It looks like a T-Rex, it walks like a T-Rex, it roars like a T-Rex - as least, as far as I know. The Los Angeles County Natural History Museum brought its very life-like baby T-Rex puppet to the Fair today to visit Jurassic Planet. Fairguests were mesmerized (some a little too much - I heard some screaming). Take a look:

Pretty cool, huh? The Natural History Museum conducts presentations with the T-Rex and a baby Triceratops Wednesdays through Sundays at the museum. The T-Rex will be back at the Fair on Oct. 3. Don’t miss it!

We have a ton of great classes at the Wine & Spirits Marketplace, so be sure to check out the class schedule before you head to the Fair (or check the Fun Guide if you are here). Today we have vodka tasting all day! Now that will make the carnival rides spin a little faster for you!

Today at 5 p.m. it’s Wine, Cheese and Chocolate; tomorrow don’t miss Wines of Spain at 7 p.m.; and Wednesday it’s Picnic & Pink with Stacie Hunt - lots of fun! Check out the entire schedule here.

Each weekday of the Fair, thousands of school children rush through the gates of the Fair for an experience they won’t forget. Our FairKids Discovery Club field trip program is a hands-on one-of-a-kind adventure. And it complies with the state Department of Education curriculum standards.

Today is a big day - more than 13,000 students are visiting the Fair, including FairView Farms, Going Green, Jurassic Planet and the Flower & Garden Pavilion. I saw many kids out there this morning taking notes in Going Green, obviously preparing for in-class discussions they will have when they return to school.

Last year more than 100,000 students and their chaperones visited the Fair. We hope it is more this year.

I know it is an unusual place for storytime, but the Millard Sheets Center for the Arts, the art gallery at the Fair, has a storyteller you have to see. Jim Cogan entertains, educates, amuses and mesmerizes visitors with his amazing tales, all centered around the gallery’s theme, The Making of Art - The First 30,000 Years.

Jim gives tours of the gallery throughout the day. Take a look at story he told about bronzing and mirrors and a Chinese proverb about two lovers and a mirror:

You have to visit the gallery to find out if the lovers ever get back together!

Let’s get it started, ha! Let’s Get it Started in here! That’s right - we are channeling the Black Eyed Peas because we are getting it started tonight. The Fair opens tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. but we will start partying tonight with the annual Premiere Party. Our famous night-before-the-Fair bash is always fun and exciting, and it benefits the education foundation at Fairplex. So, have fun and support a great cause!!

Tickets are still available! Go to the Premiere Party page for details. It’s an evening you won’t forget.

Beginning opening weekend this Saturday and continuing every weekend through Oct. 4, the Fair and local animal shelters will be offering pet adoptions at Bark Park. Go the Fair, bring home the furry love of your life. It’s better than a date with a human.

Bark Park features a dog rescue organization or animal shelter sponsored by West Coast Pet Expo with a variety of four-legged friends looking for good homes. Stop by and learn about the work of these worthwhile organizations. Welcoming a rescue dog into your family is a feel-good opportunity with a lifetime of rewards. 

Here is Bark Park’s adoption schedule:
Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 5-6
Beagles and Buddies
El Monte, CA

Saturday, Sept. 12
Mutts N Stuff Small Dog Rescue
Rancho Cucamonga, CA

Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 19 - 20
Riverside County Department of Animal Services
Riverside, CA

 Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 26 – 27
 Greyhounds of America
 La Habra Heights, CA

 Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 3 – 4
 West End Shelter for Animals
 Ontario, CA

The schedule of the Wine & Spirit Marketplace’s wine education classes is now up on our Web page for you to peruse and register for a seat. The Fair’s wine education program, run in conjunction with the Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits Competition, is extremely popular - and worth the effort to get to one. Some of the top names in the wine, spirits and olive oil industries lead the classes. And besides learning a lot, you’ll have a fun time.

To whet your appetite we have: Wines of Santa Barbara County with Wes Hagen, winemaker for Clos Pepe; Wine, Cheese & Chocolate (yum!) with Mark Newman; Wines of Spain with Adam LaZarre, winemaker of Villa San-Juliette, formerly of Hahn Estates; Spirits 101; and Bottle or Box - A Whole New World of Wine.

Each class features a minimum of six wines and each participant will receive a tasting ticket for a taste of a Gold Medal winner from the International Tasting Bar. The cost is $17 per class.

Besides wine, we have Chef Henry Gonzalez of Spaggi’s Restaurant who will be out on four occasions to conduct a cooking class.

Wine education classes are held every day of the Fair. Check the Web site for a schedule.

One of my favorite spots at the Fair, probably my most favorite spot, is FairView Farms and the Big Red Barn®. There is something serene about communing with the cows, goats and all the other critters that inhabit the farm. During the Fair we have our resident cowboy Sky Shivers who comes from his home in Oklahoma to care for the farm. He spends everyday at the farm, educating visitors about animals (like Gidget, left, the miniature Sicilian donkey) and agriculture, and the parts they play in life around the globe. He is a well of knowledge. Hang around the farm and you will learn some things you never knew before.

This year Sky has several new exhibits and attractions in the farm:

According to Sky the goal of FairView Farms is to educate people about the reality of the animal world. That includes interesting facts like, in some cultures, every part of the hog “except the squeal” is used for food. That makes the hog the perfect animal, said Sky, because it is 100 percent consummable.  Another fact: 96 percent of a car is made from animal by-products.

What can you expect to see in FairView Farms this year? The nursery is being expanded and will include such unusual critters as a baby water buffalo, baby yaks and baby miniature donkeys - all along with their moms. The entertainment barn will have goat milking. You can milk a goat then move over to the goat barn and see an expert make butter, cottage cheese and ice cream using the goat milk! See, we are very self-sustaining here at the Fair - nothing goes to waste!

There will be a miniature pony exhibit, expanded pig races and American Mammoth donkeys (pictured right). The donkeys were first brought to the United States as a gift from the King of Spain for George Washington. Washington let the Colonists use and breed the donkeys and, voila, the American Mammoth donkey was born. These donkeys tend to be about 14 hands high (one hand=4 inches) but can go up to 16 hands high.

So, stop by FairView Farms. It’s edu-tainment at its best!

And white, and rose, and bubbly! Yes, the air above Fairplex will be fragrant with every varietal of wine come next week. The Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits Competition and the Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition both get under way next week. The prestigious wine judging celebrates its 70th year this year.

Nearly 100 judges from around the world will sniff, swirl and spit more than 3,000 wines to find the ones that suit and soothe their palate. The judges are winemakers, wine writers, sommeliers, food experts - the best of the best.

So, we have a great wine competition, but what does this mean for you the Fairguest? Well, it means you can try out the medal winners at the L.A. County Fair. Wine tasting (and beer and extra virgin olive oil, too) is available at the Wine & Spirits Marketplace, presented by Ralphs, throughout the run of the Fair. It’s a great opportunity to tast a variety of varietals, see what piques your palate’s interest for home enjoyment.

And, if tasting wasn’t enough, the Fair offers wine education classes. All the classes have not been finalized yet, but once they are I’ll post a link so you can see what interests you.

If you can’t wait until the Fair, you can enjoy the competition award winners at Wine & Cars Under the Stars, June 20 at the Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum.