November/December Issue by bedfordnewcanaanmag

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2023

WYOMING WINTER WONDERLAND B&NC Full Page Advert Do not forget to extend your images and background to SaolDisplay the red bleed line

Experience the ultimate winter adventure at our ski-in/ski-out location at the base of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. Flexible and spacious accommodations range from newly renovated guest rooms and suites to multi-bedroom residences. Plan your stay with our sixth-night free offer. Four Seasons Resort and Residences Jackson Hole 7680 Granite Loop Rd., Teton Village, WY 83025 fourseasons.com/jacksonhole

Bedford, New York Offered at $2,395,000

6 3 4 OLD POS T ROA D | B EDF ORD NY | 9 1 4 .2 3 4 .9 2 6 1 | C ORC ORA N.COM ©2023 Corcoran Group LLC. All rights reserved. Corcoran® and the Corcoran Logo are registered service marks owned by Corcoran Group LLC. Corcoran Group LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each franchise is independently owned and operated.

A New level of exclusivity, an iconic heritage steeped in tradition, and still somehow, a well-kept secret.

AREN’T YOU GLAD YOU HAVEN’T SPENT YOUR BONUS YET? Introducing the Blackbridge Motors Mark Series - where timeless classics meet modern innovation. Crafted and meticulously engineered in the heart of Norwalk, CT, our visionary team at Blackbridge Motors has reimagined a cult classic with our flagship model, the Mark IV Beachcruiser, now available for preorder, starting at $169,500.

The best. The most. The first.

Coming soon, the Mark X promises a level of customization and performance that will leave a lasting impression at every turn. Contact us today to secure your spot in automotive history. Join us at Blackbridge Motors and embark on a journey where every drive is an unforgettable experience. Are you ready to make your mark?

The new Premier Club and Suites at Casa de Campo sets a new standard of excellence and luxury for our most discerning guests. Highlighted with Caribbean warmth, exclusivity, personalized service, and privacy from the moment your clients arrive. Premier Club guests will enjoy a private bar and lounge area and will be greeted upon arrival for a personalized check-in. Casa de Campo Spa & Wellness Center, an 18,000 square foot state-of-the-art destination Spa is now open and waiting to pamper your clients. Discover more at casadecampo.com.do • res1@ccampo.com.do • 800-877-3643 / 809-523-8698

314 Wilson Ave., Norwalk, CT 06854 BlackbridgeMotors.com 203.594.8730

M A K E R O O M FO R A L L O F YO U

CALL , VI SI T A S H OW RO O M , O R FI N D U S O N L I N E TO SCHE DU L E YOUR COMPLIMENTARY D ES IGN CONS ULTATION

Westchester Connecticut

16 Saw Mill River Rd, Hawthorne 565 Westport Ave, Norwalk

CA L I FO R N I AC LO S E TS . C O M

914.592.1001 203.924.8444

No.

List Your Home With Confidence

NEW CANA AN, CT

B EDFOR D HILL S, NY

Offered at $10,750,000

Offered at $4,950,000

B EDFOR D COR N ER S, NY Offered at $4,750,000

RIDG EFIELD, C T Offered at $4,500,000

Brokerage North of NYC

A R MON K , NY

7 BEDS · 8.1 BATHS · 8,247 SF · 2.19 ACRES

6 BEDS · 7.2 BATHS · 9,229 SF · 1.22 ACRES

Amy Singer | M (914) 772-3526

Offered at $3,995,000

Offered at $3,550,000

8 BEDS · 8.2 BATHS · 12,024 SF · 4.04 ACRES

7 BEDS · 7.2 BATHS · 15,000 SF · 4.64 ACRES

5 BEDS · 5.1 BATHS · 6,258 SF · 4.70 ACRES

4 BEDS · 6.2 BATHS · 6,504 SF · 1.28 ACRES

Michele Murray Sloan & Taylor Tait | M (203) 858-5039

Lindsay Matthews | M (914) 318-1394

Michael Winter | M (914) 525-3378

Heather Neumann Salaga | M (203) 770-8591

A R MON K , NY

W ES TPORT, C T

A R MON K , NY

POU N D RIDG E , NY

NEW CANA AN

A R MON K , NY

Offered at $2,650,000

Offered at $2,200,000

Offered at $1,899,000

Offered at $1,850,000

Offered at $1,750,000

Offered at $1,699,000

4 BEDS · 3.1 BATHS · 4,880 SF · 1.01 ACRES

4 BEDS · 4.1 BATHS · 3876 SF · 0.81 ACRES

4 BEDS · 4.1 BATHS · 5,068 SF · 3.87 ACRES

5 BEDS · 4.2 BATHS · 4,041 SF · 2.18 ACRES

3 BEDS · 2.1 BATHS · 2,232 SF · ACRES

4 BEDS · 5.1 BATHS · 5,549 SF · 3.76 ACRES

Harriet Libov | M (914) 659-6200

Frederic Bernard & Ayesha Qureshi-Amin | M (203) 892-2269

Katherine Cresci | M (914) 755-0130

Angela Kessel | M (914) 841-1919

Lisa Ferrante & Melissa Jones | M (203) 722-3878

Amy Singer | M (914) 772-3526

SOUTH SA LEM , NY

W ES TON , C T

K ATON A H , NY

NEW CANA AN, CT

POU N D RIDG E , NY

NORTH SA LEM , NY

Offered at $1,675,000

Offered at $1,495,000

Offered at $1,375,000

Offered at $1,095,000

Offered at $999,000

Offered at $974,000

2 BEDS · 3 BATHS · 1,622 SF · 0.55 ACRES

5 BEDS · 4.1 BATHS · 6875 SF · 2.14 ACRES

6 BEDS · 4.1 BATHS · 4,731 SF · 2.08 ACRES

5 BEDS · 2.1 BATHS · 2,788 SF · 0.30 ACRES

4 BEDS · 3 BATHS · 2,176 SF · 2.01 ACRES

4 BEDS · 3.1 BATHS · SF · 2.60 ACRES

Susan Stillman | M (914) 589-4477

Ayesha Qureshi-Amin & Frederic Bernard | M (203) 524-7559

Angela Kessel | M 914.234.9099

Wendy Dixon Fog & Kara Morgan | M (203) 979-6277

Sonya O’Donnell | M (631) 680-2974

Angela Kessel | M (914) 841-1919

Source: OKMLS, MHMLS, CGNDMLS, SMARTMLS, 1/1/2022 – 12/31/2022, total dollar volume of single family homes sold by company, Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess, Columbia and Fairfield Counties combined.

/H O U L I H A N L AW R E N C E

@HOULIHANRE

@ H O U L I H A N L AW R E N C E

H O U L I H A N L AW R E N C E .CO M

/H O U L I H A N L AW R E N C E

@HOULIHANRE

@ H O U L I H A N L AW R E N C E

H O U L I H A N L AW R E N C E .CO M

It’ sn o It’ t jus sa lso t ab ab out d ou t d oing oin m g m ore w or e w ith ith you r yo ur mo tim ney . e.

Sim To pli mo fyi rro ng w Tod & B ay eyo Fo nd r .

ANDERSON KENNY ARCHITECTURE

Robert Sechan rsechan@newedgecg.com 203-424-2280 Stamford, CT

newedgewealth.com

NewEdge Wealth is a division of NewEdge Capital Group, LLC. Investment advisory services offered through NewEdge Wealth, LLC, a registered investment adviser. Securities offered through NewEdge Securities, Inc., Member FINRA/SIPC. 45 E PUTNAM AVE.

ANDERSON@ANDERSONKENNY.COM

GREENWICH , CT

Live Exquisite This Winter Elevated 7452 feet high lies limitless experiences, bespoke luxury, exquisite dining, revitalizing spa and unparalleled views. The St. Regis Deer Valley is nestled in Utah’s picturesque Wasatch Mountain range, yet lies within one mile of Historic Main Street Park City. The St Regis Deer Valley offers ski-in/ski-out access to Deer Valley Resort’s 21 chairlifts, 103 ski runs, six bowls, over 485 inches of powder and 2,026 acres of alpine skiing. Secure your room and suite reservations at marriott.com/slcxr or with your travel consultant. The St. Regis Deer Valley 2300 Deer Valley Drive East Park City, UT 84060 t. +1 435 940 5700 marriott.com/slcxr

We mail B&NC Mag to the 25,000 most affluent homes in

NEW CANAAN, DARIEN & RIDGEFIELD, CT, ARMONK, BEDFORD, BEDFORD HILLS, KATONAH, MT KISCO, NORTH SALEM, PLEASANTVILLE, POUND RIDGE, SOUTH SALEM, and WACCABUC, NY and we’re most pleased that our B&NC Mag readers spend an average of one hour and twenty minutes devoted to each issue!

GET IN TOUCH FOR ADVERTISING INQUIRIES:

advertising@bedfordnewcanaanmag.com

FOR GENERAL INQUIRIES OR SUBMISSIONS: info@bedfordnewcanaanmag.com

WITH THE SUBJECT LINE: SUBSCRIBE. A N D D O N ’ T MI S S OU R C A L E N D A R

OF LO CAL EVENT S AT

www.BedfordNewCanaanMag.com

FOLLOW OUR INSTAGRAM:

@BedfordNewCanaanMag PUBLISHER: MICHAEL J KAPLAN PRESIDENT: CASEY KAPLAN ART DIRECTION: EMMA ARTHUR COVER CREDITS: PHOTO BY: ANDREA CERASO

NOT RECEIVING B&NC MAG AT HOME? SUBSCRIBE FOR $50 FOR THE YEAR ON OUR WEBSITE. WWW.BEDFORDNEWCANAANMAG.COM

Award winning interior architecture and design studio www.merrinjonesinteriors.com @merrinjonesinteriors (203) 581-4145

NOV/DEC 2023

Holiday Issue

PRESIDENT’S LETTER In this Holiday Issue we focus-in on food and festivities… We’re thrilled to have Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten as our Cover Feature, and the issue is chock full of features on local luminaries in the world of food, fun, and fêtes. Over the last three years, we’ve featured a local charity in each of our issues. Our focus has included the Community Center of Northern Westchester, Bedford2030, The Wolf Conservation Center, LiveGirl, Horizons, New Canaan Mounted Troop, Endeavor, Rescue Right, and BluePath Service Dogs, to name just a few. …Starting with this Holiday Issue, we will similarly begin a regular feature in each issue on our greatest local cultural institutions. We’re blessed to live in an area so rich with all kinds of arts and culture! Just locally, we boast such outstanding performance venues as: The Ridgefield Playhouse Caramoor in Katonah The Capitol in Port Chester The Bedford Playhouse A Contemporary Theater in Ridgefield The Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville We have a bunch of first-rate museums in the area: The Aldrich Museum in Ridgefield The Katonah Museum of Art The Bruce Museum in Greenwich The William Louis-Dreyfus Foundation Gallery The Hammond Museum And a plethora of other fascinating cultural institutions: The New Canaan Historical Society The John Jay Homestead Grace Farms in New Canaan Philip Johnson’s Glass House in New Canaan The Silvermine Art Guild The Museum of Darien

Shining our spotlight on the Ridgefield Playhouse first, we’re reinforcing the message that Bedford & New Canaan Magazine is now mailed to the most affluent houses in Ridgefield! …and Armonk, Bedford, Bedford Hills, Katonah, Mt. Kisco, Pleasantville, Pound Ridge, North Salem, South Salem, Wacabuc, and New Canaan and Darien. As we report, Managing Director Jared Shahid has the Ridgefield Playhouse rockin’ with over 200 shows a year! …And we’re pleased to spread the word about the variety of music, comedy, and other entertainment being produced! We’re ‘Always Local, Always Positive’, and giving exposure to our local cultural offering will now be a regular part of our mission. We hope something we say ‘strikes a chord’ and gets you out next weekend to see a show, take in an art exhibit, or sample one of our other local cultural attractions. And…as this is our Holiday Issue…I also want to pause for one moment - in a deep prayer for peace! Hold your family and friends close! Be kind to your neighbors! And have compassion, empathy, and understanding for all others who don’t have it as good!

Casey Kaplan PRESIDENT

Explore groundbreaking contemporary art at The Aldrich. Through changing exhibitions, public programs, performances, and familyfriendly activities, The Aldrich brings culture from around the world to Ridgefield, CT.

Raven Halfmoon: Flags of Our Mother on view through January 7, 2024

The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum | 258 Main Street, Ridgefield, CT 06877 | 203.438.4519 | thealdrich.org

Now is the best time to build so your garden is ready to plant come Spring!

Exquisite. Experiential. Effortless. B&NC Full Page Advert Do not forget to extend your images and background to the red bleed line

Words rarely used to describe vegetable gardens. Words frequently used to describe ours. Your property is an extension and reflection of your lifestyle and impeccable taste. Homefront Farmers understands this. The organic gardens we design, build, and maintain are works of art that blend seamlessly into your landscape. Our

expert farmers take loving care of your ‘homestead’ to produce exceptional tasting vegetables, fruit, flowers, and honey, all season long for your family. Delight in the joy and satisfaction of growing your own food at home… effortlessly. A R I V E R S I D E F E N C E C O M PA N Y

203 .938.0900

YARD TO TABLE SINCE 2011

info@homefrontfarmers.com : homefrontfarmers.com : @homefrontfarmers

Kramer Construction llc, founded in 1976, is a boutique construction company providing construction services of enduring and uncompromising quality; building beautifully–with organization, care and commitment–one major project at a time. We bring our unique level of accessibility and detailed personal service to our residential clientele in Fairfield County CT and Westchester County NY with projects ranging from remodeling initiatives to the construction of additions and luxury homes

Passion for quality craftsmanship

Exceptional planning & management

www.Homesbykramer.com

203 • 451 • 4065

Dedicated, accessible and transparent paul@homesbykramer.com

TABLE CONTENTS OF

Holiday Issue NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2023

P.87

P.76 P.58

P.68

P.32 OUT & ABOUT Highlights from recent events around our community.

P.58 WEDDING ANNOUNCEMENT Alex Bradsell and Michael Rubertone were married on May 5, 2023, in front of about 150 of their friends and families.

A R T S & C U LT U R E

P.68 JARED SHAHID & THE RIDGEFIELD PLAYHOUSE As B&NC Mag announced in the latest issue…we’ve added Ridgefield! The first of a series of features on cultural institutions in the area, we’ve selected the Ridgefield Playhouse - a gem in the community with Jared Shahid at the helm.

P.76 ARTISTE DE LA SENSUELLE: SOPHIE MONTAGNON Sophie is the rarest kind of artist these days: an accomplished master who’s not been focused on commercial success. Her work focusing on women and the female form is sensual and sultry, and conveys the feeling of beauty and power. In stark contrast, her few works focused on men are dark portraits draped in doom and despair.

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

P.87 HEATHER GAUDIO FINE ART - NOW ON GREENWICH AVENUE!

Like an actor headlining on Broadway or a musician playing Carnegie Hall, Heather Gaudio has opened Heather Gaudio Fine Art at 382 Greenwich Avenue in Greenwich!

P.96 HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE Check out these local must-haves as you prepare for the Holiday Season!

1127 Post Road, Darien, CT · 203.655.2575 · dariensport.com

TABLE CONTENTS

Old Town Barns

Crafted with Care in the Equine Tradition

Holiday Issue NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2023

P.156

P.100

CHEF JEAN-GEORGES VONGERICHTEN

P.116

P.182

P.128

P.140

P.148

FOOD & WINE, AND A GOOD TIME!

P.100 COVER FEATURE: CHEF JEAN-GEORGES VONGERICHTEN He’s one of the most famous chefs in the world, but we know him as the proprietor of our local restaurant, The Inn at Pound Ridge, and as our friendly neighbor in Waccabuc…

P.116 LA MAISON FÊTE 10 YEARS OF PARTYING IN STYLE Have you ever been to the perfect party? Attention to every detail? Seamlessly executed? …Good chance La Maison Fête was the event planner! No one does it better than Co-Founders DEANNA MARANO and BRETT CAMERON when it comes to putting on a party and B&NC Mag was invited in for a holiday feast!

P.128 ANNA GASS

NEW CANAANITE : COOKBOOK AUTHOR

ANNA GASS is a well-known Cookbook Author and Foodie Personality - and she lives in New Canaan with her husband, Phil, two daughters, Alessandra and Veronica, a son, Dante, and their Boxer, Levi. In this Holiday Issue, she shares some recipes for festive cookies, and a bit about her success.

P.140 & 148 BACCHUS & SONS IN OUR BACKYARDS We share the stories of two separate father-son duos that have ventured into the spirits and wine businesses respectively, first: BRIAN & KEVIN CROWELL (140), the producers of AMERICAN BRICK BOURBON and long-time Bedford residents! Then: STEVEN & STEPHAN FISHER (148), who are the producers of BEDFORD CELLARS WINES - and longtime Armonk residents!

T R AV E L

P.156 SKI THE WEST B&NC Mag Publisher, MICHAEL KAPLAN, takes the B&NC MAG readership with him and his ski entourage to SKI THE WEST. Join us on the slopes in ASPEN, DEER VALLEY, BIG SKY & JACKSON HOLE… and don’t miss our ski-focused gift guide.

P.182 LIFE REWARDS EVENT TRAVEL & TRADING These guys are aiming to revolutionize the way we buy - and trade - travel and entertainment…and they’ve got just the team to become the go-to guys when it’s time to go! You purchase travel reservations for some big event - often with associated special VIP access and events from Life Rewards - all at the best prices available. Then as the event approaches, you can sell those reservations to the highest bidder - if you’ve changed your mind or simply would rather take the profit…or use the tix as originally planned.

P.191 THE BEDFORD OAK - VI OF VI The final installment of KATIE SISE’s story is finally here. If you missed a previous installment or just want to re-read, you can find all six installments of THE BEDFORD OAK on the B&NC Mag website.

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Tel 845.855.1450

www.oldtownbarns.com

Zublin Construction Services, Inc. Pawling, NY 12564

Martin Kline, Sweetheart Jewel, 2023 Encaustic on panel

MARTIN KLINE: IN MONOCHROME November 9 – January 6

www.heathergaudiofineart.com 203.801.9590 382 Greenwich Avenue Greenwich, CT 06830

917-602-2529

B&NC Full Page Advert Do not forget to extend your images and background to the red bleed line

AS A REMINDER, OUR READERSHIP HAS EXPANDED...THIS IS OUR COVERAGE AREA! On the following pages, OUT & ABOUT highlights recent events and happenings from around the B&NC Mag area: Old Salem Farm

King Cone

The Aldrich

Titicus Reservoir

Katonah Museum of Art

Wolf Conservation Center

Muscoot Farm

Caramoor

John Jay Homestead

Tra il

eser voir

Marsh Sanctuary

Scott’s Corners

Waveny Park The Bedford Oak

Maritime Aquarium

t oin kP

Weed Beach

The Glass House

n Lo

ound

We st San more ctu land ary

Irwin Park Bedford Village Green

Long Island S

Leonard Park

MAP BY: DAVINA NATHAN

Vista

Grace Farms

iver R

Bedford Playhouse

Jacob Burns Film Center

The R Pla idgefi yho eld use

Lake Waccabuc

s sR Cros

Ward Pound Ridge Reservation

Pear Tree Point Beach

OUT & ABOUT

WHEN THE WORLD IS MORE UNPREDICTABLE THAN EVER... YOU NEED A RELIABLE ENERGY SOURCE THAT YOU KNOW YOU CAN COUNT ON

A highlight of recent events in our community

SOLAR • GEOTHERMAL AIR SOURCE HEAT PUMPS • INSULATION B&NC Full Page Advert find out what’s right for you

Do not forget to extend your images and background to the red bleed line

Grace is a 13 year old in New Canaan who is battling Leukemia. When she and her parents learned about other kids going through treatment alongside Grace who weren’t receiving necessary treatment because of a lack of insurance coverage, they took matters into their own hands and started Gracie’s Fund. Alongside the Police, Fire, and EMT departments, they hosted a Combine at Dunning Field this October and raised $175k!!!

New Canaan EMT, Sloane Griffiths

I. New Canaanite Chris Russo (aka The Mad Dog) MCed the event, here he’s standing with NC Athletic Director Jay Egan II. The Falsettas (L: Brigette and Grace, R: Chris) with Senator Richard Blumenthal

Contact: 516-376-6151 Sam@GreenConsultGroup.com photos: Andrea Ceraso

The winning team from the New Canaan Fire Department: Solomon Asare, Garrett Cantrell, Silvanna Cardona, Jordan Ceraso, Oliver Dennis, Abbie Dymond, Jennifer Fittipaldi, Edel Flynn, Lauren Freeland, Will Garbus, Pete Giannone,Sloane Griffiths, Michael Jackson, KaitlynLowe, Michael Mauro, Connor May, Andrew Peake, Manda Riggs, Devon Russell, Damien Sheerin, Mike Stewart, and Bill Tucker, with Rebecca Kimball and Team Manager Dan Welch BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

OUT & ABOUT

COMING UP AT RIDGEFIELD PLAYHOUSE

Pete Davidson performed four sold-out shows at the Ridgefield Playhouse in September, seen here on stage

The Annual Bernie Williams Charity Softball Game and Concert in Ridgefield raised $23k kicking off a campaign for 20 for 20: Ashley Paltauf, Bernie Williams, First Selectman Rudy Marconi, Steve Fortunato, Jared Shahid

ALDRICH UNDERCOVER: This lively art sale—featuring work by alumni artists whose identity is only revealed after it has been purchased—raises critical funds that directly support the Museum’s mission to serve as a leading incubator for artists at critical creative junctures, providing a collaborative platform that engages and inspires.

