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Anticipating the free flow of champagne on this New Year's Eve, NPR's John McChesney visits the wine-producing Napa Valley region in California, and discusses the difference between vintage champagne and fine sparkling wine. He also talks about the proper way to open a bottle of bubbly.

The documentary "Room to Move" follows choreographer and performer Jenn Freeman as she reframes her creative process to create an evening-length solo performance after an autism diagnosis at age 33.

Shiner, Salvage, Mahlon, Four, Baby J and the Kooky Eyed Fox — together they're the Hackensaw Boys. They perform their own brand of bluegrass, with instruments collected in their many travels. They tell Scott Simon about a new release, Love What You Do.

After months of speculation, Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) makes it official: he's running for president. Obama opened his run for the White House before a large crowd in Springfield, Illinois.

Today is Harvey Milk Day!

President Bush is on his way home from a four-country tour of Asia. His last stop was in Mongolia, where he expressed thanks for that country's contribution to the Iraq war effort. He also praised Mongolia's movement toward democracy and a more open economy.

The giant cardboard box -- the kind that refrigerators and washing machines come packaged in, was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame this week. Host Debbie Elliott talks with curator Christopher Bensch of the Strong Museum about the appeal of the simple box.

NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with Nina Easton and Brian Mooney of The Boston Globe about John Kerry's decision-making style. Kerry is expected to announce his choice for running mate in coming days. Easton and Mooney co-authored John F. Kerry: The Complete Biography by the Boston Globe Reporters Who Know Him Best.

Colombian-American photographer and filmmaker Juan Arredondo turns his lens on the people of the world who do not have birth and death certificates — and how these vital records are created.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made an unannounced visit to Iraq Friday in an attempt to ease sectarian tensions before next month's elections. Rice's first stop was the northern, Sunni-dominated city of Mosul. Later, she headed for Baghdad to meet with senior government officials in the capital's Green Zone.

From Kansas City, NPR's Laura Ziegler reports on a prison program that encourages regular people to contact and visit inmates at a federal penitentiary. The idea is to provide inmates with human contact and a positive example of how to live outside of prison.

A new exhibit in Chicago focuses on a single painting -- Georges Seurat's groundbreaking, A Sunday on La Grande Jatte. The show features the trial-and-error preparations that led up to Seurat's masterpiece. NPR's Susan Stamberg reports on the exhibition, which opens Saturday at the Art Institute of Chicago and runs through Sept. 19.