cranberry sauce

Question

What bracha do you make on jellied cranberry sauce? Also, what does the Rabbi Shlita have to say about the great Capitol Hotel cherem? We're very close to the owner & feel we should still daven there. P.S. We never knew "gedolim" put someone in cherem without some sort of hearing. He didn't even get a chance to defend himself. The cherem was based on "evidence" from impartial (yeah right) informants. Not only did the owner, a father of 15 and a really nice guy, lose his parnassa, but all the businesses renting space from him lost theirs too. (Reb Aaron's probably doing cartwheels.)