NOV 25 @ 8PM Tony Award winning actress, singer, and dancer

PRESERVATION HALL JAZZ BAND CREOLE CHRISTMAS

Holiday Show!

NOV 28 @ 7:30PM

“How Christmas jazz is done in New Orleans” - All About Jazz

DEC 6 @ 7:30PM 203.438.5795 • RIDGEFIELDPLAYHOUSE.ORG

photos: Roslyn Wertheimer

DEC 3 @ 7PM

DEC 31 @ 8PM

The Pitts Family

Darius William, Jiajia Fei, Dov Friedman, Susi Kenna

JACOB BURNS FILM CENTER FILM & COMMUNITY CELEBRATION

photos: Lynda Shenkman

Armonk residents, Nancy and Roger Strong (JBFC Board Member), with Laureen Barber from Pound Ridge (JBFC Board Vice Chair)

Janet Maslin (C) JBFC Board President from Pleasantville, with her children Jennifer Reese (L) and John Cheever (R) 37

OUT & ABOUT I

III

MEADOW VIEWS Pound Ridge, NY - $2,399,000

BROOKSIDE Waccabuc, NY - $8,750,000

BEDFORD HOPPFEST

Was a huge success on the Green as a large tent was turned into an Oktoberfest inspired beer hall complete with some guests even sporting German Dirndls and Lederhosen!

SUNRAVEN Bedford, NY - $3,700,000

A RIVER RUNS THROUGH Bedford, NY - $1,395,000

BEDFORD MUSIC FESTIVAL: The Wailers headlined the event held at the John Jay Homestead and produced by town beautification committee, Destination 39.3. Despite a rainy evening, lots of people came out for a good time! In addition to thanking Destination 39.3 for putting on the event, Bedford-ites also have Martha Stewart to thank… hours before the event was set to kick off, key pieces of equipment got stuck in the mud that had accumulated from heavy rain. Event sponsor, Wendy Belzberg, kicked into action and called her friend Martha who sent over a tractor and a team to free the equipment so the show could go on!

ALL THAT IS BEDFORD Bedford, NY - $1,395,000

*Based on OneKey MLS New York statistics, Total Sales Volume by Office 1/1/22-12/31/22 in the towns of Bedford, Lewisboro, Mt. Kisco, New Castle, North Castle, North Salem, Pound Ridge, Somers, and Yorktown

914-234-9234

POUND RIDGE OFFICE

914-764-2424

VII

PASTORAL MEADOWS & WIDE, OPEN SKIES Waccabuc, NY - $4,125,000

THE 2022 NUMBER ONE OFFICE IN NORTHERN WESTCHESTER!* BEDFORD OFFICE

BROWSE ALL OF OUR LISTINGS AT GINNEL.COM FOLLOW US @GINNELREALESTATE

I. Michael Kaplan, Daniel Boulud, Casey Kaplan II. Herbie and Ellen Calves,Chris Owles, Ray and Marie Scanlan, Sherri Owles, Jodi Kimmel, Sam Hollander III. Katherine Boulud, a board member of the Historical Society, serves her husband, Daniel Boulud, a beer. IV. The Breuer Family: Anthony, Russell, Bonny, Molly V. Bill and Diane Bradsell VI. Lindsay and Ty Hearon VII. Paul Llanos, Megan Libby, Antoinette and Jeff Muti 39

OUT & ABOUT TATA HARPER X ANDY YU BACK YARD BEAUTY CLASS New Canaanite, Tata Harper, and her team hosted a party at the home of Andy Yu in Bedford to bring together a group of powerful and influential women to enjoy an afternoon of relaxation, beauty, and pampering I

photos: Andrea Ceraso

HEATHER GAUDIO FINE ART GALLERY OPENING ON GREENWICH AVE III

photos: Andrea Carson

WESTCHESTER LAND TRUST, BLUEGRASS AT THE FARM IN NORTH SALEM V

BLUEMERCURY

reopened it’s doors in New Canaan this month with multiple members of the executive team coming to celebrate VI

photo: Carter Fish

I. Kerry Karangelen, Emma Sainz, Juana Burga II. Maya Faucher, Tata Harper, Kristy Hinze-Clark, Andy Yu III. New Canaanites, Tim and Samantha Davenport with Helen Richards IV. Heather Gaudio with her kids V. Matt and Zan Young, Casey Kaplan, Sam Ring, Hannelore Kaplan, Stacy Geisinger, Michael Kaplan VI. Betsen Philip, Tracy Kline, Maly Bernstein, and Jenna Goldberg 41

NEW CANAAN FOREIGN CAR

OUT & ABOUT

THE BEDFORD FIRE DEPARTMENT celebrated their centennial this September and the town came out to celebrate with a parade past the historical buildings and the Bedford Green, and into the Bedford Memorial Park for a BBQ (donated by The Market at Pound Ridge Square) and fireworks.

SINCE 1964

HAPPENINGS AT THE RIDGEFIELD PLAYHOUSE I

AMERICA CONCERT

PRIDE EVENT

BEDFORD COFFEE AND CARS III

QUALITY MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR photos: Peter Michaelis

WITH COMPLIMENTARY PICKUP AND DELIVERY

THE MOST TRUSTED NAME IN FINE PRE-OWNED SALES AND PURCHASE SALES MANAGER PHIL BROUS (203) 349 9410 59 Pine St, New Canaan, CT 06840

I. Bill Cowher dropped into the ‘America’ concert at the Ridgefield Playhouse, seen here backstage with Exec Director, Jared Shahid II. Harvey Fierstein, Chasten Buttigieg, Richie Jackson, Jared Shahid, Alex Kelleher at a Pride Event. III. Alex Thrane, Jordan Vogel, Michael Kaplan, Ced Gairard

OUT & ABOUT

Building Her Future

III

photos: Rhonda Spevak

THE 25TH ANNUAL BARN DANCE at the John Jay Homestead did not disappoint! Complete with pig races, cowboy hats, and great live music, the Friends of the John Jay Homestead partied the night away.

ARMONK OUT DOOR ART SHOW Despite a first-day rain out cancellation, people turned out big time for the second scheduled day of the Armonk Out Door Art Show – a once a year event that raises money for the North Castle Public Library IV

Where dreams take shape. At RCS, we’re dedicated to nurturing young minds and empowering RippKids to reach their potential.

Schedule a visit!

rcsny.org | (914) 244-1205 | admissions@rcsny.org | 439 Cantitoe Street, Bedford, NY 10506

I. The Fertik Family: Julie, Emily and Sam II. Laura Yaggy Harris and Emily Grand III. Steve Schwartz, Jonny Cournoyer, Jenn Streicher, Jennifer Sarkilahti IV. Michael Kaplan and artist Stuart Yankell 45

OUT & ABOUT COMMUNITY CENTER OF NORTHERN WESTCHESTER ANNUAL FUNDRAISER

Bedford Town Justice Jody Kimmel, Clare Murray, NY State Assemblyman Chris Burdick, Assemblywomen Dena Levenberg and Lewisboro Town Supervisor Anthony Goncalves

Anne and Jesse Mayhew, owners of LMNOP in Katonah

HILLTOP HANNOVER FARM DINNER:

Jayni Chase, Michaela Babuskova, Chevy Chase (... and you’re not!)

Emily Fisher, Janet Harkham, Murray Fisher

DARIEN CHAMBER JAM

Transforming Homes: Elevate Your Living Space with Our Kitchen Remodeling Services At Nationwide Maintenance we believe that a successful kitchen remodel is more than just replacing countertops and cabinets. It's about understanding your needs, embracing your vision, and crafting a space that embodies functionality, aesthetics, and innovation. Our team of skilled designers, architects, and craftsmen collaborate seamlessly to redefine your kitchen into a space that fits your lifestyle like a glove.

Marcie Manfredonia Amy Benedict, Lucy Hackman, Jennifer Lia, Lynne Somerville

www.Nationwidemaintenance.com

marcie@nwmgc.com

914-241-1010

OUT & ABOUT BRLA HUNTER PACE

BRLA DUCK DERBY

SKINCARE

MAKEUP

WELLNESS

BATH & BODY HOME CARE

photo: Nina Galicheva

THE ENDEAVOR FAMILY BBQ III

photos: Rhonda Spevak

BEAUTY & WELLNESS FOR ALL 641 Old Post Road Bedford NY 10506

WWW.SHOPATDUCHESS.COM

POUND RIDGE LABOR DAY WEEKEND FAIR V

Style that spells escape and adventure. Order online or by phone: 203.594.9105 | Same day pickup available in New Canaan, CT

N I C O B LU . C O M

I. Team Half Halter - Laura Evans, Sandra Holden, Caroll Rayner II. BRLA members released rubber ducks into the Beaver Dam and watched them race to the finish line! III. Bedford resident and dad, Pete Kenny, shows the kids who’s #1 on the mechanical bull. IV. Executive Director Emily Bushnell, Director Rob Jones, co chair Elizabeth Langel, Board President Jaclene Ginnel, Board Member Alex Hamer, co-chair Alexandra Lawrence, co chair Mackenzie Mas, Board Member Ashley Allatt V. Sam Hollander, Kelly and Shep Goodman, Brian Gordner & Pamela Lawson 49

HANNELORE HANNEL ORE KAPLAN

IT MIGHT BE GETTING CHILLY... BUT THIS MARKET IS HOT!! LET ME BE YOUR GUARDIAN ANGEL THROUGH A CHANGING MARKET

914-450-3880 UNPARALLELED ACCESS | 20+ YEARS EXPERIENCE | DEEP ROOTS IN THE REGION

Inventory is at an all-time low; you need the most experienced agent in town to navigate the process of buying or selling.

Follow me

@newcanaanhousehunter

HANNELORE KAPLAN THE HANNELORE KAPLAN TEAM WILLIAM RAVEIS 4 ELM STREET NEW CANAAN CT

BRINGING BROADWAY TO RIDGEFIELD!

SO L D | 1 7 2 C ATA L PA ROA D, W I LTO N , C T

COMING SOON | 50 BISBEE LANE, BEDFORD HILLS, NY

VISIT ACTOFCT.ORG FOR MORE INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS!

Challenging curriculum that’s ahead of the curve.

Online November 7th In-person January 11th

Catering to clients in both New York and Connecticut, award-winning agent Jody Rosen brings an unwavering commitment to buyers and sellers North of NYC.

B E D F O R D / P O U N D R I D G E B R O K E R AG E 2 2 V I L L AG E G R E E N , B E D F O R D, N Y 914.234.9099 Source: 6/17/2020-10/20/2023, all properties, total volume, sold by agent, on and off market.

Learn More

J O DY R O S E N Real Estate Salesperson Licensed in both NY & CT M 914.907.3300 JRosen@houlihanlawrence.com JodyRosen.houlihanlawrence.com

Schedule a Tour!

ridgefieldacademy.org

Contact Dave Suter, Director of Enrollment at 203.894.1800 x112 or dsuter@ridgefieldacademy.org ridgefieldacademy.org/explore-ra

It starts with you!

Congratulating our Marlins Swim Team on a year of incredible achievements!

Your contribution helps build GREAT FUTURES

B&NC Full Page Advert NEW

Do not forget to extend your

First time in 84 Years launched a images and background to the pre school Head Start Program and red bleed line Comprehensive Wellness Program "+. Ƶ /0 û * )!) !./ē

• For 15 consecutive years 100% of our high school seniors have graduated on time and )+2! +* 0+ *%2!./%05 • Serve over 130,000 hot nutritious meals and snacks 0$ 0 .! ) ! +* /%0! 5 +1. (! +" +2! " )%(5

Coach Connor White named Metro Swimming Must Watch Age Group Coach of the Year

Some accomplishments relative to Swim Team include; •

• Over 70,000 children $ 2! (! .*! 0+ ! water-safe %* +1. ! .* 0+ 3%) ,.+#. )

Marlins alum (Princeton freshman) took Silver medal at 2023 World University Games in Chengdu, China

•

• ǫ ƫ .(%*/ 3%) ! ) $%!2! Ƶ 3%))%*# Bronze Level designation and 23-year BGCA National Championship

2 Current Marlins are LC 2023 Senior METS Champions & 2023 US Open Qualifiers

•

Please donate today!

6 individual qualifiers at 2023 US Summer Junior Nationals

•

2 Marlins seniors received Metro Swimming Scholarships out of the 4 awarded

Go to BGCNW.com or use QR code.

Head Coach Zac Hojnacki named Metro Swimming Senior Coach of the Year

•

For more info, please contact John Tunas at (914) 666-8069 or jtunas@bgcnw.com

Boys & Girls Club of Northern Westchester | 351 East Main Street | Mount Kisco, NY 10549

A NN

MUNITY.

ANN

Rare Opportunity

TO OWN ONE OF BEDFORD’S HISTORIC ESTATES

118 MCLAIN STREET, BEDFORD CORNERS 8 BEDS l 8.2 BATHS l 11,494 SQFT l 2.9 ACRES

Wayside, a classic beauty brimming with charm and architectural detail is waiting for new owners to bring it back to its original glory. Rich in history, Wayside was built circa 1909 as a summer home to gather and enjoy outside of NYC and has only had two previous owners. Originally part of an approximately 125-acre estate, the property was a self-sustaining country manor that spanned from McLain Street to Route 172 and Route 117. The original English Tudor style main residence now sits on 2.9 majestic acres in one of Bedford’s most prestigious estate areas. The elegant grand foyer unveils the artisan craftsmanship and architectural achievements of a bygone era, impossible to replicate today, that is seen throughout the residence. The generous floor plan presents a glimpse of lifestyles and traditions of the past with soaring ceilings and large-scale rooms including a great room, billiard room, solarium, spacious kitchen, library, 6 fireplaces, staff wing, cottage and more. Once outside, impressive sweeping lawns, magnificent gardens and courtyards inspired by the Palace of Versailles, pergolas, brick arched walkways, water fountains, clay tennis court, a 65x25 pool and pool house, are all ready to be restored to wow factor status. Wayside is a timeless gem offering unparalleled Old-World craftsmanship and presenting a unique opportunity for ownership. Sold strictly as is.

Licensed Real Estate Salesperson NY & CT

Cell: 917.349.4763 Email: Nikki.McMann@raveis.com #1 Independent Family-Owned Real Estate Company in Florida and the Northeast

95 KATONAH AVENUE | KATONAH | NY 10536 | 914.401.9111

SCAN HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

Michael Rubertone Are Wed

Alex Bradsell and Michael Rubertone were married on May 5, 2023, in front of about 150 of their friends and families, and Alex will take the Rubertone surname. Alex is the daughter of Bill and Diane Bradsell, and grew up in Bedford and attended Fox Lane. Her dad, who is a leading contractor in the area, had handfashioned a pair of doors with the words “Love Is An Open Door” inscribed on the lintel for Alex’s sister, Lindsay, when she was married in 2021, and Alex and Michael walked through the same door to make their entrance. Lindsay and Alex’s two other sisters, Charlotte and Hannah, shared the Maid of Honor duties, and even wrote new words to the song Love Is An Open Door which played as Alex and Michael’s party began. Michael had his brother, Matt, and a best friend, Mike, as Best Men. Alex and Michael met at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Alex took a job at Disney when her mom, who had always wanted to work for Disney, suggested it would be a great place to work when she was making a job change after college at SUNY Cortland. Michael’s mom had actually worked for Disney Vacation Club and Michael, who grew up in Long Island and went to Fairfield University and had visited Disney World a bunch of times when he was a kid, had long intended to work for Disney. With 75,000 employees, Alex and Michael crossed paths while both working Guest Relations at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Alex recalls, “We worked together for about seven months and Michael was my mentor at Disney, but then he became a Guest Experience Manager at Sunset Boulevard operations, and I transferred to a position as technical

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

love is an open door

Alex Bradsell

PHOTOGRAPHY: DAYLIN LAVOY

support on a team known as the Avengers. …That’s when we started a friendship outside of work, and our first date wasn’t until a few months later when we were both up in New York for different celebrations during the Summer of 2021. I brought Michael to my grandmother’s 80th birthday dinner... so I guess you could say our first date was with my whole family. And then Michael invited me to be his ‘Plus One’ at his best friend’s wedding. …We moved-in together in December, and Michael proposed to me on July 4, 2022, at a house in Milford, Connecticut that’s been in my family for a half-century.”

“I feel like we had magical stardust sprinkled on us,” Michael exalts.“We may never have met if it weren’t for Disney, but we have so much in common. We’re both what’s called ‘Disney Adults’ - we love the fundamentals of the Disney brand and experience, but more than that we’re young at heart and both filled with kindness and curiosity! We share a devotion to musical theater. I’m one of five siblings, and Alex is one of four. Our biggest differences are that my favorite Disney character is Stitch and Alex’s is Dumbo, and I’m a Met fan while Alex roots for the Yankees!”

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Alex Bradsell Michael Rubertone

celebrate with

Lakeside productions! DJ ENTERTAINMENT • LIVE MUSIC • LIGHTING • PHOTO BOOTHS & MORE!

CALL AND BOOK TODAY! 516-993-9446 • INFO@LAKESIDEPRODUCTIONS.COM WWW.LAKESIDEPRODUCTIONS.COM

“Michael really did most of the planning,” Alex reports. “We had a fabulous rehearsal dinner at an adorable restaurant attached to an art museum in Mount Dora, Florida, and then had the wedding at a charming farmhouse on 40 acres in Astatula, Florida, called Cypress Creek Farmhouse, with cows, donkeys and goats - that the guests fed during the cocktail hour - roaming the property. The DJ played an instrumental blend of Disney tunes during cocktail hour; we had a fake fight with light sabers during the party; the cake was beautiful on one side and cut open on the other to reveal images of Michael’s favorite things: Star Wars, Phantom of the Opera, and the Mets, and our final song was Come What May from Moulin Rouge - and shared an overwhelmingly joyful moment with the people we both love, Then we went to Hawaii for our honeymoon; first to Maui and then to the Aulani Disney Resort in Oahu; where it was a pleasure to feel the Disney magic - even without the theme park.” “It’s like a dream come true,” Alex exclaims. “We’re living our best life in Orlando along with our dog named Kylo Ren, and our cat named Obi-Wan.”

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

PICALI JEWELRY

Bedford Village Flower Shoppe

One-Of-A-Kind

LA MAISON FÊTE

641 OLD POST RD BEDFORD, NY 914.234.7180 www.bedfordvillageflowershoppe.com

Bedford Village Flower Shoppe Picali offers One-Of-A-Kind contemporary fine jewelry and boutique.

641 OLD POST RD BEDFORD, NY 914.234.7180 www.bedfordvillageflowershoppe.com

Each piece of jewelry is designed and handmade locally by Jewelry Designer/Owner Alicia Andros. For custom orders and private appointments please call:

914-860-5934

60 Westchester Ave, Pound Ridge NY 10576 Follow us on instagram: @picalifinejewelry

ntistry Cosmetic De Pound Ridge e and After Veneers Befor le Mid 20’s Patient: Fema

A smile is the first thing you notice Before:

Pound Ridge Cosmetic Dentistry Veneers Before and After Patient: Female Mid 20’s Before:

After:

Before

After

Experience the mastery of Dr. Smith’s talent and ability to create your beautiful smile with veneers. Look no further and schedule a consult today. For your comfort we offer sedation dentistry with Dr. Nelson Li , MD Board-Certified anesthesiologist After:

From our table to yours, celebrate the holidays with La Maison Fête.

La Maison Fête is a full-scale event planning and design company. From weddings, dinner parties, luncheons, birthdays and more, we make every gathering memorable. Visit our shop in Bedford to explore the world of entertaining through a curated collection of beautifully crafted home and fashion goods. Follow us on Instagram for news and upcoming store events @lamaisonfete La Maison Fête 11 Court Road, Bedford New York 914.234.8627 www.lamaisonfete.com

Your neighborhood tree, shrub, & lawn care professionals • Tree and Shrub Pruning • Custom Blend Fertilization • Insect, Mite and Disease Treatments • Tree Removals/Cabling and Bracing • Deer Deterrents • Organic Lawn Care

• Organic Tick and Mosquito Treatments • Complimentary Consultation

Bedford: (914) 244-1700 Norwalk: (203) 853-9526

SavATree is a proud supporter of

SCAN TO SCHEDULE A CONSULTATION

At King School, we believe that the smartest person in the room is not the one with all the answers, but the one with all the questions.

The Power of Wonder

We welcome the curious ones – the ones who aren’t afraid to ask why, to try something new, to get it wrong before they get it right. We believe that wondering minds go further!

Photography Rhonda Spevak

WE BUILD HEALTHY, SMART, ENERGY EFFICIENT HOMES.

King School is a PreK-12 independent school located in Stamford that serves the students of Fairﬁeld and Westchester counties.

kingschoolct.org

Where Players Develop Into Champions

Hollow Tree Self Storage & Wine Vault offers an array of sizes that will meet all of your storage needs. Our wine vault includes a backup generator for peace of mind for wine enthusiasts.

