Jennifer Behar, Tara solomon and Belkys Nerey

Georges Duboeuf, the winery well-known for its artistic labels, a new one of which is debuted every year with much fanfare, celebrated the official release of the 2009 Beaujolais Nouveau at Au Pied Du Cochon on November 19^th in conjunction with the launch of a food drive to benefit Feeding South Florida (formerly Daily Bread Food Bank). Duboeuf winemaker, Stéphane Queralt arrived with the first case of Beaujolais Nouveau in a vintage Volkswagen “Love Bus” accompanied by a busload of hippies and chefs on motorcycles. Biker chefs included: Sean Bernal, Oceanaire Seafood Room; Sean Brasel and Mickey Deshane, Meat Market; Stéphane Hainaut, Barton G the Restaurant; Carla and Luis Lopez Soyka; Bruno Macazaga, Villagrande Club at Porto Vita; Kieran Masek, ONE Group-STK; Gerdy Rodriguez, MIA at Biscayne. The Hippie-Chic arrival was celebrated with a lavish lunch and, of course, lots of wine.

If you have glanced at the pages of the Miami Herald, Ocean Drive Magazine, People, Vogue, Rolling Stone, US Weekly, Paper, Socialmiami.com, or the New York Post over the past two decades, chances are you have come across Manny Hernandez’s photos. And if “beauty lies in the eye of the beholder,” then you are lucky if you have been “beheld” by Manny’s eyes and lens. A lens that has captured such beauties as: Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington, Jennifer Lopez, and Sharon Stone.

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If the chorus of one of your favorite songs starts like this, “David Lee Roth lights the menorah, as do Kirk Douglas, James Caan and the late Dina Shore-ah”… then the 23rd Annual Matzo Ball is for you! The nation’s largest, Jewish singles party returns to Miami on December 24, 2009, at Cameo Nightclub on South Beach starting at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are available online (www.matzoball.org) for $25 in advance and cash only at the door. VIP Tickets are also available for $150 and includes a three-course non-kosher nosh at SUSHISAMBA prior to the event.

Now through December 23, RA Sushi in South Miami is teaming up with the Toys for Tots Program by giving away one complimentary appetizer per table that donates a new and unwrapped toy (minimum donation value of $10.00). With a good deed checked off the list, it’s time for a well-deserved Christmas in Tokyo cocktail – RA’s seasonal Asian twist to the champagne cocktail.

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Dwayne Wade

Sparks is in town this week touring the Eden Roc and solidifying plans for the Jordin Sparks Super Bowl Experience, a charity event she will be hosting on Wednesday, February 3^rd. Other celebrities confirmed as of now JoJo and David Archuleta. For more information, visit: www.sparkssuperbowlexperience.com.

Dwyane Wade was seen having dinner with girlfriend/actress Gabrielle Union at 8 oz Burger Bar in Miami Beach. The couple was enjoying some burgers and sharing a sundae on Monday night.

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Armani minus the Sticker Shock

Armani Exchange, which for 17 years has brought “Affordable Armani” (not an oxymoron) to South Beach, celebrated its facelift and expansion last week with a bit of fanfare. If you’ll recall, 17 years ago most of Lincoln Road was condemned by the city and Ocean Drive was a retirement community. Yet Armani Exchange set up shop to bring hip and stylish clothes to the pioneers of the SoBe we’ve come to know and love (most of the time). President & CEO Harlan Bratcher told the 411 “AIX was the first designer flagship store on South Beach, and Giorgio Armani was the first designer to offer a ‘diffusion line’ (that’s a fancy way to say cheap, chic designer duds). The average price for a designer piece is just $50, but it’s not a ‘one-time-wear.’ Affordable Armani is still Armani.” Other designers following in Armani’s footsteps by creating diffusion lines include Donna Karan, Oscar de la Renta and Marc Jacobs.

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