runs from November 5-8, 2009 on Northwest Florida's Gulf Coast and benefits children's charities. The festival is comprised of seven events ranging from wine tastings and film screenings to winemaker dinners and a charity auction all taking place in an area full of white sand beaches, boutiques and golf courses and other temptations. This stretch of Florida includes Escambia, Destin, Panama City Beach and many other towns an area that is often too warm in the summer months but very pleasant in the fall.

This year's events includes: Taste of The Harbor, Taste of Bay Wine & Food Experience, Al Fresco Reserve Tasting at Ruskin Place, Telluride MountainFilm on Tour, Seeing Red Wine Festival, a series of wine maker dinners at area restaurants, and the Taste of The Beach & Charity Auction. Various events range from $35 to $145. Tickets are available at the Taste of the Beach website.

The Black Eyed Peas have been unstoppable on the charts this summer and now the popular band is going for a unique pair of world records. The band is holding a charity auction on eBay to win the chance to join them as they try to set two records: the highest ever live performance and recorded track. Those who win will fly along with a guest on Richard Branson's V Australia from Los Angeles to Australia where they will then join a special Melbourne to Perth flight with the band. Winners will meet the band, watch them record and then the remainder of the flight becomes a Mile High Karaoke Party with the band. Winners will also attend the October 10 Black Eyed Peas concert in Perth and get a second band meet and greet. Roundtrip air and hotels are included but winner needs to get themselves to L.A. for the start of the package. Best of all , 100 percent of the proceeds benefit children's health research through the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research in Australia.

[via Just Jared]

There's no denying that the private service industry has changed over the past couple years. First the flood of freshly minted millionaires all around the globe meant that there was a dearth of qualified personnel to work as private service professionals. Butler schools sprung up and many people began planning career changes. Then the economy shifted and the amount of millionaires shrank and a global correction in regards to all luxury goods and services began.

But just as there will always be people to pay for fine whisky and beachside estates, there will always be people in need of good, qualified help. These days with the advances in communication, finding good help is no longer just a question of word of mouth. I recently chatted with David M. Bertnick, the president of IAPSP, a non-profit, trade association for the aggregate private service community, about the changing face of private service. The IAPSP is holding the 2009 IAPSP Inaugural Conference for Private Service next month, October 9-11 in Dallas Texas. Mr. Bertnick has served as a household manager, estate manager and personal assistant and has trained many others in the art of private service.

1. What exactly does your organization, the International Association for Private Service Professionals, do?

Established in 2006, the IAPSP is a non-profit, member-based, trade association for private service. It provides a platform for developing professionalism and leadership skills in the delivery of estate service. The IAPSP works to increase confidence, competency and skill by engaging its members in leadership opportunities, providing peer-to-peer networking, and sharing service knowledge within its ranks. Much of this work is done over the telephone and via the internet; however, our local chapters in Los Angeles and San Francisco meet monthly to learn from experts who provide products or services to the Luxury Market. Once a year, we produce a conference and invite the community to join us for the weekend event.


2. As you and I discussed earlier, the private service industry has changed a lot since Robert Frank wrote about it as the industry everyone was trying to get into back in 2007 as part of the research for his book "Richistan." How would you characterize the industry now?

One thing that hasn't seemed to change is the desire to break into our industry. Unfortunately, in the past, many have seen Private Service as a "fall-back" career, expecting that if worse came to worse they could "always be a domestic." This time, it hasn't worked out that way for individuals who are inexperienced or untrained in the art of private service. It seems a large portion of the wealth class has experienced the benefits of professional-level service in their homes and now has higher expectations. Even though many of them have scaled back the size of their estates - and the support staff required to operate them - they have kept the bar high in terms of who they will accept as service staff. A focus on quality, experience and expertise is now being applied to the search for estate staff as with any other type of expenditure.

Last week, Domaine Select Wine Estates hosted a party at New York's Classic Car Club as part of the launch of its Classic & Vintage Artisanal Spirits line. The line includes small-batch spirits, both imported and domestic, among them Armagnac Castarede from France, and one brand that I was particularly excited to sample, Tuthilltown's Hudson Valley, New York bourbon, whiskeys and apple vodka.

For the event, brand ambassadors The Tippling Brothers created cocktails that were inspired by a hot car. The tables were set up near their four-wheeled inspiration, a Bentley GTC, a 1965 Shelby Cobra replica, 1957 Porsche and a 2006 Lamborhgini Gallardo, among other cars -- each carefully watched by an attendant who almost never stopped rubbing the exterior with a chamois. (Here, one attendant take a very short break in a 1966 Ford Mustang Fastback.)

I just received the recipes for the cocktails, all of which were quite tasty, but my two favorites were both inspired by a Ferrari F430 -- which, sadly, didn't make an appearance at the event. Try these at home, but nowhere near whatever car is in your garage, please! And check out the photo gallery for more recipes.

Eve's Cup

1 oz G'Vine Floraison (A wonderfully floral French gin, must try straight up first.)
1 oz Averna
4 leaves of mint
Half a sprig of rosemary
tonic
1 barspoon chopped apples
Rosemary and apple garnish

Guerillas in Manhattan

2 oz Tuthilltown 4 Grain Bourbon
.75 oz sweet vermouth
.5 oz Orgeat
.25 oz fresh tangerine
2 slices fresh banana
2 dashes angostura
Garnish with brandied cherry

The Los Angeles nightclub scene got a major shakeup this weeks with the news that nightlife impresario Brent Bolthouse has split from Sam Nazarian's SBE Entertainment Group. SBE is behind the Katsuya restaurants, the SLS Hotel, the Abbey and more. SBE bought half of Bolthouse's production business in 2005. Known on the LA club scene for years, Bolthouse came to national prominence as Heidi Montag's former employer on the MTV show "The Hills." StyleSection LA reports that Bolthouse and business partner Jenifer Rosero will continue to operate Bolthouse Productions as an independent entity continuing to produce events for their many prestigious clients.