Private & Semi Private Lessons • Junior Group Tennis High Performance Tennis • Adults Group Tennis

+1 (203) 260 4715 info@bekatennisacademy.com 451 Oak ridge Dr. S o uth S a l em , N Y 1 0 5 9 0

hollowtreestorage.com 203 - 655 - 2018

www.wearecarbon.com info@wearecarbon.com

131 Hollow Tree Ridge Road, Darien, CT 06820

JUST COMPLETED IN POUND RIDGE

RIDGEFIELD PLAYHOUSE

JARED SHAHIDand the 68

With over 200 live events per year, the not-for-profit Ridgefield Playhouse is having a post-covid renaissance…and Co-Managing Director Jared Shahid is a big reason it’s rockin’! Jared was raised for the role. He grew up in Ridgefield, and went to Rippowam Cisqua, and then, as he explains, “Because I was more than a little rebellious - I got my first tattoo with a fake ID when I was 15, and couldn’t get into Hotchkiss like my older brother and sister - so I went to Suffield Academy… which was actually a great experience for me. I played squash and tennis, and felt like I was able to start discovering myself. Every chance I could, I was off to a Santana, or Allman Brothers, or Dave Mathews, or Aerosmith concert, or a festival like Bonnaroo, and I partied a lot! I went on to Hobart College. I started out as a double major in Chem and Bio, thinking I’d go the pre-med route - as the doctor business was the family trade. But half-asemester in, it was clear that my college career was going to be spent in a lab and I had, let’s say, greater social ambitions than that. During my junior year I got to work on a research program in Lahaina studying the sensory perception of Whales, and I loved doing that. But I never really felt that academia was my calling, and I graduated majoring in Psychology!” “When I graduated from college and came home to Ridgefield in the Winter of 2006, I needed to find a job, and wasn’t qualified to do much. My mom knew the Executive Director at the Ridgefield Playhouse was looking for an Assistant. She hired me after about a 5 minute phone conversation – not because I was all that impressive, but because they really needed help. Before I started, I wrote a list of about 40 or so acts I thought would be good to book - including artists like Michael McDonald, Bob Weir, Bela Fleck, and others. By the time I left the venue 18 months later, we had booked just about every one of them, so it felt like my instincts were right for the space,” Jared says with a big smile.

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

“Having worked on one side of the business, I moved into Manhattan and got a job as an Agent at Entourage Talent,” Jared continues. “I was 23 years old and working with Derek Trucks, Joe Satriani, Procol Harum, and other great artists. In some ways I was living a dream because I got to rub elbows with people like Eric Clapton, but being an agent disconnected me from the joy of actual music – it was just about business. So I left, and worked with Gathering of The Vibes for a year, then moved into the public speaking world. After a couple years at a startup, I joined the team at Daymond John’s Shark Group, and worked from 2014 to 2019 helping his celebrity entrepreneurs with speech writing and marketing.” Jared continues, “I’d ‘moved back’ to South Salem in 2017, and in 2019 Allison Stockel, who was then the Executive Director of the Ridgefield Playhouse, asked me to get involved, on at least a part-time basis, working on the capital campaign. I started helping with bookings as well, and in January I took over as Artistic Director. Then in March, Covid shut down the world. …We had to navigate running a theater - without the theater! …Instead of canceling shows and having all of the attendant economic damage for the acts and for the theater, we postponed a few hundred shows - some as many as five times - and our patrons stuck with us and held onto their tickets. We would have closed our doors if it had gone another way. We managed to keep nearly our entire staff through the pandemic. We went outdoors in summer 2020 with a successful program of comedy and solo music artists, including Bruce Hornsby, who performed to an intimate audience of 50 seated inside, with the rest of the audience out in the tent watching on a large screen. And then in 2021, we ramped it up, rented a big outdoor stage and tent, and hosted some really big acts, including comedy like John Mulaney, Nate Bargatze, and Bill Burr, and music like Tedeschi Trucks, Fitz & The Tantrums, and JJ Grey & Mofro. We had over 10,000 people come for entertainment that summer - without a single reported case of Covid! It was generally 14 hour days, and I aged about 12 years, but it was worth it!”

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M ANDREA B E R / D CERASO E C E M B E R PHOTOS:

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

2023 has been the “ Ridgefield Playhouse’s biggest year ever!” “Returning indoors was a whole new world! The entire business changed. Allison retired after nearly 20 years at the venue, and I took over as Managing Director of Booking, Marketing and Production, and my Co-Managing Director, Ashley Paltauf, took over Operations and Development. It was and is a very natural division of labor for us,” Jared explains. “But post-Covid we were all-of-a-sudden priced out of booking the heritage acts we had previously relied on, and knew we had to draw a new generation of patrons to the Ridgefield Playhouse! With capital campaign funds, we put about $4M into tripling the size of the lobby to turn it into a thriving gathering space with a full bar and concessions area, building-out new backstage facilities with all new dressing rooms and a full kitchen and hospitality area, and adding major upgrades to the lighting and audio production, including some new sound paneling and acoustic design. Amongst other praise from performing artists, 20X Grammy-winning Pat Methany recently remarked to a sold-out crowd: ‘This is one of my Top 5 Worldwide Favorite Places to Play!’ ” “And 2023 has been the Ridgefield Playhouse’s biggest year ever!,” Jared exclaims. “While we’ve been able to bring back some fan-favorites, about forty percent of our programming was brand new to the venue this year. That’s huge in this business. And it’s allowed us to vastly augment our patron base. We sold out FOUR consecutive Pete Davidson shows - breaking all

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Playhouse records. From Wynton Marsalis, Ann Wilson, or The Beach Boys, to Joss Stone, The Wallflowers, or Tower of Power, it’s the variety that keeps the audiences interested. A substantial majority of our shows sell-out! …Our biggest limitation is that we only have 500 seats!”

“2024 is going to be even bigger and better!,” Jared declares. “We’ll again produce over 200 events, and have already booked such notables as David Sedaris, Tracy Morgan, Patti Lupone, Brian Regan, and Corinne Bailey Rae. Did you ever think you’d hear those names in the same sentence!?”

It’s important to point out that Ridgefield’s most active production schedule may not even be its most important work! Ridgefield Playhouse is a not-for-profit and, in addition to substantial community outreach efforts, boasts a thriving Arts in Education program. The Director of Arts in Ed, Jodi Simon Stewart, coordinates live educational programming which reached a record just shy of 16,000 students in 2022! As part of the Playhouse’s 20 For 20 Campaign, they’re raising $200,000 to bring 20,000 students from NY and CT to the theater for free – with about 60% from Title 1 schools. They’ll reach more than 30,000 students virtually as well, bringing their total reach to more than 50,000 students in a single year! As Jodi expresses, “For these kids, coming through the Ridgefield Playhouse doors is a new kind of magic, and for most it’s the first show of any kind that they’ve ever seen!”

Jared adds, “And as a differentiating factor for the venue, we’ll be launching a Podcast on the Ridgefield Playhouse website as a new vertical. I’ll be talking with lots of our performers and plenty of other interesting personalities, and discussing our Ridgefield Playhouse productions among other things ‘au courant’.”

In addition, the Playhouse produced several extraordinary in-house events, including the Annual Bernie Williams Charity Softball Game & Concert, Summer and Fall Galas, the last featuring Itzhak Perlman, and a 2-part program that explored Black history through the lens of the Amistad.

“With about 200 live events a year - that means we host something every 1.8 days! …And it’s something different almost every night!…I have to get back to work!,” Jared laughs.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

But before we get to that, we’re closing out 2023 with our first ever New Year’s Show, featuring Gabe Dixon, of the Tedeschi Trucks Band, and The Gin Blossoms. We’ll have decorations, champagne, and an after-party with a DJ. We wanted to give people a chance to see a great show and not have to go to NYC.”

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Dr. Sabbath McLean DAOM, LAc

SI LV E R

SPRIN G WELLNESS

ACUPUNCTURE

B&NC Half Page Advert Do not forget to extend your images and background to the red bleed line

HERBAL MEDICINE MICRO NEEDLING FACIALS WWW. SILVERSPRINGWELLNESSNYC.COM

72 WESTCHESTER AVE, POUND RIDGE, NY

646-609-3503

1 0 5 7 6 U N I T E D S TAT E S

Compass is proud to be the nation’s #1 brokerage.*

He ri tage

F abri cati ons

de s i gns ,

m anufacture s and i ns tal l s the hi ghe s t qual i ty bronz e and s te e l fe ne s trati ons . O ur te am , s tate of the art te chnol ogy

B&NC Half Page Advert

and fi ne s t m ate ri al s e ns ure s that we

Do not forget to extend your images and background to the W i th ove r twe nty y e ars of fabri cati on red bleed line e x pe ri e nc we de l i ve r products cre ate a handcrafte d, pre ci s i on product.

e x ce e di ng hi ghe s t s tandards .

Heritage Fabrications Team 1055 North Street, Greenwich, CT 06831

B R O N Z E & S T E E L | W IN D O W S & D O O R S

Phone: 203.962.4669 Email: info@heritagefabrications.com

compass.com Compass Connecticut, LLC is a licensed real estate broker and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. 203.343.0141. *Source: 2022 Closed Sales Volume, U.S., RealTrends 500.

HERITAGEFABRICATIONS

16+ offices across Connecticut and Westchester

www.AugustInteriorsCT.com 917-776-1959 | augustinteriorsct@gmail.com

PHOTOS: CARTER FISH

SOPHIE MONTAGNON

Anthony, a ‘Brit’, and two dogs, a Havanese named Coco, and a Labrador named Oakley. She’s every bit as bodacious as her chef-d’oeuvres, she’s refreshingly straight-forward and unabashedly direct, and she can model for her own artwork because she’s also a model of fitness and health.

ARTISTE DE LA SENSUELLE

Sophie is the rarest kind of artist these days: an accomplished master who’s not been focused on commercial success. Often casting a mold only once and never casting more than a few of her bronzes or acrylics, she estimates having actually sold a total of only three dozen pieces in her whole ‘career’ - including at least a dozen one-of-a-kind works for which Sophie, sadly, has no mold. Her work focusing on women and the female form - and, yes, Sophie is the model - is sensual and sultry, and conveys the feeling of beauty and power. In stark contrast, her few works focused on men - like her Abyss, in which a man teeters on the edge of a vertical plane - are dark portraits draped in doom and despair. She’s recently turned to painting…and the two large female nudes she had hanging in her front hall were so evocative, her kids implored her to add a mask and a bikini to hide her from public view.

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

Sophie grew up in Paris, attending the private girls school Notre Dame Des Oiseaux, and then La Tour, and was always interested in art and drawing everything around her. To her parents’ chagrin, she turned-down her acceptance at the prestigious Les Beaux Arts, and determined instead to move to New York and go to Parsons for a design degree. She met her now ex-husband, a Wall Street wiz, while she was working in Manhattan in the fashion industry after college; they moved to London together in 1997; had Max and Alie while living in London; moved back to Fairfield County in 2005; had Asa in 2008, and; were divorced in 2019. Sophie now lives justoff the Long Island Sound beachfront with her boyfriend,

“I met a woman from West port named Steffi Friedman who taught me how to sculpt,” Sophie recounts. “I watched her work and was amazed how she started with a drawing and brought the three-dimensional image to life. She worked in clay, which has always been a bit clumsy for me, but she got me comfortable with sculpting myself. Then I took classes at Silvermine with Janice Mauro, who works mostly in wood, but who helped me bring feeling to form, and to portray

more than just shape. More generally, in thinking about sculpting, I’ve always been tremendously influenced by the work of the French sculptor Antoine Bourdelle.”

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

SOPHIE MONTAGNON

DIVER,

SOPHIE’S

with a blue woman diving into blue water, suspended half-way into the plunge, and all entombed in a solid block of acrylic that seems like it’s half-filled with the ocean and that it holds the whole clear sky, is sublime. The artistry is striking. Though based in a specific medium, it’s more like a Faberge egg or a piece of Steuben glass than something from a crafts fair. And it stands on a lightbox which can tint the entire scene in an array of cool colors.

“I started working ‘on my own’ around 2010,” Sophie continues. “I did a half-dozen or so works in bronze with brown patinas, including a few of my ex-husband, and didn’t like the dark feeling it seemed to always bring out. I turned to blue patinas and felt I could begin to express a brighter and more positive spectrum of emotions, and I did ten or twelve blue patina bronzes. My bust in blue patina adorned with butterflies was a little bit like coming into the light for me.”

In Splash, the acrylic block is the water only, and the half of Sophie’s diving woman suspended above the waves is not encased in the acrylic block, with the effect that the woman is still in the viewers environment rather than the separate underwater space of the acrylic in the block itself.

“The technique for creating this kind of multi-dimensional acrylic sculpture is quite complicated,” Sophie explains. I start-out sculpting the wax model and that’s my fundamental contribution, but I remain involved in every facet of the foundry as well. I make a mold of the wax model in silicone, then a plaster piece from that mold. I then wrap clay around the plaster piece, and a ceramic mold is made around that clay. The clay is then removed from the inside of the ceramic mold, and the final silicone product is poured into the ceramic mold. The silicone form goes into a compressing oven, and cooks for hours to remove all the air bubbles. The pieces are very heavy - I think Diver is about 100 pounds, and they’re extremely durable. They can be displayed inside or out, and because they look like glass they can seem to be fragile, but they’re actually quite sturdy, and polish easily.”

“While it always starts with a drawing or picture, I work in wax with all my sculpture. When the wax is heated-up it has its own energy, where clay seems like more of a blob. And I find the wax to be more malleable and friendly than clay, and don’t like the messy feeling of clay. One teacher once commented that I should clean-up the ‘boogers’ on my wax models - but I love the ‘boogers’. I don’t like perfection. I love the accidents,” Sophie describes her method. “And then around 2015, I found acrylics, and realized I could use my wax models to do multi-dimensional pieces that were not possible with bronze. Working with acrylic as a medium is challenging, and I was fortunate enough to meet and apprentice with a man named Ovidiu, who’s acrylics foundry in Queens was well-known for its ability to go beyond. With acrylics I could suspend my figures in space and in action, and use the medium as a part of the sculpture instead of merely substance and base.”

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

SOPHIE MONTAGNON

When covid hit and getting to the acrylic foundry became more difficult, Sophie decided to turn to painting - albeit usually with an acrylic finish. While painting is inherently more two-dimensional than sculpture, Sophie’s paintings are so textured and layered that the subject seems unbound from the backdrop. She uses a wooden canvas, and sometimes applies sculptured relief to the surface as an example she sculpted fifty different women’s faces and affixed them as the stars in an American Flag For Women’s Empowerment she did as a part of a series she’s working on. Her paintings are bold and even a bit simple, like that of the pop artist Ashley Longshore, but they also make a statement that requires a response in and from the viewer, like Picasso. Sophie’s recent pair of Golden Nude portraits have a physical and intellectual depth that transcends the surface of the painting, and a feeling of form that’s more sculptural than outlined. These paintings are more biography than mere portrait. The gold leaf and full-length figure are reminiscent of Klimt, but Sophie’s female figure is a living goddess - demanding that you look rightback into her Azul eyes, and daring you to examine every inch of her voluptuous anatomy. Sophie’s nude is intriguing, inviting, and a temptress, like Botticelli’s Venus or every Vargas. Sophie started the Golden Nudes by painting a flat blue base with some print words running across on the entire wooden surface; this blue underlayer remains partially visible where the gold paint is applied in a thinner fashion, and is totally revealed where Sophie actually tears away pieces of the gold

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

“I’M IN LOVE WITH THE FEMALE FORM AND HAVE A MESSAGE OF EMPOWERMENT, AND MY ART IS MY EXPRESSION OF THAT MESSAGE!”

paint; giving the entire painting a dimension and a backdrop that stands behind the gold curtain from which the nude emerges. The nude is formed without outline, but only in contrast to the gold dimension - something like the placement of one color over another in a Matisse

cut-out - making the figure appear to be in front of the gold layer, and coming into the viewer’s space. The nude’s soft curves and depth are created entirely from shaded skin tones and, again, without line. And the acrylic finish adds a magic that somehow brings the figure to life.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

Each of this pair of Golden Nudes is also hidden by an elaborate mask, and one with a bikini bottom. These vizards are made from magazine print cut-outs, with pictures of women’s faces. “No joke,” Sophie says, “my kids were home during covid while I was painting these two nudes and objected to how obvious they said it was that the nudes were my self-portraits, and

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

insisted that I ‘cover up’ so they wouldn’t be embarrassed when their college friends came to visit. I added the masks to hide my identity and liked how they added another physical dimension, and a kind of ‘Eyes Wide Shut’ psycho-sexual layer. …And I understand I’m not really fooling anyone,” Sophie laughs. BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Come visit an all-new Bluemercury New Canaan and discover innovative brands like D.S. & Durga and SkinMedica while experiencing our legendary beauty expertise.

We take beauty personally. 120 MAIN STREET NEW CANAAN, CT 06840 203-972-7100 Monday–Saturday: 10 a.m.–7 p.m. | Sunday: 11 a.m.–6 p.m. bluemercury.com | @bluemercury

L U S H & P R I VAT E 3 H I D D E N OA K L A N E • A R M O N K

Offered at $3,995,000

BEDROOMS

8.1

B AT H R O O M S

8,247

SQUARE FEET

2.19 AC R E S

Experience refined luxury and casual elegance in this exquisite home located amidst the serene Whippoorwill neighborhood of Armonk. Lush and private, the 2+ acre property is set behind gates that are a picturesque backdrop to a private oasis. The amenity driven outdoor space was built for entertaining featuring a stunning saltwater pool & spa, expansive patios and decking, & fully fenced, park-like lawns. This exquisite home has been expanded & renovated to perfection

For more information contact Amy today.

AMY SINGER

Real Estate Salesperson M 914.772.3526 ASinger@houlihanlawrence.com amysingerhomes.com

A R M O N K B R O K E R AG E | 39 9 M A I N S T R E E T, A R M O N K , N Y 105 0 4

offering relaxed contemporary living. The bespoke chef ’s kitchen is both beautiful & functional with state-of-the-art appliances, dual sided fireplace & breakfast area that opens to the expansive deck. The grand room provides a cozy gathering spot by the fireplace as well spacious everyday living, while a handsomely appointed dining room is perfection for holiday gatherings.

H O U L I H A N L A W R E N C E .C O M

MEDICATION-FREE MEDICATION-FREE TREATMENT TREATMENT FOR FOR ADHD ADHD Clinical Clinical Study Study

Confidence. It’s built over time.

UPCOMING ADMISSION EVENTS www.countryschool.net/visit

635 Frogtown Rd, New Canaan, CT • (203) 801-5608

New Canaan Country School is a co-ed, independent day school for students in Pre-K (ages 3 & 4) through Grade 9 living in Westchester and Fairfield counties. We create an active, joyful learning environment where children are challenged to think deeply, question confidently, and act generously so that they may lead lives of impact and purpose.

Gray Gray Matters Matters and and the the Faculty Faculty of of the the Yale Yale School School of of Medicine, Medicine, are are seeking volunteers to participate in a clinical study of the seeking volunteers to participate in a clinical study of the medication-free medication-free treatment treatment of of ADHD, ADHD, using using advanced advanced neurofeedback and photobiomodulation. neurofeedback and photobiomodulation.

PARTICIPATION PARTICIPATION IS IS FREE, FREE, NUMBERS NUMBERS ARE ARE LIMITED. LIMITED. Please Please contact contact Gray Gray Matters Matters for for more more details details at at (203) (203) 291-0880 291-0880

Or Or visit visit our our website website at at graymatters.com graymatters.com

Be you at Brewster Academy. Effective Effective and and Measurable Measurable

203.291.0880 / info@graymatters.com 203.291.0880 / info@graymatters.com 181 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06880 181 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06880 1455 East Putnam Avenue, Old Greenwich, CT 06870 1455 East Putnam Avenue, Old Greenwich, CT 06870

Visit our idyllic lakefront campus in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire and learn how we prepare diverse thinkers for lives of purpose. www.brewsteracademy.org

MT KISCO LIMOUSINE

914 666 LIMO ~

1 888 MT KISCO ~

HEATHER GAUDIO FINE ART

GREENWICH AVENUE! Like an actor headlining on Broadway or a musician playing Carnegie Hall, Heather Gaudio has opened Heather Gaudio Fine Art at 382 Greenwich Avenue in Greenwich! Heather Gaudio Fine Art is already well known in the area as a showcase for stunning and thought-provoking art. The gallery has moved from a landmark location on the corner of Elm and South in New Canaan, after a successful 12 year tenure in town.

Late model vehicles

But Greenwich is ‘big time’ in the gallery biz…and the new Heather Gaudio Fine Art is superb! The storefront on Greenwich Avenue, between the Apple Store and Railroad Avenue, looks like ‘the Tiffany’ of art galleries. The large space on the first floor is an ideal scale to present several distinct shows or installations at the same time. As a bonus, the rooftop event space allows for the display of outdoor works.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

PHOTOS: ANDREA CERASO

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

HEATHER GAUDIO FINE ART

While the move to Greenwich puts Heather Gaudio Fine Art on the national - and even international - stage, the team works hard to ensure it maintains the approachability for which they’ve become known. The new location has the feeling of a Chelsea Gallery showing ‘museum quality’ works, but pricing for some works starts at very accessible levels.

features investment-quality modern and contemporary art, with a focus on paintings, works on paper, sculpture, photography, and other textural work. “We favor artwork that we consider to be ‘well executed’ and are proud to show a wide variety of art that is created in meaningfully different ways. We love working with artists who use very different techniques. Most of the work we represent is ‘process-based’, which means the artists use common materials to create uncommonly beautiful objects. And we have a particular focus on emerging female artists,” Heather explains. The opening exhibition at the new Greenwich location, ‘Making Their Mark: 7 Women in Abstraction’, illustrates the breadth, and also the focus, of the artists the gallery features. These women share a dynamic approach to creating their works, and each push the boundaries in their art forms to create wildly different art. Kathleen Jacobs wraps canvases on tree trunks, rubbing and applying paint over a period of months, making a record of not only the bark markings but the outdoor elements as well. Jessica Drenk uses discarded printed material and junk mail to create forms that seem naturally made, such as slices of marble or geological strata. Jae Ko combines traditional Sumi inks with adding machine paper to create stunning sculptures and installations. Japanese artist Maya Makino is showcasing, for the first time in the United States, her paintings created with gofun, made of ground shell lime, which she layers on Japanese paper and submerges in Indigo pigment. Ann Gardner uses hand-blown glass to create beautiful orbs and globes that “hold a breath” and play with light and transparency. Hyun Jung Ahn’s quiet, hermetic paintings incorporate stitching as a form of mark making, while Kathleen Kucka’s work uses fire and heated tools to create burn marks on her canvases. The exhibit is stimulating! 88

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Still, no matter how great a space and address, it’s Heather Gaudio Fine Art’s team of talented gallerists and art advisers - including Heather, Managing Director Christine Romaniello, Director Rachael Palacios, Registrar Jennifer Burbank and Preparator and Conservator, Bob Schwarz - that sets Heather Gaudio Fine Art apart.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

HEATHER GAUDIO FINE ART

“THE TEAM IS ALL ABOUT BEING APPROACHABLE,” HEATHER PROCLAIMS.

