Ticket to tipple
Calling all oenophiles: Delkap Wein in Horgen is the place to taste some fine South African varieties. And you can accompany your tipple with British farmhouse cheeses, from the British Cheese Centre of Switzerland. The event is free, though I suspect you’ll be tempted to buy, buy, buy. RSVP requested.
Thursday 6 pm, Delkap Wein

Shopping à la mode
If you are more into catwalks than clubs, consider a new kind of party-hopping this Thursday. Vintagetomorrow shows its fashion-forward offerings for the season, Kleinbasel hosts a one-year anniversary party and winter collection show, and Seefeld-Razzia and Glam.in present the fashions of Michael Michalsky, the rising star of the Berlin fashion scene.
Thursday 5 pm Vintagtomorrow / 7 pm Kleinbasel / 9 pm Seefeld-Razzia

Dance fever
I have two pairs of tickets to give away for techno-trance DJ Bob Sinclair at Saint Germain. From Orlando, Florida, Sinclair may help to take the wintry chill from the air. If not you can always resort to the tropical cocktails. I have two pairs of tickets to give away for Friday night.
Friday 11 pm, Saint Germain Club

Home is where the art is
The Neue Räume international home and furniture show begins this weekend, and I can’t wait to check out the “100 under 100” special contemporary design exhibition. Afterwards, I’m planning to have an aperitif at Z am Park, and seeing if anything in their designer chair auction catches my eye.
Saturday 10 am, ABB Event Halle / 6 pm, Z am Park

Mercury rising
If you’re a fan of MIA, Deerhof, or David Bowie, you’ll want to check out Zukunft this weekend when Michachu and the Shapes take the stage with their UK compatriots, The Invisible Three, who were recently nominated for the prestigious Mercury Prize.
Sunday 8 pm, Club Zukunft

Be cool
The jazznojazz 11th annual Zurich International Festival kicks off on Wednesday with three powerhouse acts: the Brad Meldhau Trio, The Yellowjackets and Plaistow jazz trio. Tickets are available at Ticketcorner, Manor, SBB, Die Post, Coop-City and Coop-City.
Wednesday 8 pm, Theaterhaus Gessnerallee / 8.30 pm ewz-Unterwerk Selnau / 10 pm ZKBJazzClub

Good to know
The cooler weather is the perfect excuse to enjoy a hearty fondue, the ultimate Swiss dish. The name comes from the past participle of the French verb “to melt” (fondu), and though cheese fondue is the classic choice, other options, like meat and dessert fondues, can be just as fun. Remember your fondue etiquette, though! There’s no double-dipping of your fondue fork into the pot, and lost morsels carry somewhat sexist penalties: if a man loses a piece of bread in the molten cheese, he must buy the table a bottle of wine; if a woman loses a piece, she must kiss the man to her left. Some of my favourite fondue destinations include Fribourger Fonduestübli, which is only open in the winter months, and Restaurant Köchlistube, which has entire evenings devoted to the speciality! You may also enjoy the traditional decor of Walliserkanne, or the bright atmosphere of Chässtube Rehalp. If you are feeling a little adventurous, head up the Zurichberg to Chäsalp, where rabbits frolic outside the cosy restaurant’s window. Who’s complaining about winter now?

Web
Zurich may have been ranked by Monocle as the world’s most liveable city earlier this year, but David Byrne (formerly of the band Talking Heads) has a few ideas of his own on what makes a great metropolis. Personally, I’m all for pedestrian-friendly places, but this essay on drive-by-photography has given me a new perspective on the issue. In the same vein, this cross-country time-lapse video is a unique work of windshield art.

More web
If you fancy yourself an archi-tourist, take a trip online with John Hill, architect and author of the world’s most popular architectural blog site, A Daily Dose of Architecture. Right now he’s featuring wave decks from Toronto and “urban rust” residential developments in NYC.