And in a related real estate update, Sam Nazarian's gorgeous Los Angeles lair which was listed at $18.5 million appears to have been pulled off the market.

No, not the latest bloated-budget Hollywood thriller, but something much closer to home: The Providence Effect, an award-winning documentary about Providence-St. Mel, a small school in Chicago's gritty East Garfield Park that has achieved an incredible 100% college acceptance rate against all odds.

Oprah deserves at least some of the credit; she gave the school $1 million to help fund the educational juggernaut that has been called the future of education. Obama meanwhile visited the school in 1998 and gave an incredible inspirational speech that showed he was destined for the highest office in the land.

The movie centers on the equally inspiring journey of the school's principal Paul J. Adams III, who has challenged the Chicago school system for 30 years with his revolutionary approaches to teaching, and also founded the Providence Englewood Charter School. Of course the Obamas and Oprah have been sent copies to view in their personal screening rooms, but the film opens in select theaters nationwide this Friday.

Fundraising for breast cancer research goes luxe at the "Cure In The Canyons" event at the Four Seasons Hotel Westlake Village in Westlake Village, California. The event on Sunday October 4 includes 29 cabanas offering free products, spa and beauty treatments from Kerstin Florian, Calidora Skin Clinic, Institut de Vie!, The California Wellness Institut, manicures by OPI, and a special appearance by Billy and Melissa Yamaguchi of Yamaguchi Salon who will conduct a Feng Shui beauty seminar while his dedicated style experts provide mini-makeovers. Gourmet food, cooking demonstrations, mini-seminars, wine and spirit tastings provided by ONEHOPE Wine, Korbel, and Heiniken, will also be part of the day. There is also a special men's lounge which includes men's spa treatments, beer, salsa and other snacks. Guests will also be able to test drive on of the three new 2010 Lexus Luxury Hybrids.

Funds raised at the event support local California research at USC/Norris Lee Breast Center, USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Michael Press MD PhD, and National Research. Grants are awarded as deemed by the Medical Advisory Board to have the most significance in the etiology, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of breast cancer. Tickets are available for $75 at the Cure in the Canyons website.

They do fundraising a bit different in the small town of St. Helena in the Napa Valley. Just Imagine, the joint fundraiser which benefits all St. Helena public schools, takes place next Saturday September 26 at The Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena and features an evening of dinner, dancing and auctions for $150. The Just Imagine auction catalog includes live auction items like a trip to Bordeaux that features a lunch with Michel Rolland, a girl's poker night atop Spring Mountain at Erna Schein Winery and David Abreu's Macho Magnums (40 magnums of Cabernet Sauvignons from Napa Valley's most famous names, all from the 2005 vintage, donated by David Abreu). Or how about a family food and gardening adventure from chef Michael Chiarello. The daylong family adventure will explore different aspects of foods we eat (farming, animal care, gardening or foraging), and will culminate in cooking with those foods.

You don't need to be at the event to purchase one-of-a-kind 'buy-a-spot lots,' that include a cocktail party for 50 hosted by Erle and Kristin Martin, an afternoon of hiking Mt. St. Helena, dining and wine tasting for 30 hosted by Spottswoode and Amici Vineyards, a holiday caroling event for 10 families hosted by Salvestrin Winery and the music teachers of St. Helena or a special showing of Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory at The Cameo Cinema featuring Woodhouse Chocolate. Tickets vary depending on the adventure.

On Friday, Sept. 25, Islay single malt Scotch Laphroaig is hosting Distillery LIVE 2009, an interactive, online webcast tasting for whisky fans across the globe. The star of the show is their new limited edition 18-Year-Old (right).

The 18-year aging process results in a Scotch bright gold in color enhanced by soft, sweet and spicy Islay peat smoke with a hint of the sea. The full-bodied whisky tastes of a tang of smoke that fades into smooth floral scents, which blends seamlessly into an oaky nuttiness and a lasting smooth, sweet finish.

Hosted in the United States for the first time, Laphroaig Distillery Manager John Campbell is traveling to bourbon country to join Maker's Mark Master Distiller Kevin Smith for the live-broadcast event at the Maker's Mark Distillery in Loretto, Kentucky.

Together Campbell and Smith, along with Malt Advocate magazine's John Hansell, will celebrate the relationship between Laphroaig and Maker's Mark, specifically the maturation process of Laphroaig in former Maker's Mark bourbon barrels, while educating consumers on traditional Laphroaig expressions.

The webcast is taking place at 8 p.m. EST on the 25th, and is accessible at www.distillerylive.us.com.

On Friday nights many people go on the quest for a good beer but take that simple idea to Per Se restaurant in New York City and the idea gets a little more complicated (and fabulous). Tomorrow, September 18, Per Se is hosting a beer-paired tasting dinner with brewmaster Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery. Brooklyn Brewery Beers will be matched with a seven-course tasting menu. Among the other offerings, this is your first chance to taste "Reinschweinsgebot" an innovative beer infused with bacon from Benton's Country Smokehouse. You can't go wrong with bacon. This event will take place in the Per Se Private Dining Room and costs $350 per person.