“We want the experience of coming into Heather Gaudio Fine Art to be fun, and we do everything we can to take the intimidation factor out of the process. At the most basic level, we greet everyone with a friendly ‘hello’, and never leave a customer to wander around worrying about what to ask. But more fundamentally, whether you’re a first-time buyer or building an esteemed collection, we work to make acquiring art a comfortable and enjoyable process. We understand there are people who don’t know what they like when it comes to art, really just want some advice on selecting art that will work where they want to place it in their home, and that the decision may simply be driven by color, size or price. We recognize that some people know just what they like, and just want us to identify or explain art or an artist who may, or may not, be exhibited in the gallery. Our primary objective is to provide a bespoke collecting experience for each client. Our best advertisement has always been word-of-mouth referral.”

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

And it’s actually beyond the walls of the gallery - in the art advisory business - that Heather and her team are most excellent! “Of course we are very loyal to our artists as they are to us, but sometimes we need to look beyond our roster to round-out a collection. Clients come to us with specific requests and we’ve been known to source works from around the globe. We welcome every kind of client, from novice to connoisseur, on the art advisory side of the business like we do in the gallery!” Heather says. “We’re pleased to work with someone who is just starting to collect, but we also have the expertise to advise the most sophisticated collector on art, an artist, and investment. We represent a large and diverse international clientele and hundreds of investmentquality collections, and provide services relating to all facets of art acquisition and ownership.” “Anyone interested in our services - please do not hesitate to call!” Heather invites. “I promise we’ll have an interesting conversation about art and the art you like, and together we’ll determine the aesthetic and sensibility that will work for you. Nothing is more satisfying to us than our long-term client relationships.”

Realizing Wealth’s Potential At Rockefeller Global Family Office, we At Rockefeller Global Family Office, we provide world-class solutions to individuals provide world-class solutions to individuals and families at every stage of wealth. Our and families at every stage of wealth. Our services include guidance across the full services include guidance across the full range of their financial needs including range of their financial needs including family office services, generational family office services, generational wealth planning and lifestyle advisory wealth planning and lifestyle advisory solutions. We embrace the same standards solutions. We embrace the same standards established by the Rockefeller family established by the Rockefeller family legacy and the guardians who have so legacy and the guardians who have so skillfully helped it thrive throughout seven skillfully helped it thrive throughout seven generations and counting. generations and counting. Uncommon Uncommon opportunities opportunities await. Scan the QR await. Scan the QR code to learn more. code to learn more. E D E R W E A LT H P A R T N E R S E D E R W E A LT H P A R T N E R S

ederwealthpartners@rockco.com ederwealthpartners@rockco.com 203-717-6615 203-717-6615

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

Investing involves risk, including risk of loss. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.Lifestyle Advisory Service Providers are not affiliates of Rockefeller Capital Investing involves risk, including of loss. Pastmakes performance is no guarantee of future Advisory Service Providers not affiliates Rockefeller Capital Management. Rockefeller Capitalrisk Management no representations regarding theresults.Lifestyle appropriateness of the products or servicesare provided by theofLifestyle Advisory Management. Rockefeller Capital Management makes no representations regarding appropriateness ofconsider the products or services provided thematerial Lifestyleshould Advisory Service Providers. There may be additional service providers who offer such servicesthe that you may want to for comparative purposes.by This not Service Providers. There may be additional service providers who offer such services that you may want to consider for comparative purposes. This material should not be construed as a solicitation by Rockefeller Capital Management for business on behalf of the Lifestyle Advisory Service Providers, or an endorsement of the Lifestyle be construed as aProviders solicitation Rockefeller Capital Management for business on behalf of the Lifestyle Service Providers, or an endorsement the Lifestyle Advisory Service byby Rockefeller Capital Management.Rockefeller Capital Management will notAdvisory be compensated for business introduced to theofLifestyle Providers by Rockefeller Capital Management.Rockefeller Management willonly not be forand business introduced to the Lifestyle Advisory Service Providers. The information contained herein is provided forCapital informational purposes andcompensated is not intended, should not be construed, as investment, Advisory Service ThePlease information contained herein is provided informational purposes only andThese is not intended, be construed, as investment, accounting, tax orProviders. legal advice. consult your legal and tax advisorsfor when considering this information. materials and mayshould not be not reproduced or distributed accounting, tax or legal advice. Please consult and tax advisors when considering this information. These materials may not be reproduced or distributed without Rockefeller Capital Management Inc.’s your priorlegal written consent. Rockefeller Capital Management is the marketing name of Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. and without Rockefeller Capital Management Inc.’s prior written consent. Rockefeller Capital Management is the affiliates marketing of Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. and its affiliates. Investment advisory, asset management and fiduciary activities are performed by the following ofname Rockefeller Capital Management: Rockefeller & its affiliates. Investment advisory, asset management and fiduciary activities are performed by the following affiliates of Rockefeller Capital Management: Rockefeller Co. LLC, Rockefeller Trust Company, N.A., The Rockefeller Trust Company (Delaware) and Rockefeller Financial LLC, as the case may be. Rockefeller Financial LLC is a& Co. LLC, Rockefeller Trust Company, The Rockefeller Trust Company (Delaware) and Rockefeller Financial LLC, as the Financial case mayIndustry be. Rockefeller Financial LLC (FINRA), is a broker-dealer and investment adviserN.A., dually registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC); Member Regulatory Authority broker-dealer andProtection investment adviser dually registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Member Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Securities Investor Corporation (SIPC). These registrations and memberships in no wayCommission imply that the(SEC); SEC has endorsed the entities, products or services discussed Securities Investorinformation Protection is Corporation (SIPC). These©2023 registrations and memberships in no wayAll imply that the SECRCMID-1428079438-3693 has endorsed the entities, products or services discussed herein. Additional available upon request. Rockefeller Capital Management. rights reserved. herein. Additional information is available upon request. ©2023 Rockefeller Capital Management. All rights reserved. RCMID-1428079438-3693

one medical IN DARIEN AND NEW CANAAN!

ho isn’t frustrated with their healthcare? The high cost. The lack of personal and immediate medical attention or followup. Time wasted holding on the phone and sitting in overcrowded waiting rooms. No way to simply communicate with the doctor other than having to schedule a visit. Complicated billing. One Medical offers a new solution! They’re a Primary Care Doctor…with a Doctor who really cares! As a modern hybrid virtual and in-office primary care organization, One Medical provides 24/7 access to virtual care services, and same-and-next day primary care appointments in beautiful, welcoming offices. The first big difference at One Medical is that members get access to unlimited 24/7/365 virtual care, including on-demand video visits, provider messaging, and digital health survey, “Treat Me Now,” to address common concerns like cold & flu, UTIs, emergency contraception, etc.

PHOTOS: FISH BEDFORD CARTER & NEW CANAAN

Patients can also use the One Medical app to easily and conveniently schedule One Medical online or in-person appointments, manage prescriptions, and access health records. One Medical currently has two Fairfield County locations in Darien and New Canaan. The new, bright, and spa-like offices are located at 104 Heights Road in Darien Commons, or at 22 Pine Street in New Canaan. One Medical also has 150+ offices across the country for members to access when traveling. One Medical respects the patient’s time by starting appointments on time and dedicating the entire appointment time to the patient’s needs. For even more convenience, there are on-site labs to get your lab work done. When results are ready, they reach out to you through the app to advise on next steps. And, most importantly, One Medical providers are compassionate, caring and actively involved in each patient’s immediate needs and overall wellness.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

Sign up for a 30 day free trial! Use code: FAIRFIELDCOUNTY30. Learn more at onemedical.com/FAIRFIELDCOUNTY30. One Medical offers everything from women’s health, to family care, mental health support, preventive health, and more. Plus, you’ll have a provider who knows you and understands your health history. The One Medical formula leads to more informed diagnoses, fewer unnecessary doctor visits and duplicated tests, and better treatment outcomes and overall health. One Medical has family (pediatrics), primary (under 65), and senior offices across the country. Just like a traditional doctor’s office, One Medical accepts most major insurances, and bills for services through your insurance. And One Medical partners with Hartford Healthcare for specialist referrals. One Medical is a modern approach to healthcare! If you’re ready to fall in love with your doctor’s office, visit onemedical.com to learn more. BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Experience the allure of Dear Paris and elevate all of your occasions to the extraordinary!

Dear Paris dearparisny@gmail.com 914.703.9439 • dearparisny.com Luxury Event Designer and Stylist @dearparisny for Instagram photos and videos @Le_Selbridal

@Emilyhunterphotography / @Le_Selbridal

Lampert, Toohey & Rucci LLC Residential and Commercial Real Estate | Zoning and Title Issues | Construction Contracts | Construction and Commercial Litigation | Trusts and Estates

advanced placement classes offered.

DISCOVER FORDHAM PREPARATORY SCHOOL Now Registering for Tours and Shadow Days Register Here

Todd Lampert Gerard Gjertsen 203-972-8100

Philip Toohey Greg Williams

David Rucci Arthur Zinn

Jason Gladstone Harvey Melzerr

46 Main Street, New Canaan, CT

LTR-LAW.COM

Located on the historic Rose Hill Campus in the Bronx, adjacent to Fordham University, a short walk from both the Botanical Garden and Fordham stations on Metro-North.

Visit fordhamprep.org/admissions for more details

60%

graduates who attend colleges rated most selective by Barron’s.

Over 60

city and state championships since 2010.

Easily accessible

via the Fordham and Botanical Garden stations on all MetroNorth train lines.

DA R I E N S P O R T S H O P

B R I D G E WAT E R C H O C O L AT E

$1,650

Looking for a gift for the man in your life that already has everything? Look no further! Everyone needs a great backpack for travel that looks stylish but not flashy, that holds your computer and a few important items without being bulky. This black leather backpack has a youthful classy look, plenty of space, and a front pocket for keys, passports, and air pods.

STARTING AT $25

Made here in CT, this is great to send out as a holiday gift, something nice to bring with you to a party, or a great ‘thank you’ present!

Honey is a thoughtful gift that everyone loves and can actually use!

D E S I G N S O LU T I O N S in Pound Ridge has an array of lightly flavored locally-sourced artisan honey along with a vast selection of other fantastic host and hostess gifts.

HOLIDAY

$28

TATA H A R P E R CREME RICHE $230

The most soothing and enriching all-natural moisturizing cream, a treat for anyone!

A classic timepiece is an elegant statement gift, but it’s so hard to find just the right one that is classy and won’t break the bank.

DA R I E N S P O R T S H O P now carries beautiful Shinola watches that perfectly bridge that gap of affordable luxury. $595

DA R I E N S P O R T S H O P $68 FOR SMALL $84 FOR LARGE

Meloria orb candles are a unique and interesting gift that come in a rainbow of colors so there’s something perfect foreveryone!

Gift Guide A great gift for an impactful woman in your life; a recently released book about the historically significant women that started the Bedford Garden club, and had a huge impact on Bedford and the region, written by Judy Culbreth and available at La Maison Fête

L AG R AV I N E S E J E W E L E R S Irthly Jewelry Cardinal Series; this necklace represents the preciousness of finding your way. 14k yellow gold, .5c twt $4,250

The ‘Partridge’ dinner plate from the ‘Provencal Collection’ is designed by Backcountry Mercantile and hand-painted by famed ceramic maker FIMA Deruta. This is an individual dinner plate that measures just over 10 inches in diameter. $60/ea or $220/box set of four. Available at

B AC KC O U N T R Y M E R C A N T I L E in Greenwich.

S H U C K A N D AW E STARTING AT $35

Shuck & Awe makes absolutely stunning gifts made from recycled oyster shells. A great gift for anyone in the family is one of their customized shells that can showcase an alma mater or some other special memento for the recipient – and aside from being a beautiful touch to a bedside table or a bathroom counter, it serves as a great ring dish or holder for jewelry!

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

LA MAISON FÊTE NAPKIN RINGS $48 FOR 4 PLACEMATS $28EA

Adorn your holiday table with exquisite pieces to add texture and layers to set a welcoming vibe.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

CREATING HOMES TO FALL IN LOVE WITH!

YA N K E L L L E G A C Y G A L L E R Y L o c a t e d i n t h e h i s t o r i c 1 9 1 6 S t u d i o b u i l t b y M t . R u s h m o re s c u l p t o r , G u t z o n B o rg l u m .

Immersion

38” x 60”

STUART YANKELL PAINTINGS

MASONRY WORK CARPENTRY WORK LANDSCAPING & OUTDOOR LIVING RENOVATIONS Milton’s Home, Garden, and Patio have been proudly serving the Westchester and Fairfield counties for nearly two decades, established in 2004.

631-633-4900

www.miltonshomegarden.com

THE FINE ART OF LANDSCAPING AND INTERIOR RENOVATIONS

61 Studio Court, Stamford, CT 06903 Ya n k e l l . c o m Ya n k e l l L e g a c y G a l l e r y . c o m

By Appointment Only 6 1 0 - 2 1 3 - 2 74 9 art@yankell.com

JEAN-GEORGES VONGERICHTEN Jean-Georges is ebullient! He’s the ‘Toujours Pret Lapine’ - but full of heart! He developed, owns, and is fully involved in running the largest haute cuisine enterprise in the history of the world! And at 66, he

exclaims,

“I’m

just

warming up!” He’s personable and engaging, and says everything with an almost impish smile; but he’s a serious guy, who conveys the feeling that, if he’s focused on it, it’s important. “My father and his father owned a business unloading coal from canal barges in Alsace,” he begins ‘the

reduction’. “I learned French in school, but we spoke Alsacian at home, and it was France when I was growing up, but had been part of Germany before the War. I guess you could say I learned how to cook by helping my mother put lunch on the table, everyday at Noon, for the several dozen men who worked for the company. A lot of potatoes and root vegetables and bread to fill the stomachs, but much more than that, I learned about being responsible for regularly sourcing, preparing, cooking, and serving large quantities of food, on time! Lunch had to be served for the workers at 12:00! And we lived in a house with my grandparents, my parents, and us four kids, so it was really like we were running a small restaurant for every meal!”

PHOTOGRAPHY: ANDREA CERASO

100

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

101

JEAN-GEORGES VONGERICHTEN

“M

y parents took me to Chef Paul Haeberlin’s 3-star Michelin restaurant, Auberge de l’Ill, for my 16th Birthday…and I was transformed,” Jean-Georges recalls. “I was struck by the craft and the precision, and moved by the sheer joy of the dining experience. I knew right away this was what I wanted to do, and believed it could be my ticket to leave my parents house, as all young men want to do, and to see the world. I went to culinary school, and then spent seven years in France, and then another seven years in Asia, cooking for some of the top chefs in the world, including my mentor Louis Outhier, and working in some top destinations.” “I came to New York in 1986 to be the Executive Chef in the large and elegant restaurant Lafayette, at The Drake Hotel, at 440 Park Avenue. Right away I realized that our heavy, butter and cream, meat-based menu, and our stiff service, were outdated, and that we had to adjust to the time. Business people need to eat in an hour and get back to work, just like the men back in my family’s coal business. New Yorkers want a restaurant with a menu for everyday, not just big occasions. And I wanted to cook lighter and more flavorful meals,

102

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

and make the whole dining experience more fun. …You know, the basic meats are all, well, pretty basic. There’s beef, pork, game, and fowl, and there’s just so much you can do. But I’d found the world of thousands of different plants and vegetables and spices, adapted techniques using more broth and less butter, and learned how to develop a tastier, more interesting cuisine. Some Rotisserie Chicken with some Middle-Eastern spices done in a chicken broth - instead of Beef Wellington. Basically, French comfort food. …We reopened Lafayette in the Drake in 1987, and it was an immediate success! I was a 29-year-old chef just getting started, and The New York Times Food Critic, Bryan Miller, gave Lafayette its highest Four Star rating, and the next day I was on CNN! It was off to the races, and for 35 years I’ve never looked back!” Indeed! He opened his first restaurant, JoJo, in 1991, and The New York Times named it the Best New Restaurant of the Year. Then Vong, in the Lipstick Building. Then three more Vongs, in London, Hong Kong, and Chicago. And he’s developed one new restaurant concept or stand-alone restaurant after another, including Prime, abcV, Perry Street, The Fulton, and Happy Monkey, among many others. …Today, he owns or manages 65 restaurants, and runs a culinary enterprise that spans the globe and serves something like 5,000,000 meals a year! He is certainly one of the most well-known chefs in the world and, as New York Magazine wrote, “...no single chef has had more influence on the way [we] dine out—or on the way other chefs cook and other restaurants look.” “I love to cook, and I’m passionate about traveling. One informs the other,” Jean-Georges explains. “I try to inhale everything about a new place I explore. The smells, the tastes, the feeling, the style…and then breathe that whole sensation into a new restaurant concept. I like to cook with ideas! Like the Latin essence of Happy Monkey in Greenwich, or the Asian atmosphere we’ve created in House of the Red Pearl in the Tin Building at The South Street Seaport in Manhattan. …And then, after years of doing this, we know how to get all the details right! It’s a huge combination of the food, service, atmosphere…and entertainment. I guess, beyond cooking, I’m really a master entertainer!”

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

103

JEAN-GEORGES VONGERICHTEN

…And quite a businessman, as well!... He has a core team of less than twenty people working out of his Manhattan headquarters, who somehow manage the Herculean task of managing everything ‘JeanGeorges’ - the person, the brand, the conglomerate, and the evergrowing enterprise. Wherever Jean-Georges goes, while he’s going-at one or a couple of tasks directly, he’s also in the middle of a half-dozen team members who are constantly both feeding him information and initiating immediate action upon his direction. His personal assistant has him signing tax returns at the same time as keeping him on point and managing his schedule. Tin Building’s director of content is nearby making sure everything runs perfectly with the photoshoot. One of a few executive chefs who are working on culinary experiments or projects, has a quiet conversation with Jean-Georges …and minutes later everyone is tasting a tray of exotic freshly-baked cookies, including a chocolate and peanut-butter, a banana, a raspberry, a vegan snickerdoodle, and other original selections. Another of these executive chefs talks with Jean-Georges about restaurant menus, and then takes a meeting on the far side of the room to talk with a purveyor. Lois Freedman, who’s been working with Jean-Georges since she worked at Lafayette and, years later, is now CEO of Jean-Georges

104

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

“ The business is all about trust, loyalty and delegation,”

Management, works integrally with Jean-Georges on a daily basis. Fellow Jean-Georges longtimer, EVP Daniel Del Vecchio, is also nearby, as they’re preparing to give a tour of their soon-tobe opening restaurant on Park Avenue, Four Twenty Five, to another legendary Chef, Alain Ducasse. There are a few others waiting in the wings, and a driver and security who are almost invisible. …And this is all going on…while Jean-Georges remains

entirely focused on what he’s doing! “The business is all about trust, loyalty and delegation,” JeanGeorges reflects. “I would still like to cook every meal and enjoy the experience of serving it! …But I would only be able to serve one meal a day, and probably to only one table of guests! I like to develop young talent, and I hope to have a very long and meaningful relationship with each person who works with me, and this is my strategy for doing so much, as we are doing. At this point, I also have the big advantage that all the best people in the world are coming to me to do the next thing. Like our partnership with the Howard Hughes Corporation and developing the Tin Building. I get to collaborate with some of the top professionals in the world, like the American architect Richard Meier and the British architect Norman Foster, and I get offers to put new restaurants in all the best locations, like at the Topping Rose House in Bridgehampton and at The Mark in Manhattan.”

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

105

JEAN-GEORGES VONGERICHTEN

“You know, this year, in addition to celebrating my 50th Anniversary of Cooking,” Jean-Georges declares - without a hint of braggadocio and more as if he wants everyone who’s listening to put the events on their calendar and share them with him, “...we’re also celebrating 25 Years for Prime at the Bellagio in Las Vegas…can you believe it?! And the 100th Anniversary of the La Mamounia hotel in Marrakesh - where we have L’Italien, L’Asiatique, and the 70th Anniversary of the Eden Rock, in St. Barth’s - where we have the Sand Bar. I think of every day as a work day, and I still have the chef’s mentality of waking before dawn every morning to start sourcing provisions for the day, getting everything prepped and ready to serve lunch at 12:00, cooking, serving, and cleaning-up lunch, cooking, serving, and cleaning-up dinner, and trying to get to bed before 1 A.M.! I still go to the fish market in Manhattan once or twice a week myself. ‘On the go’ is my constant state of motion. Last month I flew to Tokyo for a few days, then Kyoto and Shanghai. I was back in NYC for two days, then left again for Doha! Then I was in Morocco last week. I’ve been here in New York for three days to host an industry night for 1,200 people at Tin Building and take care of some other business. And tomorrow I’m off to Las Vegas, but I’m taking a redeye Saturday night so I can be home in Waccabuc on Sunday morning - I’m having my grandkids over for brunch!”

106

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

Now downright boasting, he continues, “I have a spectacular family! My son, Cedric, owns his own CV Restaurant Group and has launched Wayan. My daughter, Louise, has had her own culinary success, running the Chefs Club, first in Aspen and then in Manhattan, and is now building a brand of sustainable children’s clothing called Mon Coeur. And she’s married to Hamdi Ulukaya, who’s the well-known business and humanitarian leader who owns Chobani. He hooked me up with the people at Food Bank, and we do a lot of work with them, and with City Harvest. My daughter Chloé is a student at F.I.T. and is ready to take the fashion world by fire! And I have four grandchildren, ages 12, 10, 5, and 2!” “I have a fun life!” Jean-Georges exclaims. “I still love traveling, and I’m always getting to see new places and do great things. It’s all still a great experiment and exploration. Yesterday I tasted a sensational fruit from Colombia called a Lula, that I’d never tasted before! I’m still learning - a lot - every day! I still feel the joy of cooking, and I take great pride in having made great food and great dining accessible to so many.”

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

107

JEAN-GEORGES VONGERICHTEN

“I’m going to put the homemade Chocolate Chip Mint Ice Cream back on the menu!” “If I have to describe myself in one word, it’s ‘energetic’, but I do need my quiet time…and that’s what brought me to Waccabuc. This is a unique oasis - so close to New York City! My time in Waccabuc, alone and with my family, is my favorite. And then, when the Tropins invited me to open The Inn At Pound Ridge, only five miles from my house, this place really became my ‘home’,” Jean-Georges submits. “I’m probably not allowed to say The Inn at Pound Ridge is my favorite restaurant, but let’s just say it’s my ‘neighborhood regular’. …And, by the way, I promise the Bedford & New Canaan Magazine readers that I’m going to put the homemade Chocolate Chip Mint Ice Cream back on the menu!” Prodded to name the favorite dish he’s ever cooked or tasted, Jean-Georges laughs and says, “C’est impossible! I wouldn’t even know where to get started! But, what I will tell you, is that last night, when I got in late after hosting the party for 1,200, I made a terrific Cacio e Pepe! It’s a great lazy dish - what I call a one pot meal. And I’ll tell you my secret! …While I’m going to boil the pasta for about 8 minutes, I put a whole egg into the boiling water with the pasta about 3 minutes into the process. When I drain the pasta, I let the egg run into the dish, giving the pasta a special richness, before mixing the pasta with the cheese.”

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

109

Finest selection of contemporary European wood and gas stoves, and fireplaces

Arte 3-sided Fireplace

914.764.5679

www.wittus.com FRESH AND LIVE CHRISTMAS TREES HOME&GARDEN At Copia, our passion is creating your destination garden experience through quality plants and products, education, and organic horticultural practices. Let us help nurture your connection to a more sustainable world!

HANDMADE WREATHS, BOWS, AND OUTDOOR ARRANGEMENTS INDOOR BOTANICALS CHRISTMAS SHOPPE WITH CURATED GIFTS AND HOME DECOR

475 SMITH RIDGE ROAD, RTE 123 • SOUTH SALEM, NY (IN VISTA, JUST ACROSS THE CT BORDER) 914 533 7242 • COPIAHOMEANDGARDEN.COM • @COPIAHOMEANDGARDEN

CT DISTILLERY OF THE YEAR

BEST DISTILLERY

NY International Spirits Competition

Connecticut Magazine “Best Of”

2018 - 2023

2017 - 2023

Bringing Helpful To Your Home Now Serving Westchester County & Greenwich

Pound Ridge Veterinary Center cares for dogs and cats with full-service and comprehensive veterinary medicine. Our doctors and staff serve pets and their families from New Canaan, Stamford, Ridgefield, Lewisboro, and more.

35 Westchester Avenue, Pound Ridge, NY 10576

When you go on vacation, send your pup on a vacation of their own...

B&NC Half Page Advert

Do not forget to extend your

images and background to the Northwind Kennels provides attentive, aﬀectionate care for dogs in a pleasant country setting.red bleed line Your pet is our passion!

Penny Smith-Berk is a leading animal activist who owns and runs Northwind Kennels, and is the Founder of Rescue Right, the leading animal adoption nonproﬁt in all of NY State.

LA MAISON FÊTE

partying in style!

10 YEARS OF

Deanna describes the La Maison Fête magic saying, “It all starts with listening to the client. Our mission is to make each individual client’s dream come true. Once we understand what the client wants, we come back with a comprehensive design plan for the event that includes renderings and cost estimates. We set

IN BEDFORD,

PHOTO: KYLIE MONES

the ladies of La Maison Fête have achieved the ultimate status as the Grand Dames of Entertaining. This year marks their ten year anniversary in business together, and Co-Founders Deanna Marano and Brett Cameron have clearly hit their stride. …And, oh yeah…that great party you went to... they were likely the event planners who brought it to fruition! While La Maison Fête tailors each event to the host’s particular visions and desires - all La Maison Fête events stand out! Event planning is a practiced art - and a whole lot of hard work and attention to detail - and La Maison Fête is the best of the best!

forth every element of the event, from the big picture items down to the smallest details. We can help find the perfect venue, or create a plan that will work in any predetermined location. We source the widest selection of rentals available, including everything from tents to tableware. We work with the client on every aspect of staffing. We’ll work with the hosts on the invitations and the seating plan. We delve into the food and drink that will be served, including identifying local farmers for food sourcing, and will suggest or help select the caterer and the menu. We can assist with entertainment selection, and hire just the right musicians or D.J. to get the mood, volume, and soundtrack just right. Uniquely, we shop estate sales, antique shops and local craftspeople to find or commission one-of-a-kind furniture, accessories, tablecloths, and tableware that will fit the theme or motif, and make the event that much more memorable. We review every contract from every vendor. We put 300 to 400 hours of prep into each wedding, and just an installation for a big event may take a week in and of itself. We cover everything from the flowers to the flow, and more than anything we want to make each event original and outstanding; an experience unto its own”

As anyone who’s ever hosted a party can attest, it takes more than a few invites and a trip to the grocery store to pull off a fabulous fête. All kinds of planning goes into these perfectly themed events. From a low key summer party to a wedding, a multitude of detailed components are the key to a successful party.

116

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

117

PHOTOS: JAMES ANDERSON

Ever been to an event where every detail popped out as a perfectly curated sweetener to the bigger picture, like custom cookies or a live artist, or where the colors in the intricate balloon display perfectly matched the single-stem bouquets of pastel florals, all underneath a string-lit sailcloth tent? Where the hand-painted place-settings and rattan furniture made it feel like you were at the chicest backyard garden party, but with all the luxury of being inside a five-star restaurant? Where the vibe hit the nail on the head in a seemingly effortless way, and where every detail had clearly been meticulously planned out?

Fine Detail

LA MAISON FÊTE

And Brett adds, “Our mission is to surpass our clients’ expectations, and have all the guests feeling like they’ve been to a happy, beautiful, and seamlessly executed party. We do every kind of event, from a small dinner party to a largescale wedding. We’ve done barn dances and black-tie formals, blow-out bashes and subdued affairs. While a majority of our clients are local, we handle events around the region. And I think one of our greatest testimonials at this point, as we’re celebrating our own 10th Anniversary of La Maison Fête, is that we have a lot of repeat business and many of our new customers come from word of mouth.”

La Maison Fête is based out of a cute store on Court Road in Bedford, and in the last couple of years Deanna and Brett have been more and more focused on expanding the retail offering of curated design elements for home entertaining as they expand the business. This year Brett and Deanna brought on their first additional full-time team member, Emily Bohlander, who they met while planning her own magnificent floral-inspired Waccabuc wedding. “We knew we needed someone else that was really capable to join the team and share in making more great events possible, and when we were working with Emily on her wedding, we were so impressed with her design ideas and generally elevated and chic style. She has such an attention to detail. She had a background in fashion and consulting and really clicked well with the two of us,” Deanna shares, “Brett and I both half joked how great it would be to have someone like Emily join the team, and right after Emily’s wedding she reached out to see if we might be interested in finding a way to work together… it all happened so naturally and she’s been a godsend!”

Brett started her career on the corporate side of the events business, first at Citi, and then Barclays in New York City. After planning her own wedding, she was asked by a friend for some help, and then another, and another. “It quickly became evident that doing weddings and personal events was where I was supposed to be…and what I enjoyed doing most,” Brett smiles. Deanna went to FIT and started her career in the fashion industry with Gurkha, before starting her own wedding planning business. These working moms each moved to Bedford to raise their families, and met while Co-Chairing an event for the John Jay Homestead. “We really hit it off! I was taking a break from my career at the time. But then Brett gave me a call and asked me to help out with another event she was doing,” Deanna reminisces. Brett continues, “I was doing a celebrity wedding and I had broken my ankle, and I really needed some help! I remembered how impressed I had been a few months earlier with what Deanna had done at John Jay, so I convinced her to work with me on this event. And we worked really well together - so I convinced her to make it permanent! And we’ve been partners ever since!”

118

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

In addition to helping Brett and Deanna with client’s requests, being involved in general vision and design, and liaising with

vendors, Emily has also been involved in the expansion of the offering in the store. Brett explains, “Most of our store customers when we first opened the shop in Bedford in 2021 were event clients, looking for some tableware or accents to freshen-up their dining room or make their house look festive for a dinner party. And because a lot of our customers have multiple homes, sales growth was pretty organic. But more recently we’ve been working to expand both our offering and our reach, and become a destination for what we refer to as event design. As we move our business forward, we are also planning to design some of our own table top collections and other retail products, and are now hosting workshops on how to style your table, and other entertainment and event-related topics. With Deanna and Emily’s fashion backgrounds we’ve found a few really curated clothing brands that we carry in the store exclusively to the area, and now we’re doing trunk shows and other community events, and have started publishing La Fête Gazette, in order to further expand our customer base and general presence in the area.”

PHOTO: RHONDA SPEVAK

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

LA MAISON FÊTE

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

119

Festive Soiree

PHOTO: RHONDA SPEVAK

Both dedicated locals, Brett is the President of the Bedford Village Business Association and presently serves on the board of the John Jay Homestead, and Deanna dedicates a lot of time to supporting local charity events. Together they’ve made it all happen for Bedford2030’s Moon Dance, the John Jay Homestead’s Barn Dance and On the Farm Dinner, the Mianus River Gorge Foundation’s first annual event this year, the galas at the Harvey School and Rippowam Cisqua, and parties at the equestrian charity, Endeavor, among other local charities and institutions. For the holidays, or any time, there is a tangible ease, elegance, and comfort about La Maison Fête events.

For this feature, La Maison Fête invited Bedford & New Canaan Magazine into Brett’s historic Bedford home as they prepared for a holiday soiree. An intimate affair, the table was set for eight guests, and every detail fit within a larger scheme and theme to create a perfectly curated atmosphere in a seemingly effortless environment. Max Apton set-up a tree proportioned perfectly for the space from his nearby Bedford Farms, along with magnolia branches interwoven with the display on the sideboard. The table was set with whimsical linens and paired with matching florals from Wild Fig, and the table was topped with more sophisticated silver and delicate stemware from their personal collections. Place cards for each guest were adorned with a dried orange and velvet bow, and large ice buckets were topped with caviar alongside adorable trays for the blinis. Colorful bowls of candy added a fresh touch throughout, and as the evening progressed from one space to the next, the champagne was flowing and the vibe was on point!

This dynamic duo knows how to party! PHOTO: RHONDA SPEVAK

120

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

LA MAISON FÊTE

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

LA MAISON FÊTE

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

121

PHOTO: RHONDA SPEVAK

Your

Dinner is Served! Dinner is served by the catering department at The Market at Pound Ridge Square!

Though The Market at Pound Ridge Square may be better known for top-quality groceries, the market’s catering department is top-notch, and capable of preparing a delicious feast for anything from a casual backyard barbeque to a fancier dinner party or event.

Holiday Celebrations At The Market you’ll find a generous selection of the finest ingredients! Choose savory meats, fresh seafood, appetizing cheeses, and crisp produce to prepare your favorite holiday dishes.

Pictured: A roasted turkey plated with seasonal fruit, Brussels sprouts with bacon, seared asparagus, a sweet cranberry sauce, and other holiday-inspired delectable dishes.

Start Here!

No time to cook? Check out our Holiday Menus to find a variety of delicious, chef‑prepared entrees and sides. Complete your holiday meal with a delicious, fresh‑from‑the‑oven treat from our Bakery! You’ll even find charming gifts and decorations in our Gift Department. Shop at The Market for stress‑free holiday celebrations!

122

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

55 Westchester Ave. Pound Ridge NY 10576 914.764.5736 www.poundridgemarket.com

Your Gourmet Grocery Store & So Much More!

$20 OFF NEW GUESTS

Spa Services / Massages Therapies / Organic Facials / HydraFacial / Wellness Packages Organic Body Treatments / Prenatal Services www.egiadayspa.com

121 Cherry Street New Canaan, CT

203.594.7252

CREATORS OF CUSTOM BED, BATH AND TABLE LINENS VISIT OUR NEW SHOP 134 Elm Street, New Canaan, CT 06840 Open 10:00 – 5:00 Mon. thru Sat. 212.753.6700 www.leron.com info@leroninc.com

FURNITURE

LIGHTING

M AT T R E S S E S

DECOR

C O M P L I M E N TARY D E SIG N SE R VICE S

230 RTE. 117 BYPASS ROAD, BEDFORD HILLS, NY 10507 I 914.241.7000 COUNTRYWILLOW.COM

Evergreen Branch

Holly & Berry

Herringbone Throw

Interior Design & Art Consultation

Interior Design & Art Consultation Joanne@jgoneildesigns.com

646.734.4263

www.jgoneildesigns.com

Custom Homes | Real Estate Development | Construction Management

Mourlot Editions MODULAR BY LE CORBUSIER J E A N

JACO BS

GA LLE RY

84 Main Street New Canaan Connecticut 06840 203.703.8762

jeanjacobsgallery.com

@jeanjacobsgallery

203.536.0655 | MosolinoDevelopment.com WC-26915-H14

CT-HIC 0624137

CT-NHC 0015778

…And she’s already working on a third cookbook, which she’s yet to title, about the fundamentals of Italian cooking, which she’s co-authoring with ‘The Pasta Queen’, Nadia Caterina Munno. “I was born In Italy, grew up in Rhode Island, and majored in Psychology and Journalism at NYU. I had a successful career in Insurance, but when I first got pregnant, my husband and I moved to Connecticut and I decided it was time for a complete change,” Anna explains her path. “I went ‘back to school’ at the French Culinary Institute in Manhattan to learn about cooking, and right after I

ANNA GASS New Canaanite :

Anna Gass is a well-known Cookbook Author and Foodie Personality - and she lives in New Canaan with her husband, Phil, two daughters, Alessandra and Veronica, a son, Dante, and their Boxer, Levi.

In 2019, Anna authored Heirloom Kitchen, published by Harper Collins, which is a collection of over 100 recipes, and life stories, from 40 selected grandmothers. It has been

128 128

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Cookbook Author

During Covid, Anna started giving online cooking classes, and now she’s available for private in-person events. She’s a regular on Good Morning America, Today, and Access Hollywood, has had dozens of recipes published in The New York Times, Bon Appetit, and other food bibles, maintains a wide offering of recipes on her website at annafgass.com, and has an Instagram following of 125,000 @annafgass.

graduated I got a position working in the Test Kitchen at Martha Stewart Living. That experience shaped my current career. Working at Martha Stewart I learned the anatomy of a recipe, why it works and how it comes together, and how to get it right, and I can’t say enough about Martha Stewart’s exacting standards, professionalism, and work ethic. …From there, I moved to become the Test Kitchen Manager at Food 52, where I tested recipes before they could be published online. …I consider myself a pretty talented chef, but professionally I’m really a food and cooking expert.”

In early 2024, Anna will release Italian Snacking, with Union Square Publishing, which will feature recipes for savory and sweet treats from each of the 20 distinct regions of Italy. The book delves into the regional origin and importance of each recipe, explaining why certain locals enjoy their specific treats…and why Italians are such great snackers!

“When I set-out to author a cookbook of my own, I realized I’d inherited a rich legacy of my mom’s cooking - but had none of her recipes committed to paper,” Anna tells about how Heirloom Kitchen came about. “I called it the ‘Meatball Project’. I would watch my mom cook her traditional dishes - and write the recipe that would allow others to repeat the production.

critically acclaimed in The New York Times, People Magazine, and The Washington Post, among other notable publications.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3 2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3 2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN PHOTOGRAPHY: ANDREA CERASO

129 129

ANNA GASS

…And during that process I realized that our parents’ and grandparents’ recipes are ‘heirlooms’ that need to be passed down, and treasured. Writing Heirloom Kitchen was a ton of fun. I got to meet grandmothers from all over the world, of every ethnicity, with a million fabulous stories…and a cookbook full of great recipes!”

“

I’m passionate about cooking, and my mission is to educate,” Anna proclaims. “I believe cooking is more of a skill that needs to be developed than a natural talent. Start simple, go little-by-little, practice, and don’t be afraid to try new things. I’m constantly trying out recipes people send to me, and experimenting with new ideas of my own. I cook dinner almost every night. I believe the time together as a family is critical. And food is a great conductor for family conversations and keeping our children around the table.. Food is love!”

Queried about her favorite meal, Anna declares, “Family dinner every Sunday! A homemade pasta in a red sauce, chicken cutlets, some wine - my husband and I make some pretty good wine, and a few special desserts. …And, though I love to cook, we like to eat out as well - and enjoy a night away from doing the dishes. We’re lucky to have a lot of talented chefs in Fairfield County, and an excellent selection of restaurants to choose from.” Anna has earned the trust of a large audience and is a well-respected cookbook author. She has the recipe for success! Heading into the holidays, Anna shares a sneak peak at a few recipes from her new cookbook, Italian Snacking... and bakes up some delicious treats to try!

130

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

131

ANNA GASS

OcchiChocolate di Bue Sandwich Cookies While the origins of this sandwich cookie are not certain, many believe it was created in northern Italy, as it closely resembles the Austrian Linzer cookie. The top cookie has a hole to reveal the filling and has also been given its name bue, which in Italian means ox; hence the cookie is a bullseye. I enjoyed these cookies while vacationing in Rome, as I found them in every pastry shop I entered. The variety of jam fillings was endless, but I always grabbed the one with a thick layer of chocolate hazelnut spread. It’s a perfect complement to the hazelnut flour I added for nuttiness. I also added a garnish of sea salt in my version, which is not traditional but so delicious.

Ingredients: 1 cup salted butter (226 grams), softened 1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar, (180 grams) plus more for topping 1 large egg, room temperature 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 ½ cup hazelnut flour (170 grams) or almond flour can be subbed 2 cups AP flour (272 grams), plus additional for dusting ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 cup chocolate hazelnut spread, for filling Flaked sea salt, for garnish

Directions: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla, scraping the sides of the bowl, until the egg is just combined, another minute or so. Add the flours and spices and mix to combine completely. Empty the dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap, shape into a disk, and wrap up the dough. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the dough from the fridge and cut it in half. Return one half to the fridge.

Yield 24 cookies Active time: 45 minutes Cook time: 20 minutes

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to ¼ inch thickness. Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out circles. In half of the 2-inch circles, cut out a smaller circle in the center (or use a fun shape like a flower). Reroll the dough for another 16 cookies. Place the cookies and the cut-outs onto the baking sheet and bake until very lightly golden, about 10 minutes. Allow them to cool completely on the baking sheet and repeat the process with remaining dough. Once cooled, place the chocolate hazelnut spread into a piping bag fitted with a medium star tip (Ateco #844) on the solid cookies. Lightly dust confectioners’ sugar on the top cookies with the cutout in the center. Place the sugared cutout cookies on top of the solid cookies to create a sandwich cookie. Sprinkle flaked salt on the chocolate hazelnut spread.

132

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

133

ANNA GASS

Strazzate Chocolate, almonds, and coffee make for a very delicious cookie combination. These cookies, from Basilicata, are double chocolate, crackled with a hint of coffee and lots of toasted almonds. Traditionally, a bit of Strega, an Italian herbal liquor known for its bright yellow color, is added, but I found the cookies didn’t need it, and it isn’t easy to find here in the States. If you find it, add a tablespoon to the batter for a hint of something different, flavored with mint, saffron, and juniper. This version is a chocolate lover’s dream.

Ingredients: 1 cup all-purpose flour (120 grams) ½ cup almond flour (48 grams) ½ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder (42 grams) 1 teaspoon kosher salt ½ teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature (1 stick plus 2 tablespoons) 1 ¼ cup granulated sugar (248 grams) 1 large egg, room temperature 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 1 teaspoon instant coffee granules 1 cup almonds, toasted and chopped (144 grams) 2 cups coarsely chopped semisweet chocolate or chips (340 grams or 12 ounces)

Directions: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Toast almonds on a rimmed baking sheet until fragrant and darkened slightly, about 10 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes, then chop. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder and baking soda to combine. Set aside. In a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg, vanilla extract, and coffee, beating until well combined.

Yield 40 cookies Active time: 25 minutes Total Time: 1 hr. (or 1 hr. 25 minutes if toasting raw almonds)

Add the dry ingredients and beat until almost fully incorporated. Turn off the mixer and stir in the almonds and chocolate by hand until evenly incorporated into the dough and no dry flour mixture remains. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper. Portion the dough into 2 tablespoon sized balls (1/2-inch scoop/32 grams each) and arrange them 2 inches apart on prepared sheets. Bake until cookies are set along the edges but still wet in the center, 10 to 12 minutes. Firmly tap the baking sheet on the counter a few times to flatten the cookies (they will appear cracked on top). Allow them to cool slightly on the baking sheets and serve warm or let cool completely before serving or storing.

134

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

135

STEEL WINDOWS & DOORS

203-316-8260 | www.atdetails.com

Y O UR H O M E , O N LY B E T T E R .

w w w. m a i s o n h a v e n .c o m | @ m a i s o n h a v e n Closets, pantries, playrooms + ever ything in between

Est.1967

Norwalk, CT

Danbury, CT

520 West Avenue 203.939.9771

70 Beaver Street 203.792.8700

www. KingswoodKitchens.com

ULLA JOHNSON | REPEAT CASHMERE |

A PIECE APART | LILLA P | ELA RAE |

MARIE OLIVER | LOVE THE LABEL

CLARE V | BIRDS OF PARADIS

POUND RIDGE - 70 Westchester Avenue 10576 - 914.232.3283 | BRONXVILLE - 70 Pondfield Road 10708 - 914.793.0737

R OS E

JAK A J

Sending warm wishes from home to home, and from heart to heart. May your holidays be filled with joy and laughter. RUSMINKA “ROSE” JAKAJ Real Estate Salesperson

M. 917.848.4645

RJakaj@houlihanlawrence.com Visit RoseJakaj.com

A R M O N K B R O K E R A G E · 3 9 9 M A I N S T, A R M O N K , N Y

CROWELL SPIRITS’

AMERICAN

BRICK BOURBON Father-and-son Brian and Kevin Crowell are building their burgeoning new bourbon brand…‘Brick by Brick’.

IT’S A NEW YORK STORY… The Crowell (pronounced: krole) clan first came to the Hudson Valley in the 1700s, and in 1872, Brian’s great great great grandfather - Kevin’s great great great great grandfather - bought a sawmill on a tributary of the Wallkill River in Ulster County, and launched JB Crowell & Son, manufacturing the moulds which were used to make the kiln-fired bricks used in all the new factories of the industrial revolution and many of the apartment buildings and skyscrapers in the nation’s growing cities.

140

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

PHOTOS: ANDREA CERASO

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

141

crowell and son

CROWELL SPIRITS

The Crowell family still owns the J.B. Crowell & Son Building, but the brick mould business has become somewhat obsolete. American Brick Bourbon was inspired when Kevin came upon some papers that were saved from a 1940s fire, which indicate how the Crowells were distilling a locally-sourced mash in the J.B. Crowell & Son Building during Prohibition. It may have been more than coincidence that the J.B. Crowell & Son brick moulds were hand crafted out of the same White Oak that’s used to barrel and age all bourbons.

First released in May 2023, American Brick Bourbon has already earned a 96 point rating from San Francisco World Spirits, as well as a score of 96 from International Wine and Spirits, and a 90 from Wine Enthusiast! But the Crowells have had the entirety of their American Brick Bourbon production thus far swiped-up by Total Wine! So, while locals can find a bottle of American

Brick Bourbon at the Total Wine at 380 Main Avenue in Norwalk…the Crowells are just on the first floor of building-out the American Brick Bourbon brand.

American Brick Bourbon is a continuation of the Crowell family legacy of craftsmanship and tradition of hard work, and to highlight that rich tradition, the Crowells used one of the old J.B. Crowell & Son brick moulds to give the American Brick Bourbon bottle its distinctive ‘brick-like’ shape.

“This interview with Bedford & New Canaan Magazine is big for us! American Brick Bourbon is selling out at Total Wine as fast as they can stock the shelves…but our vision is to make American Brick Bourbon ubiquitous! We need to get the word out faster than ‘word-of-mouth’ will allow,” Kevin says frankly. “We want to make American Brick Bourbon as American as apple pie!”

American Brick

Bourbon is 60% corn,20% wheat, 11% barley, and 9% rye

“And Bedford & New Canaan Magazine is particularly important to us, because our tie to the local area is so strong,” Brian adds. Brian is particularly well-known in the local area because he was the Head Golf Professional at GlenArbor in Bedford from 2007 to 2015.

- and every ingredient - even the water is sourced, and the bourbon is distilled,

entirely in New York.

Brian grew up next to the JB Crowell & Son Building, went to Wallkill Senior High School, and then Syracuse University, where he got a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ad Design. “When I was 14, my grandmother bought me a Junior Membership for $100 at the Osiris Country Club in Walden. I felt like she gave me the keys to a whole new incredible world. I went on to play on the golf team at Syracuse. When I got out of college I got a job in advertising at Hadley Group in Stamford, Connecticut, and was doing well there, but was always thinking about teeing it up the next weekend. I figured I should follow the old adage and ‘do what you love’, so in 1992, I

142

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

took a job as the Assistant Pro at Leewood Golf Club in Eastchester, New York. I went on to be the First Assistant at Sleepy Hollow Country Club in Briarcliff Manor, and then the Head Golf Professional at the Village Club of Sands Point in Port Washington, before returning to Leewood as the Head Golf Professional in 1999, and doing that for 8 years.”

“Joining-on at GlenArbor in 2007 was a big deal for me professionally, and also made me an integral everyday working part of our local community,” Brian continues. “My wife, Wendy - who was my 9th Grade Sweetheart and I, raised our three kids, Kevin, Casey, and Christina, in a house on Bedford Road in Bedford Hills. I left GlenArbor in 2016 to become the General Manager at Discovery Land’s Silo Ridge in Amenia, New York, and then moved in 2021 to become the General Manager at what was the Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point - which has just been acquired by Bally’s Golf - where I will remain as General Manager. But it wasn’t until earlier this year that we sold our house in Bedford Hills and moved into Manhattan…and we sold our house in Bedford Hills to my son Kevin, where he’s now living with his wife, Lily, and our baby grandson, Addison!”

“We want to make American Brick Bourbon as American as apple pie!”

“Yeah, you can’t get much more Bedford!,” Kevin remarks. “We moved to Bedford Hills when I was 4 and I went to Bedford Hills Elementary, Fox Lane Junior High and Fox Lane High School. Like my dad, I was pretty obsessed with golf. I started in the junior program while my dad was teaching at Leewood, but really started to play while my dad was at GlenArbor, and I could get out there to play sunset rounds with him. I played on the Fox Lane High School Golf Team, and I caddied and worked in the bag room at Bedford Golf & Tennis Club. …And now I live here again running it back for round two in the same hometown - and home - I grew up in!”

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

143

CROWELL SPIRITS Kevin continues, “I followed in my dad’s footsteps and went to Syracuse, and played on the golf team there as well. I’m also a guitarist - faced with the reality that the dreams of being a rock star are over. In high school, I was in a band we named The Catch, with Tim Bland, John McDermott and Chloe Arnow, and we played all the local fairs and festivals. And after college, with Chloe and Tim, in what we called The Good Few, we had gigs at venues in New York like the Mercury Lounge, Bowery Ballroom, Gramercy Theater, Rockwood Music Hall, and even The Bitter End…but weren’t able to take it to the next level commercially. I have a real estate license, and a really good job in finance with Discovery Land Company. I’ve been motivated to achieve greatness by the example of Discovery’s Founder, Michael Meldman .…But, I majored in Mechanical Engineering, have always felt like an entrepreneur, and saw American Brick Bourbon as an organic way to continue the Crowell Family’s legacy. This business is my birthright!”

…And when Brian speaks a magical trance seems to fall over all listeners! Brian is, in addition to being a PGA Golf Professional, a nationally renowned golf broadcast personality and, quite notably, has an eerily similar voice and sound, and a strong physical resemblance, to the biggest guy in golf broadcasting, Jim Nantz. Every time Brian opens his mouth it sounds like it’s Sunday at The Masters. Whether it’s by imitation or coincidence, Brian has the same warm, soothing, serious, confident, and friendly delivery, and effect, as Nantz. Brian startedout by buying studio time on Westchester-based WFAS and doing a radio show all about golf. He was discovered by then Executive Vice President and now President of Acquisitions and Partnerships at NBC Sports, Jon Miller, who called him to pinch-hit in the tower at the Greater Greensboro Open in 2000. Since then, Brian has Hosted the NBC Lexus Wrap-up Show, Co-Hosted Golf Digest’s Equipment Spectacular, Hosted Lesson-Tee Live for Golf Channel, among other TV and social media roles, and he is currently a Host and analyst for The Masters and the PGA Championship on CBS. …And it’s with that magical voice, which seems to embody all the streams and fields of New York in one peaceful breath, and to convey all the sensations of sipping a fine bourbon, that Brian entices his next friend to try American Brick Bourbon… “If you love bourbon as much as we do, then you know that the mineral-rich waters of New York’s limestone aquifers give New York bourbon a unique body and taste. Like for New York bagels, bread, and beer. And the volatile temperatures over the course of our Seasons, causes more contraction and expansion of our charred White Oak barrels in the aging process, and gives the bourbon a richer and more nuanced character. Our American Brick Bourbon is just something special!”

ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES HIGH-END CUSTOM WOOD FURNITURE

“100% New York State does seem like a natural motto for us Crowells,” Brian adds.

144

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

91 E MAIN STREET, MOUNT KISCO, NY 10549 • 914-864-0895 | 238 POST ROAD EAST, WESTPORT, CT 06880 • 203-557-0317

Not Getting Relief From Depression? FINANCIAL DECISIONS DON’T HAVE TO BE CONFUSING Retirement Planning

Insurance

401K plans IRA - Roth, Traditional SIMPLE IRA SEP IRA Annuities Mutual Funds

Life Disability Long Term Care Health Dental/Vision Medicare

www.LubaFinancial.com Securities offered through The Leaders Group, Inc., Member FINRA/SIPC 26 W Dry Creek Circle, Suite 800, Littleton, CO 80120, (303) 797-9080 Luba Financial is not affiliated with The Leaders Group, Inc. Medicare disclosure: We do not offer every plan available in your area. Any information we provide is limited to those plans we do offer in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options.

Westchester’s Premier Coin, Currency, Gold & Diamond Buyer Mount Kisco Gold & Silver Inc Neil S Berman

• Over 50 years of trusted experience and knowledge. • Sell us your Gold and Silver, Estate Jewelry, Diamonds and Watches. • Monetize your Coin and Currency Collection. • Highest prices paid. B&NC • Written Appraisals1/4 for Estates Page Advert • Gold & Silver Bullion Dealer

Visit us at:

Sophisticated Style

No bleed needed Hours:

Mt. Kisco Gold & Silver Inc 139 E. Main Street Mt. Kisco, NY 10549

Resident Bea C. hosts a group of residents who have relocated to Edgehill from diverse corners of the country for champagne and conversation in her apartment home. Pictured from left to right are Mary Kay G. from Naples, FL, Bea C. from Greenwich, CT, Pat M. from Danville, CA, and Christy M. from Darien, CT.

Edgehill, the standard for senior living.

Tuesday - Friday 10am - 5:30pm Saturdays 10am - 4:00pm (Closed Sunday/Monday)

Tengda Asian Bistro – Katonah Fine Asian Cuisine with a creative and diverse menu

At Edgehill, you will continue your cherished traditions and embrace a life filled with meaningful connections. In addition to being surrounded by fascinating neighbors hailing from near and far, our residents enjoy gourmet dining experiences, hotel-like amenities and a dynamic team of associates that anticipates your every need.

To learn more, call 508-906-7207 or visit EdgehillCommunity.com

Where life meets style.

Phone: 914.232.3900 Website: www.tengdakatonah.com

www.bermanbuyscollectables.com • 914-244-9500

286 Katonah Avenue, Katonah, New York 10536

122 Palmers Hill Road | Stamford, CT 06902

B E D F O R D WINE

Father & Son Steven & Stephan Fisher

W NE

BEDFORD CELLARS

Explaining how Privatus and their partnership came about, Stephan explains, “My parents have always been into wine, and my mom’s parents had a store in Brighton Beach. In 2009, my mom opened a wine store in Armonk called Moderne Barn Wine & Spirits. From that point on, we’ve been engrossed. …But right about the same time I graduated from the University of Miami, my mom was diagnosed with cancer. Although my plan was a job in tech, I’d spent some time in the store during summers and knew that I could help alleviate some of the burden, and give my mom a chance to take care of herself while she went through rounds of chemo and a multitude of surgeries. …She’s fine now and Moderne Barn Wine & Spirits is thriving, but my turn managing the store gave me a quick and very practical business education, and a great enthusiasm about the wine industry. I built-out the store’s website, which is really what kept the business going through Covid. …I’ve always been something of an

edford Cellars and Glenville Wines are the two wine brands produced by Privatus Wines, owned by father and son Steven and Stephan Fisher, who are from Armonk.

Steven Fisher immigrated to America from Odessa, Ukraine in 1974, joining relatives who had moved to the U.S. a year earlier. “We moved to Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn,” Steven recalls. “There were so many Ukrainians and Russians who didn’t speak English, they put us in a separate class in P.S. 225! My father hustled to achieve the American dream. He worked as a dishwasher, then a taxi driver, eventually buying land and gas stations. After attending Pace, I became a stockbroker at Gruntal, worked at Shearson, and then became a top broker at JW Genesis. My wife, Diana, and I moved to Armonk 26 years ago, and raised our three sons, Stephan, Bryan, and Ross, here. All three boys went to Byram Hills, and Armonk was a great place to raise a family!”

entrepreneurial kid - I majored in Business Technology, and when I was at U of M I sold fidget spinners and headphones , promoted events, gave tennis lessons, and worked as a lifeguard.” Steven adds, “While my wife, Diana, had the retail store, and years before her cancer diagnosis, I became intrigued with the distribution side of the wine business. I began as a sales rep for a small wine distributor, then moved into supplying distributors with California wine. I learned everything I could about the business. …Fast-forward to when she’d completed chemo and was feeling strong enough to return her focus back to her store, we took a trip to Napa…and I just knew it was time for me to go all-in on the wine production business. …And Stephan is the perfect partner, as he knows everything I don’t, and I get the joy of doing this with my son! …And my son Bryan is the creative behind our labels and designs. He designs our brochures, takes photos, and edits videos for our social media.” He continues, “We teamed up with renowned winemaker Jason Welch to oversee our production. We source all our wines from California and buy only single vineyard appellation wines. So we have varietals from Napa Valley, Alexander Valley, Red Hills Lake County, Moon Mountain District, Sonoma County, and Monterey County. We operate from a custom crush facility in Saint Helena and buy the juice from some of the most prestigious vineyards - but are under contract not to disclose their identities! Those vineyards sell the same product at several times the price we put on it!

PHOTOGRAPHY: ANDREA CERASO

148

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

149

B E D F O R D WINE

Stephan adds, “Our Petite Sirah earned 93 points from Wine & Spirits Magazine. Our wines are distributed in New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Maryland, New Hampshire, Colorado, Nevada, and Florida, and our wine is available online. Locally, our wines are available at Bedford Wine Merchants and at Banksville Wine & Liquor in Bedford, and of course at my mom’s store, Moderne Barn Wine & Spirits. It’s also poured at Modern Barn Restaurant in Armonk, and a few others in the area. And our wines are affordable, selling retail at around $19 to $50 a bottle - with the same wine under the original vineyard’s label, on the same shelf in the liquor store, selling in the $40 to $100 range.” Steven sums it up saying, “It’s easy to say we’ll put our wines up against the award winners - because it’s actually the same wine in the bottle! Getting folks to realize the value of our Bedford and Glenville wines is just a function of getting people to drink their first bottle! Last year, in our third year of operation, we

150

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

sold 25,000 cases, and we intend to be selling over 100,000 cases per year within the next couple of years. After that, we have plans to start sourcing additional varietals from Europe.” And if the quality and value of the Privatus wines isn’t enough, just think how cool it will be - as a Bedford & New Canaan Magazine local - to be pouring Bedford Cellars!

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

151

grand

n t r a n c e 800-486-7553

Welcome to The Summit Club Residences—the Only Exclusive Private Country Club & Residential Community in WESTCHESTER COUNTY.

Bring your custom ideas to life, design to completion. We can help you create a breath taking first impressions . . . something you are only able to make once, Wood and Wrought Iron Gates, Fencing & Railings, Handcrafted Stone Walls and Pillars. see our gallery of pictures at grandentrance.com

LN# WC-35221-H22 CT HIC.0560846

RENDERING SHOWN

B&NC Half Page Advert

2-3 Bedroom Units Ranging from 2,535- 3,237 Sqft. Starting at $2.8M Estimated Price.

Do not forget to extend your images and background to the red bleed line

914-273-9300 | info@summitclubresidences.com SUMMITCLUBRESIDENCES.COM

This advertisement is not an offering. It is a solicitation of interest in the advertised property. No offering of the advertised units can be made and no deposits can be accepted, or reservations, binding or non-binding, can be made until an offering plan is filed with the New York State Department of Law. This advertisement is made pursuant to Cooperative Policy Statement #1, issued by the New York State Department of Law. File No: CP22-0091.

CUSTOM LUXURY HOME CARPENTRY AND RENOVATIONS customartwood.com

914-879-8626

customartwood@gmail.com

“Family-Owned Means a

Relaxed, Low-Pressure Sales and Service Experience Every Time!” - Nelson DeMelo, General Manager

6 YEARS IN A ROW!

THE BEST-SELLING ALL-WHEEL DRIVE CARS IN AMERICA FOR THE PAST 10 YEARS

S O LT E R R A ALL-ELECTRIC

FORESTER ALL-WHEEL DRIVE

OUTBACK ALL-WHEEL DRIVE

NEW SHOWROOM NOW OPEN

HENRY B. GARAG

E DOORS

A S C E N T ALL-WHEEL DRIVE

LEGACY

ALL-WHEEL DRIVE

IMPREZA ALL-WHEEL DRIVE

You Dream it & We Make it

Commercial & Residential Mahogany • Cedar • Douglas Fir • Vinyl • Aluminum • Steel • Fiberglass • Electric Openers • Installations • Repairs

CROSSTREK ALL-WHEEL DRIVE

Watch for the Grand Opening of our NEW, State-of-the-Art, 27-acre facility coming late December!

5 Fallsview Lane • Brewster NY • 914-962-9873 • www.WhitakerGarageDoors.com Call for an Appointment to Visit our Showroom Serving Westchester, Putnam & Connecticut for more than 60 years.

(845) 278-8300 • 1021 Route 22, Brewster, NY 10509 Brewster-Subaru.com DMV Facility Number 7118668

I’m about to turn 65 years old and I’ve been skiing for 60+ years. I like it steep, but I gave up skiing the bumps years ago. I’ve skied some heavenly powder, but nowadays I pray for every day to be a bluebird day on Black Diamond groomers. I’m one of the better guys my age out on the mountain. …And I’ve figured out how to make skiing, and ski trips …nothing but luxurious! For the last 6 years now, I’ve loaded up the Range Rover and motored West to ski the great mountains of Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Montana, Idaho, and California - and I’ve skied about 50 days each year! My now 25-year old son has been with me for every mile, and we’re joined from time to time at the half-dozen or so resorts we get to each year, by my wife, daughter, kids’ significant others, and a bunch of my good friends. We’ve had some epic winters with record snowfalls, and though I’d already had extensive time skiing Tahoe, Aspen and Utah since being a teenager, exploring the West with my son has been one of the great adventures of my life! Leaving Big Sky at dawn with temperatures at -10 Fahrenheit, we saw a family of Fox scampering across one of Yellowstone’s frozen rivers. On the drive from Steamboat to Aspen, while we were doing the prescribed 70 m.p.h down the wall of a miles-long canyon, a huge Golden Eagle, taking aim from a great distance, seemed to intentionally smash into our windshield - and then flew off, apparently unharmed. We’ve seen Moose, Elk, Mountain Lions, Mountain Goats, Bald Eagles, and Owls. And there are spectacular drives; like taking the ‘road less traveled’ on the trip from Aspen to Park City; turning North off I-70 in Rifle and taking Colorado 64 West from Meeker to Dinosaur, and then Utah 40 West through Vernal, Myton, and Fruitland.

PHOTO: CARTER FISH

BY Michael Kaplan, B&NC MAG Publisher

156

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

I prefer to ski each area for a week or two in a visit, over getting lodging for the season at just one location. I recognize that owning or renting for the season means you can live like you’re at home or even better, and that you don’t have to move your stuff from one place to another. But I get bored skiing the same mountain day-after-day for more than a week or two, and get bored of ski towns with the exception of Aspen - in about the same amount of time.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

PHOTO: KIRBY GRUBAUGH

…And the must-buy-in-pre-season availability of Alterra Mountain Company’s IKON Pass and Vail Corp.’s EPIC Pass make the lift ticket part of the equation quite affordable. Using the IKON Pass for five of the last six years, which allows unlimited access to more than a dozen ski resorts, including their own Palisades Tahoe, and stipulated access to more than 50 other ski resorts around the world - all for a little more than a Thousand Dollars per person per year, we’ve enjoyed skiing at: Aspen Mountain, Aspen Highlands, Snowmass, Steamboat, Jackson Hole, Big Sky, Sun Valley, Palisades Tahoe (formerly Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows), Deer Valley, Alta, Snowbird, Solitude, and - by air - Whistler/Blackcomb in British Columbia. …And we chose Vail Corp.’s EPIC Pass one year…because we wanted to meet up with a large group of friends who were skiing Vail that year…and because we just couldn’t stay away from Telluride!

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

157

ASP E N

SKI THE WEST

A lot of planning goes into getting it right each year. We sequence areas so the route makes sense, we travel between areas on weekends, we avoid Christmas and Washington’s Birthday Vacations (we’ve spent weeks enroute in Las Vegas and in California instead), and we’re aware of the timing of things like the Sundance Film Festival week in Park City and the X Games week in Aspen. We prefer to rent houses at some resorts and hotels at some others, based primarily on having a great ski-on / ski-off location, and I have most accommodations booked by the end of September. …And it’s critical to note that lots of accommodations are called ski-on ski-off, but what I’m talking about is not having to carry my skis and walk with my boots on - at all! It makes it so everyone can ski when they want and for as long as they want, go in and out for breaks as they please…and so my wife enjoys the vacation! In November, I make a trip to Darien Sport Shop to pick up a new pair of slacks or a blazer I’ll be sporting that winter as we’re out-and-about ‘eating the West’, and some ski wear from brands like Bogner and Helly Hansen, and a pair of the newest Hestra gloves - for everyone in the family. …And in December, I stop into Hickory & Tweed in Armonk to get our skis tuned-up, replace and upgrade gear, and pick-up a new parka or snow pants - like the Amundsen ski wear featured in these pages.

Aspen is North America’s greatest ski town - and a rival to anyplace in the summer too!

ONCE WE HIT THE ROAD…IT’S OUR

PHOTO: ANDREA CERASO

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

PHOTO: CHLOE JIMENNEZ

‘ENDLESS WINTER’!

158

If you’re looking for ultimate comfort, Surefoot is the leading boot technology molded to your foot with built -in heating

Only eleven miles West of the Continental Divide as the crow flies, but a spectacular two-hour drive through Glenwood Canyon and then alongside the Roaring Fork River leading into town, Aspen is an alpine valley of less than four square miles. The immediate valley area is contained by Red Mountain to the North, Independence Pass to the East, and Aspen Mountain, or ‘Ajax’, with the Silver Queen Gondola rising right out of town off East Durant Avenue on the Southern side of the City’s downtown. The entire area is surrounded by 8 of America’s 14,000+ foot mountains.The place was well known to Native Americans, including the local Utes, and was developed as a silver

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R PHOTOS BY: ALEX BEAL

2 0 2 3

mining town during the late 1800’s. The town had languished when the first runs on Aspen Mountain were cut in the 1930s, and really didn’t start to seem special until the late 1950s, when Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk were both developed on the edge of town, or even the late 1960s, when Snowmass, ten minutes out of town to the West, was added to the ski-topia. Things really started to swing in the 1970s, and in the half-century leading-up to Covid, Aspen experienced a boom as a resort destination, and a corresponding unparalleled increase in real estate values. By 2020, the median price of a home in Aspen was over $15M! …And the air at 8,000 feet above sea level has become even more rarified since Covid…Bloomberg News reports prices have tripled since the beginning of the pandemic!

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

159

SKI THE WEST

ASP EN Cloud9, situated at the halfway point up Highlands is known as one of the top ski party spots in the US.

…AND THEN THERE’S SNOWMASS, There are 4 ski areas in Aspen: Aspen Mountain or ‘Ajax’ right in town, Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk a couple of miles out of town, and Snowmass, a few more miles out of town, past the Airport. Combined, the ski offering is unparalleled! Ajax is fun! It has mostly Intermediate and Expert terrain, and although most skiers spend the day on the relatively short upper half of the mountain, the top-tobottom run is 3,267 vertical feet. The Sundeck at the summit has outstanding views and a constant party going, Bonnie’s Restaurant on Ruthie’s Run at middle-mountain has renowned Burgers, and Ruben sandwiches, and is even more famous for the rowdy lunch out on the deck, and there’s nothing better than skiing into Ajax Tavern right at the bottom of the mountain for some apres ski…and their legendary French Fries! Buttermilk, which hosts the X Games each winter, is: the bee’s knees for Beginners, with a mellow paradise called West Buttermilk; command central for cross-coursers, with a cross-course called Eagle Hill; the top of the pyramid for terrain parks, with Main Buttermilk Park, Teaser Park, Chucks Park, Jacobs

Ladder Park, Spruce Park, and X Park, and; a hidden treasure for those who know there’s a trove of untracked Expert and Intermediate groomers off the Tiehack Express lift. Aspen Highlands is where the locals ski. It has mostly Expert and Intermediate runs, including some of the most challenging Double Diamond trails in America in the Temerity, Steeplechase and Olympic Bowl and Highland Bowl areas, and one of America’s best bump runs, formerly called Flora Dora and now called Scarlett’s Run. Take in the view from the 11,675 foot top of the Loge Peak lift at the twin 14,000+ foot Maroon Bells, and then enjoy gravity on the 3,635 foot top-to-bottom straight down to the base. Or stop at the end of the day at the mid-mountain, world famous, Cloud 9 apres ski cabin and deck, where skiers end the ski-day spraying bottles of champagne, eating cheese fondue, and dancing on tables to a popular DJ.

which has some great Double Diamond terrain off the Hanging Valley and Cirque Headwalls, but boasts in particular what may be the best array of High Intermediate / Low Expert skiing in North America, including most notably on the the outstanding Big Burn. And Snowmass has an outstanding ski school and Beginner operation. Snowmass is the perfect choice for any family. It has 3,132 skiable acres, 91 trails, 21 lifts, and the longest ski trail in America, Longshot, at 5.3 miles from top to bottom.

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

161

AS P E N

SKI THE WEST

The unusual thing about picking accommodations in Aspen is that, because the goal of any week is to ski two or three if not all four of the Aspen mountains, paying the premium for ski-on ski-off accommodations

any

one

mountain is not necessarily the best choice. …And, except at Snowmass where 95% of the available lodging is ski-on ski-off! - there’s anyway a very limited number of ski-on ski-off accommodations on Ajax,

Hotel Jerome

Highlands or Buttermilk.

Over in Snowmass there’s an adorable village tucked into the side of the mountain that feels reminiscent of a European ski town. The Viewline Hotel, boasts one of the best ski-on ski-off setups anywhere, with direct access for the youngest and newest Beginners, and offers spacious and tasteful rooms right on the mountain. Hot chocolate and s’mores are served in the lobby daily, and the Viewline’s restaurant, Starks, has exactly the kind of comfort food you want to eat after a long day on the slopes.

The coolest place to stay in town in Aspen is the Hotel Jerome in the Auberge Resorts Collection. It’s located in the heart of downtown Aspen and only a short shuttle or a few block walk to the Gondola at Ajax. The Jerome is in a red brick building that dates back to 1889, and is the ideal mix of modern luxury and old-ski-town charm. The rooms are sophisticated and the bar, Bad Harriet, and its adjacent living room, is one of the classiest places West of New York to have a drink and meet with friends. Its main restaurant, Prospect, is a warm and rustic setting for an elevated, yet approachable, American-fare dinner. If a more residential arrangement is desired, book into one of the multi-bedroom suites at the Aspen Residences. It’s only one block from the Ajax Gondola, and the valet, or free buses right across the street, make a day trip to Aspen Highlands or Snowmass easy. The suites at the Aspen Residences are spacious and comfortable, and include a kitchen. And there’s a cute free breakfast offered every morning and a cup of hot chocolate waiting at the end of the ski day. Aspen Mountain Residences

162

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

Downtown Aspen is chock full of high-end shopping and excellent cuisine. Matsuhisa is known for the best sushi in town. Betula is a chic place with great food and large tables, great for a group. The infamous Little Nell Hotel has a Michelinstarred fine-dining restaurant, Element 47, where the food is as good as any fancy spot in New York, and even has live music on Thursday evenings. White House Tavern has the best chicken sandwich in the West, and is a great upscale-casual spot for lunch or dinner. And everyone’s favorite is Paradise Bakery… right in the heart of town, which is best-known for its delicious cookies, homemade gelato, and hot chocolate.

SKI THE WEST

DEER

Parkas and Pants: Amundsen Eyewear: Vaurnet

VA L L E Y

IS AMERICA’S MOST LUXURIOUS

SKI AREA! While Deer Valley is a relatively small ski area as Western mountains go, it has the advantages of being located less than an hour drive from the Salt Lake City airport and right up the road from Park City’s iconic Main Street - and the downtown’s dozens of good restaurants.

Deer Valley is ideal for Beginners and Intermediates, and has a vibrant and really kid-friendly ski school program. While the truly Expert skiing is mostly limited to the terrain off the Mayflower and Empire Express lifts, the number of different Intermediate groomer routes down and around the mountain, scenic views like that of the Jordanelle Reservoir when skiing the Jordanelle Gondola…coupled with a tremendous lift capacity…and a daily limit on the number of skiers…combine to make a day at Deer Valley a true pleasure!

164

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Sweaters: Alp N’ Rock

PHOTOS BY: CARTER FISH

Sweaters: Alp N’ Rock

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

165

SKI THE WEST

D E E R VA L L E Y

ICELAND

CHILE

FRANCE

COLORADO

C A N A DA

ALASKA

For the finest ski-on ski-off hotel experience, the St. Regis Deer Valley, located alongside the Deer Hollow run, stands out. The quality of all St. Regis accommodations is a given, but the St. Regis in Deer Valley exceeds all expectations when it comes to dining and enjoying time off the slopes. The hotel has an outstanding fitness facility, a full-service ultra-luxurious spa, a daily champagne sabering and free champagne and cider celebration on the Mountain Terrace, and a really fun, quite large, slopeside, outdoor, heated pool. In the St. Regis, RIME has a warm and relaxing atmosphere for slopeside comfort food, La Stellina offers a classic Italian menu, and Brasserie 7452 has French favorites like French Onion Soup and Beef Bourguignon. …All great choices!

Private on and off the mountain.

And in 2023 the St. Regis opened The Vintage Room, a unique, completely clear, aprés ski tent, located on the slope just outside the hotel, on what’s called Ski Beach, with heated seating and a roaring fire pit. In no time, The Vintage Room has become an apres ski sensation!

No one does guided heli and cat skiing like Eleven. From the roof of Chilean Patagonia to sky-to-sea powder laps in Iceland, we get you to the most sought-after ski terrain on the planet. Pair that with our award-winning lodges and you’ve got skiing turned up to eleven.

The St. Regis is located higher-up the mountain than the Snow Park Lodge at the base of Deer Valley, where first-time Beginners access the Wide West bunny slopes, replete with ‘magic carpet’ lifts, and where other skiers can start their day. Any such Beginner staying at the St. Regis, can take the St. Regis’ really cool ‘Funicular’ from the hotel right to the Lodge. And anyone staying at the St. Regis might also take the short ride down to the Snow Park Lodge for a night at Cast & Cut, a steakhouse and seafood tavern with a lively atmosphere and great food.

166

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Deplar Farm, Iceland

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

A Global Collection Of Adventure Lodges

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

For inquiries, please contact Jack Oestreicher, Senior Sales Manager

Continues on page 168

167

jack.oestreicher@elevenexperience.com | (914) 414-2121 elevenexperience.com

BIG SKY

SKI THE WEST

Sherpa fleeces & boots: UGG

With over 5,850 acres of skiable terrain and 4,350 vertical feet from the top of Lone Mountain to the Mountain Village base, Big Sky is unquestionably

Outerwear: Flylow Gloves: Hestra

NORTH AMERICA’S

BIGGEST & BEST

Big Sky’s unbelievable array of couloirs, chutes, bowls, glades, and other hair-raising Expert terrain, especially in both directions off the top of Lone Mountain and over the entirety of the all-Double Diamond Southern Face of the mountain, is unrivaled. …But then there’s also an incredible array of endless

168

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

Expert and Intermediate groomers. Despite its size, the mountain is easy to navigate. And the mountain is continually adding lift capacity, including the Jetson-like, bubbled and heated, ‘Ramcharger 8’ lift and ‘Swift Current 6’ lift - North America’s fastest lift, running at 1,200 feet per minute.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

PHOTOS BY: KIRBY GRUBAUGH

SKI AREA!

But the best part about a luxury stay in Big Sky, is the abundance of quality ski-on ski-off residences available for short-term stays. In 2023, we stayed in a comfortable private residence in one of the mountainside residential developments, ours called Cowboy Heaven, near the Moonlight Basin side of the mountain.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

The ski-on ski-off was so good, my son actually opened the sliding-glass door so I could slide into the boot room with my skis on as we were all reveling in the extreme convenience! And the place was big enough to have some of my friends and some of my kids’ friends come join us. …We’ve already taken the same house for 2024!

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

169

Bedford And new CAnAAn Skiers: Looking For A New Ski Shop?

SKI THE WEST

JAC K S O N HOLE IS A MECCA FOR

THE EXPERT SKIER! While Jackson Hole may not have as much variety or breadth of terrain as Big Sky, there’s no better mountain than Jackson Hole on a ‘per skiable acre’ basis. It’s steep and long, and there’s an outstanding selection of Black Diamond and Double Black Diamond in every direction. And the trail layout and lift system at Jackson Hole allows the skier to cross from one side of the mountain to another with ease. While there is a nice area for kids and ski school called Solitude Station near to the bottom of the mountain, and the mountain does have some Novice and easier Intermediate choices under the Sweetwater Gondola and the Casper Quad, there’s no mistaking that Jackson Hole is an Advanced skier’s mountain!

One of the best ski shops in the country is closer than you think. Learn more at hickoryandtweed.com

The day starts with a ride up the iconic Tram - and with the onboard loudspeaker announcement: “The Tram is recommended for people with Expert abilities only,” followed, with everyone joining in unison, “If you don’t know…don’t go!” Stop at the top at Corbet’s Cabin for one of their infamous waffle concoctions, then head out for a day of constantly steep and challenging terrain - in every direction - and over every one of the 4,139 vertical feet down! Jackson Hole’s 26 Double Blues, 52 Black Diamonds, and 27 Double Black Diamond trails are an ultimate challenge and an infinite treat!

You drive hours to the best slopes. So why not take a short drive to Hickory & Tweed in Armonk to choose the best ski and snowboard equipment and fashions. u Come in now to lease our equipment: We have a wide

selection of ski and snowboard leasing equipment for the entire family. There’s no deposit required.

u Make an appointment for ski leasing or equipment fitting:

Visit www.hickoryandtweed.com and take your pick of appointments. Walk-ins are welcome, but when you have an appointment, you can avoid wait times.

u Check out our ski apparel and fashions: We feature

Amundsen, Bogner, Elevenate, Helly Hansen, Kjus, Norrona, Obermeyer, Parajumper, Strafe and more. R O

PHOTO: FOUR SEASONS RESORT AND RESIDENCES JACKSON HOLE

Ski & Bike

170

SINCE 1961 SINCE 1961

Celebrating our 62nd Year

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

410 Main St., Armonk, NY10504 u 914.273.3397 u hickoryandtweed.com Mon–Sat, 10–6 u Thurs ‘til 7 u Sundays 12–5

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

And then, of course, for the ‘Triple-BlackDiamond-thrill-of-a-lifetime’, there’s Corbet’s Couloir! Made famous by the Kings & Queens of Corbets competition held each year, ‘skiing’ this extreme chute requires a leap of faith from the cornice, and a couple of immediately critical turns to avoid disaster. It’s not for the faint of heart…but once done, it’s a real badge of courage!

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

171

SKI THE WEST Coats & Pants: FlyLow Gear

The ‘key to the Hole’ in terms of accommodations and overall vacation experience, is that the base of the ski area is actually in Teton Village, about 12 miles away from what’s known as Cowboy Town USA - downtown Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The road up to the mountain gets backed-up with ski traffic going up in the morning and coming down in the afternoon, there’s limited parking at the mountain and, absent having a driver to drop everyone who’s skiing at the mountain, it means ski-on ski-off convenience for anyone staying in Jackson Hole is nowhere involved. …And to make the choice of accommodations even more critical, there’s a relatively limited offering of hotel or house rental properties that are located adjacent to the ski area and which offer a truly ski-on ski-off experience… The Four Seasons, which has the truest ski-up location at the base of the mountain, is far and away the most luxurious choice. The hotel’s Westbank Grill is super,

and by far the best dining available from the limited restaurant selection in the area immediately around the base of the mountain. And the hotel’s Ascent Lounge is a convenient spot for a tasty, Asianinspired, and slightly more casual meal. While being ensconced at The Four Seasons in Teton Village will make the ski day easy, visiting Jackson Hole is still a must. Tie-up your horse in front of the Cowboy Bar, where all of the bar stools are topped with western horse saddles, and go on in to listen to some country music and throw back a few with friends. Snake River Grill is a noteworthy steakhouse that serves up the area’s legendary Snake River Wagyu. And King Sushi, tucked away on the eponymous King Street, just a block from the main town square, is at least a legitimate contender for …wait for it…drumroll…best sushi in the Continental

United States!

JAC K S O N H O L E 172

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

ALL SKI PHOTOS: AMY JIMMERSON

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

…And then there’s Teton Thai! Located in a very unassuming alleyway on the far side of the Teton Village parking area from the Four Seasons - too far to walk on a cold night, but worth freezing for - Teton Thai is easily my favorite Asian restaurant, bar none! It’s owned and run by Sam Johnson and his wife Sucahda, who cooks all the food! And the group that works there are a wholesome bunch of long-term Jackson Hole ski bums. Despite what can be a long wait in the not-warm waiting area in this first-come-first-served establishment, and the slightly crowded and certainly simple surroundings, my meals at Teton Thai stand out among the most memorably delicious dinners of my life! Don’t miss the traditional Pad Thai!

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

173

SKI THE WEST

PLANNING THE NEXT

SKI SEASON “We have all kinds of local ‘ski boots on the ground’ and great contacts at ski resorts around the world,” Alli Widman of Avant Ski explains. “We take our fee from the resorts on hotel bookings, so there’s no cost to our clients, and for a typical fee of $500 per week of vacation, we provide more extensive itinerary planning and concierge services. We can hook you up with exclusive perks, discounts and upgrades, including through our partnership with Fora, and you never pay more than if you’d booked it on your own. Whether it’s getting you into the right hotel or a reservation at the hot restaurant, or providing insider tips on places to go and things to do, we have the kind of insider knowledge that will make your trip extra-special!”

Eyewear: Vaurnet Jackets: Amundsen

I could go on and on! And the route I’ve mapped out above, which is our planned route for 2024, could still be amended with a side-trip to,

TAOS, TELLURIDE, MAMMOTH, SUN VALLEY IN IDAHO, VAIL, OR…? Planning these trips out West is easy for me because I’ve been to all of these stops before, know exactly where I’m going, and have a second and third choice place to stay if the standout premier accommodations are unavailable. …But if I’m going somewhere new, or if I need help finding a great rental or booking into a particular hotel, I turn to Avant Ski for the planning.

174

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

PHOTO: CHLOE JIMENNEZ

I’m hoping to go on a ski and sightseeing trip to Europe or Japan this March - after we get back home from the 2024 Ski The West tour - and I’ve already got Avant Ski starting to map out the two alternatives. Planning a ski trip to Japan is virtually impossible without having an experienced travel agent who knows the ins and outs of getting around, where to stay, and the characteristics of each mountain. And if it’s Europe, I want to be in the best hotel and have reservations in the best restaurants, know if I should arrive by train for a more romantic route and have my cabin booked, and have the itinerary for my one-day round-trip ski from Zermatt, Switzerland to Cervinia, Italy - for lunch! - all planned-out.

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

Alli continues, “We can arrange the most luxurious rental on the mountain, give advice on what hotel will best suit your purposes, or let you in on the bargain in that area. Take Big Sky as an example. We have special knowledge and access to rental residences at Big Sky - and at the adjacent Yellowstone private mountain ski area! We would recommend the new Montage as the only Five Star hotel accommodations at Big Sky, but would also highly recommend The Wilson Hotel, which is actually a high-end Residence Inn by Marriott, located in the Big Sky Town Center about 6 miles down the road from the Big Sky base, as an outstanding and

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R PHOTO: CHLOE JIMENNEZ

2 0 2 3

less expensive alternative. We can arrange safe and reliable ground transportation for rides from the airport to the ski area - like on the one hour trip from Bozeman to Big Sky. And we can enhance the ski trip with adventures and experiences available in the area. At Big Sky, for instance, we can arrange a daytrip into Yellowstone National Park, or a day snowmobiling, or Nordic skiing on Big Sky’s vast network of trails, or a couple of hours out fishing with a guide. We can even take care of catering - which is an especially good idea if you’re staying in a private residence in Big Sky, where the restaurants are limited.”

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

175

SKI THE WEST

GEARING-UP

…Then, when Pete was asking me about what bindings and boots I’d be mounting on the Wagners - because even that determines a whole bunch of how the ski is designed - I told him that, knowingly sacrificing some performance for comfort, I’d been in a boot which incorporated the design of a skiboarding boot…and Pete said he understood the need for comfort, but that it was time for me to find one of the new boots that would give me the same comfort but better performance. He kind of made me promise!

FOR NEXT SEASON

Last year, it seemed like more than a few times, when I noticed a particularly good skier - and I don’t mean a racer, I mean anyone who looked really comfortable skiing down the mountain - when they pulled-up, their skis looked nothing like any of the brand name skis I’d ever seen!! These folks all had outrageous artwork and designs covering the tops of their skis!! Each pair unique!! …And when I would ask about the skis all these good skiers were skiing…the answer was ‘Wagner’! …And when it was a skier who I thought was particularly good, and asked about the ski itself, I would hear: ‘Best skis I’ve ever had!’, ‘Best there are!’, and ‘You need to try ‘em…but not my pair, bro!’! When I did the research, I found out about how a guy named Peter Wagner runs the company out of Telluride, and makes the finest custom skis available - truly, the ‘Best there are’! …I was ready to get ‘on boards’! Peter Wagner grew up in Dayton, Ohio - skiing on the local hill since he was 3. He went to the University of California in San Diego for Computer Science and Mechanical Engineering, and was working as an Engineer of Design Manufacturing in the golf industry, with a focus on fitting analysis systems, and realized he could apply the same fitting and sizing technologies to designing and manufacturing skis. …And today, Wagner inputs a combination of over 2,500 data points in creating each pair of Wagner custom skis!

176

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

I got to do the telephonic ordering process with Peter - and he still does personally work on the team taking custom orders, but the small team Peter has assembled in Telluride each and all have an astounding level of expertise and a genuine interest in getting it right for each customer. As they do with each person ordering a pair of Wagner skis, we spent about a half-hour on the phone discussing: the type of skier I am; where and what conditions I ski; my hopes and expectations for my new Wagners; what I feel is right, and what’s not, with the skis I’ve been on - and Pete had my old skis up on their computer and responded with specifics such as, ‘well if we make the new skis 3cm’s longer, or give you a little more camber, or make it softer in the shovel, then…’, and ‘so here’s what we might suggest’! He really wanted to understand what I needed and we talked about specific trails I like to ski in specific locations, and even found that we have a mutual ski buddy, who I grew-up with and who now lives in Telluride - who’s on Wagners! After the call, they sent me a full report, summarizing my call with Pete, and giving me the stats, and the logic behind the stats, on the skis they would be building for me. Length:175cm;Tip132mmWaist90mmTail114mm;Sidecut radius:16.6m; Long-grain White Oak core wrapped in carbon box; etc. …And I got to customize the design of the ski tops! My new Wagners are already my favorite possession and I haven’t skied ‘em yet!

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

First three Expert skier/ski equipment expert friends I called all said the same thing…Surefoot! The Company slogan is: Immediate Comfort. Immediate Performance. No Break-In Period. That sounds pretty good to me! The Surefoot Custom Liner comes inside the skier’s choice of name brand boot shell, and is injected with a gel that contours to the lower leg and foot. When I read-up, Surefoot checked-out. A pure fit, custom fit boot - with performance as desired. …And there’s a heating system available. …And Surefoot has stores at lots of ski areas, including in Aspen, Park City, Big Sky, and Jackson, for the added convenience of being able to stop-in anytime to have the fit tweaked in one way or another to address any particular issue. Eyewear: Vaurnet Jacket: Amundsen

No brainer…I’ve ordered Surefoots, in a shell with a particularly wide volume to accommodate my wide feet, and a moderate stiffness and forward lean, and intend to have Hickory & Tweed mount them on the Wagners for 2024!

SEE YA ON THE

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

177

UGG

H E S T R A G LO V E S

D R I Z L I TA C L E A R WAT E R P R O O F B O OT W I T H FLEECE SOCK LINER

Warm toes + warm fingers = a happy skier. So when it comes to hand warmth, there’s only one brand that’s the best in the biz, and that’s Hestra available locally at Darien Sport Shop.

THE

Give the gift of comfort… from bunny hill beginners to accomplished black diamond experts, what skier doesn’t want a boot molded to their foot with built-in warmers controlled by your phone?! Have someone in your family who’s always ready to leave a few runs early because they’re complaining about being cold? This is the gift for them!

A great gift for an amazing skier, or just for fun! And… we’ve found that having a GoPro on your helmet tends to make out of-control skiers on the mountain behave a bit better too!

AMUNDSEN BREGUET JAC K E T

ALP N’ ROCK

DA N I V I N TAG E S W E AT E R

ULTIMATE

S U R E F O OT B O OT L I N E R S

GO PRO

Cozy on the inside, waterproof (and snow-proof) performance on the outside… this cozy boot is the perfect catch-all to pack for your favorite ski town, and wear the oversized socks around the house as slippers.

GUIDE TO

SKI STYLE

WAG N E R C U S TO M S K I S

Ski style isn’t just for the slopes and apres ski chic is IN! We love this turtleneck ski sweater from

L I N DA R I C H A R D S RIBBED KNIT BEANIE F R O M DA R I E N S P O R T S H O P

H I C KO R Y & T W E E D for any time this winter, on or off the mountain.

Have the coolest skis on the mountain! Wagner makes totally custom skis from the core out to the design on the face. Get skis that are right for your ability level and style of skiing – that actually fit the style you want! Pick from a handful of pre-set designs, or make your own – totally custom – like we did. Warning: everyone on the mountain will ask you where you got these.

V UA R N E T SUNGLASSES

More than just the ultimate stylish eyewear on the mountain, Vuarnet sunglasses are made especially to fit under your helmet, are UV protective, and have windbreakers so they can act like goggles on a sunny day.

ALP N’ ROCK

I N D R A I I S W E AT E R

178

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

AMUNDSEN

is known as the ultimate outdoorsmen’s gear. Our entire family sported Amundsen jackets, shells, and snow pants throughout our 2022 Ski The West tour, and plan to update our looks with their 2023 styles again. Locally, Amundsen is available at Hickory & Tweed – note that their sizing is European, so we recommend sizing up.

UGG

M A R L E N E S H E R PA JAC K E T I I

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

179

Whether it’s choosing your

ski destination, determining which lift pass is right, or finding the perfect place to stay, planning a ski trip is a real challenge. Tell us about the ski trip you’re dreaming of taking — we will make it a reality.

B&NC Full Page Advert Do not forget to extend your images and background to the red bleed line

We take care of all the details. You will have access to exclusive perks and upgrades when you book with us. Plus, you’ll pay the same as if you booked on your own. Avant Ski is your one-stop shop for booking the perfect ski trip.

www.theavantski.com

EVENT TRAVEL & TRADING

he four of them are right out of central casting for an Entourage-like series about a group of seasoned and successful guys looking to provide some of the least expensive hotel and travel options available anywhere, a primary market focused on events, and a revolutionary secondary market for trading and resale of vacations, event access, hotels, and transportation. …But this is the real deal! Though they can seem like a boisterous bunch of boys, these four men are more than credible, and, with Life Rewards, they intend to do nothing less than revolutionize the way we buy, sell, and even invest in our experiences! Eduardo Ibanez is the lead in this ensemble. He’s equal parts Producer, Director, Stage Manager, and Promoter. He built a cutting edge AI platform for online travel and sold the venture with a huge score to one of the travel industry leaders, and then ran a company called Zenabi Data, that had a client list including Azul Airlines & Priceline. Now 39, and living a relatively normal suburban life, with three kids, in a nice house in Westport, he’s still a rat-packer at heart, who will use any business purpose as justification to declare it’s time for the Life Rewards team to take a road trip! While he’s a master of hype, and even hyperbole, he’s the one who had the vision for Life Rewards, and who put the team together to make it an emerging reality.

TRAVE

life rewards

They intend to do nothing less than revolutionize the way we buy, sell, and even invest in our experiences!

“I knew we could quickly establish ourselves as a leading provider of travel, with a general emphasis on best-price luxury travel and a particular emphasis on events and experiences,” Eddie explains. “And we’re rolling-out a platform liferewards.ai online and on Instagram which will use a combination of traditional bulk-buy sourcing and Artificial Intelligence scraping the digital universe for best pricing, to rival any of the biggest names in economy travel. But our real focus is events and experiences…and ultimately being able to trade your event access and accommodations for fun or profit.” David L. Shuler is the financial wizard. He grew up in Idaho, and retains the demeanor, but has a resume reflecting tremendous business experience and particular expertise in complex technology deals, global mergers and acquisitions and strategic alliances. He went to Dartmouth, then studied in Peru on a Rotary Scholarship. He served 14 years in the U.S. State Department, with postings in Washington, DC, Japan, Greece, and the Dominican Republic, then joined Goldman Sachs in Japan in 1999. He served as global head of alliances and ventures for CME Group and Chief of Staff for NYSE Euronext, and was most recently the Co-Founder of Y2X, a merchant bank focused on financing breakthrough technologies.

EDUARDO IBANEZ

DANNY WAY, EDUARDO IBANEZ, DAVID L. SHULER AND JOHN MCGRATH

DAVID L. SHULER

PHOTOGRAPHY: ANDREA CERASO

182

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

183

life rewards “And then, there’s Danny Way!!! Singularly famous for first jumping the Great Wall of China on a skateboard and his competitive skateboard and surfing accomplishments, and a renowned influencer, trend-setter, and connoisseur of hip culture.”

“We’re playing into the event economy, and targeting millennials in particular.” -Danny Way

DANNY WAY

John McGrath is the tech guy. He’s a phenomenal drummer who currently plays with four bands, who spent the last decade working in the advertising industry, using emerging technologies to achieve rapid prototyping in order to leverage client growth. He met Eddie while working as a Developer for a couple of big ad agencies in New York, and now lives in Norwalk. Like Gates and some of the other legendary nerds-turned-titans of our time, John is able to mold the technology to serve the business purpose.

And then, there’s Danny Way!!! Singularly famous for first jumping the Great Wall of China on a skateboard and his competitive skateboard and surfing accomplishments, and a renowned influencer, trend-setter, and connoisseur of hip culture. He founded DC Shoes with Ken Block and when they sold to Quicksilver in 2005 he personally pocketed 9-figures! And he’s had nothing but one entrepreneurial success after another, like PlanB Skateboards, ever since! While a big part of Danny’s role is to be the face of the enterprise, and to give Life Rewards instant recognition with the active lifestyle target audience, there’s no mistaking that Danny is more generally leading the whole event-focused marketing effort, and is an active partner in the direction and growth, and funding, of the company.

184

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

“We have AI programmed into our booking algorithm that enables us to provide pricing that’s as good or better than of the big players in economy travel…but we’re not really competing for that space,” Eduardo starts his elevator pitch. “We’re playing into the event economy, and targeting millennials in particular. Our customer wants to stay someplace nice - and often they have specific accommodations in mind or want the best there is in the area. And the market we want to dominate is event based travel.”

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

Danny jumps in, “It starts in my world of boarding events and X Games, but we’ve already crossed-over to music, art, and entertainment, and we will include sports and other events as our community grows. Think Coachella, or the Olympics, or the Grand Prix de Monaco. We sell access to the event, the best accommodations to attend, and VIP experiences including meals and entertainment…and everything can be resold in our Life Rewards secondary market.”

EVENTS

JOHN MCGRATH

“You could say I grew up in San Diego, but I was traveling the world competing and performing professionally by the time I was 13, and my formal schooling is mostly from the University of Life. In the beginning I was really just selling my likeness and endorsement, but then I took the reins with DC, driving sales to three-quarters of a billion dollars a year!” Danny sets forth his business bona fides. “And frankly, as I’m nearing 50, Life Rewards fits my criteria for going all-in on a business venture. I was introduced to Eduardo and to Life Rewards by my dear friend, and skateboarding legend, Rodney Mullen, and I take his reference as golden. I like the multi-billion dollar market for lifestyle travel experiences - the big boys in best-price travel are established public companies worth hundreds of billions each. My partners in this are all invested and all down to do whatever is needed to go as big as you can go! And…you know… when it’s cool, people get it!”

life rewards

Eduardo sets forth, “If you’re thinking about going to the Paris Olympics July 21 to August 11, 2024, Life Rewards is thee place to go to access VIP hospitality suites with Michelin-starred chefs, rooms at luxury hotels that are otherwise sold out, and exclusive tour and travel packages to the Louvre or the Eiffel Tower.” And Danny adds, “For equestrian fans in particular, Life Rewards has VIP boxes and hotel accommodations for the Madrid Horse Show - a worldrenowned jumping and dressage event that’s a qualifier for the Olympics - held during the last week of November. And for tennis fans, we’re the Official Hospitality Sponsor for the Hopman Cup, a global team tennis competition held in Nice, France, July 21-27, 2024. And we’re just getting started!” John adds, “Wall Street types get it right away! They’ll pounce on great seats to the next Olympics the minute they become available - along with a bundle of accommodations and other arrangements that will make the experience a pleasure. They may attend, or they may trade the Olympics at some multiple of the purchase price as the Life Rewards package becomes a precious commodity.”

186

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

“And everyone wants to gamble when there’s no downside,” Danny throws in. “I like it when the worst thing that can happen to me is I have to ‘take delivery’ - as they say in commodities trading - on a dream vacation! Surfing Life Rewards, I can find the event of a lifetime…lock-in on the best arrangements to go…and decide whether I’m actually going to go at a later date…or sell the trip if I change my mind, or the high bid does!” “We’re building a network of travel providers and event producers so Life Rewards will have exclusive access to a number of events and experiences,” Eduardo says. “And we’ll be competitive no matter where you’re going or what you want to do there!”

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

LUXURY

As an example,

UNRIVALED ACCESS, UNPARALLELED SERVICE LEGENDS SUITE LEGENDS PREMIER CHAMPIONS SUITE DELTA SKY360° SUITE FORD FIELD MVP SEATS LUXURY SUITES

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON PREMIUM SEASON TICKETS

718.508.3955 • PREMIUM@YANKEES.COM WWW.YANKEES.COM/PREMIUM

Light up theNight Since 1977, we have designed and installed stunning and unique lighting to illuminate a home’s beauty, comfort, and functionality.

CALL FOR A FREE

CONSULTATION

888-975-1444

WWW.LIGHTINGBYMARK.COM

THE BEDFORD OAK VOLUME VI OF VI BY K AT I E S I S E SW E E N E Y

B&NC Half Page Advert Do not forget to extend your images and background to the red bleed line

Specializing in high quality perennials, shrubs, trees and holiday decor with a focus on native species, hard-to-find varieties and fun events for the whole community. BEDFORD FARMS, 235 GREENWICH ROAD, BEDFORD, NY 10506 .

914-233-9358 • hello@bedford-farms.com • Follow us @bedfordfarms

HANNELORE HANNEL ORE KAPLAN BEDFORD VILLAGE

OFFICES

DESKS

The following fictional story is the final installment of a fantastical mystery set in Bedford, to be continued in novel form next year. So far in our story, we’ve met twenty-seven-year-old Claire, who has just tragically lost her fiancé, James. On the night of his funeral, desperately missing him as she walks to the end of Hook Road, Claire decides to follow the instructions of an old Bedford prophecy, circling the Bedford Oak nine times in the hopes of setting free James’ spirit. But instead of James, Claire calls forth Beatrice, a young ghost who lived in Katonah in the late 1800s. In exchange for her help in finding James, Beatrice enlists Claire’s help in retrieving an old locket that holds a picture of Beatrice, her dearest friend, Christine, and Christine’s brother, Arthur, who was the love of Beatrice’s life back in the 1890s. The photo was taken in front of an old Victorian in Katonah, when all three were trying to save their family home from the fate of being destroyed to make way for New York City’s new water system. Beatrice asks Claire for her help taking the locket to Katonah, where the soul of Christine is alive and well, living a new lifetime as a young woman named Chrissie who works at LMNOP bakery on Katonah Avenue. Throughout the night, as they venture through Bedford to find the locket, Beatrice and Claire talk about old souls living new lifetimes on Earth, and Beatrice confesses to Claire that she’s never been able to reconnect with Arthur’s soul, even though she’s been searching for him for over one hundred years. In the previous installment of our story, we flashed back to 1893 Katonah, where Beatrice and Arthur’s love story was unfolding. Now, we return to present-day Katonah, when Claire sees a young man named George, a friend of her fiancé James, who was the last person to see James alive. More surprisingly, Beatrice realizes that George is the soul of her beloved Arthur in his earthly form. And then Beatrice collapses from the shock of it all, leaving Claire holding her ghostly frame on the floor in the middle of LMNOP bakery.

NEW YORK

ZOOM PODS

Inside the bakery, an espresso machine hissed with a gasp and a puff. I still held Beatrice’s quivering, invisible ghost-body on the cold-tiled floor, and I stared up at George’s blinking eyes. “Claire?” George asked, his voice tentative. I had no idea how to explain why I couldn’t stand up. George stared at me like he was deeply worried, his gaze lingering on the odd way my arms cradled a ghost he couldn’t see. Even my palms faced skyward, and I couldn’t imagine how strange I must have looked to him, but I also couldn’t imagine dropping Beatrice onto the floor. I glanced down to see her heart-shaped face and delicate features at rest. Her long, white-blonde hair splayed across my lap. “Do you need help?” George asked, his dark brows furrowed. In the far left of my peripheral vision, I could see that Chrissie was glaring at us, and when I turned to meet her glance, her face flushed, and she quickly looked away. I wondered if the locket I’d given her was still shoved inside the pocket of her jeans; I wondered if she’d look at it tonight like she promised me she would, and if she could ever possibly recognize the photo from her previous lifetime in 1893. $2,295,000 1223 OENOKE RIDGE ROAD NEW CANAAN CT

co-working and meeting space

located at 640 Old Post Road in the heart of Bedford Village for more information: postrdstudio.com admin@postrdstudio.com 914-234-7635

CALL HANNELORE

914-450-3880 THE HANNELORE KAPLAN Team

4 Elm Street, New Canaan, CT 06840

George lowered himself carefully down onto his knees beside me. I thought of him kneeling at James’ funeral, how he’d bowed his head, and how his lips had moved silently over the prayers. He was one of James’ newer friends; they’d met when George started dating one of James’ friends from college. N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

191

THE BEDFORD OAK

“George, hi,” I said, stalling. I felt Beatrice shift in my arms. Her bones edged through her nightdress, pressing against my hands. She was so warm that cradling her felt like holding a freshly made cup of tea. Her eyes fluttered, exposing a flash of gray. But then they closed shut again.

was called back to Earth when I’d circled the Bedford Oak. And if my wildest hunch was correct, then maybe all of this could somehow lead to James.

Please, wake up, Beatrice. “Are you okay?” George asked, his voice low and deep. I tried to smile at him, but I couldn’t get the muscles in my face to work quite right. “I’m fine, thank you. I think I was just a little dizzy,” I managed to eke out. A few patrons had gathered around us, most moving along once they saw that I was all right. Beatrice stirred again, finally seeming to come to. As she pushed herself onto her elbow, I slipped my hands from beneath her and folded them in my lap. “I feel a little better now,” I told George. George nodded, and a moment passed where neither of us said anything. Beatrice had straightened, and now we sat side-by-side on the floor next to a chic marble-top café table, both of us staring at George. “Goodness gracious,” Beatrice said, her eyes roving George’s face. He couldn’t hear her ghostly voice, so he never turned toward the sound of her. His dark gaze was locked on mine as Beatrice stretched a shaking, bony hand toward him and touched his cheek. He flinched nearly imperceptibly, as though in some small way his skin registered her touch. “I never imagined I’d find him here…” Beatrice said, her voice quiet and reverent. “Arthur,” she whispered.

I whirled around to face her. Since when could she read my thoughts? “I’ve always been able to read your thoughts, Claire,” she said plainly, as if nothing was out of the ordinary. I cleared my throat, turning back to George, not wanting him to think I’d completely lost it by staring into the shadows and listening to the voice of a long-dead young woman. Trying to stay in the here and now, I asked him, “And what did the police say?” “Just the same questioning on whether we saw James’ attacker outside the bar that night,” George said. “We didn’t, Claire.” He looked so shaken. But the cops were convinced it was a random attack, and so was I. Who would have wanted to hurt James? “Of course,” I said, resenting the feeling that I should be comforting him rather than the other way around. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Beatrice reaching forward to rest a hand on George’s arm. “Arthur, it’s truly you,” she whispered. It struck me as deeply sad that he couldn’t hear her.

The longing that filled that one word hit me in the gut. I understood perfectly.

“I should really go, George,” I said, wiping away the wetness on my cheeks. I didn’t want to lose it and start sobbing here.

Chatter filled the café, the buzz of coffee orders and conversation swirling around us. I heard Chrissie’s delicate voice above the hum, asking a customer to repeat her order. I turned a moment later to find her staring at me again, her expression suspicious now, as though I’d done something wrong.

“Please, let me know if I can do anything to help you,” George started, but I was already heading toward the glass door. I wasn’t sure if Beatrice was following; I wasn’t sure if she’d be able to pry herself from George.

“Can I help you up?” George asked, reaching out a hand. Two teens clutched to-go coffee cups and pretended not to look at us. I took George’s hand. His skin was soft, but his grip was strong as he pulled me to my feet. Beatrice stood, too, her petite frame barely taking up space in the café. She gazed at George as if he were a breathtaking painting meant for her eyes alone.

Cold January air blasted my face as I pushed open the door. I staggered to a bench outside the café and sat, putting my head into my hands, and letting myself cry. I knew I’d never stop feeling this way, imagining James getting hurt and knowing how scared he must have been. I couldn’t stop wondering whether he’d known who or what danger was coming for him that night at the bar, or if it was all over before he could realize his fate. I prayed it was the latter.

“I’m so sorry about James,” George said softly. He’d already said this to me at James’ funeral more than once, but hearing him say it somewhere else, in this new life without James, brought tears to my eyes. It was hard to believe that the funeral was just yesterday. Hadn’t I lived a lifetime since then? “Scott and I talked to the police again,” George offered, shoving his hands deep into the pocket of his jeans. Scott was an old friend and James’ business partner, and he was there that night at the bar when James died, too. “Oh?” I asked, edging away from him. I wanted to talk with George about James—but I also wanted to get Beatrice out of the café, to go somewhere quiet where we could digest what all of this could possibly mean. If Arthur’s soul was having a new lifetime inside one of James’ friends’ bodies, then everything had to be connected, and it had to be the reason that Beatrice was the specific ghost who 192

“Certainly, it’s not a coincidence,” hissed Beatrice from beside me.

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

Eventually Beatrice came to sit beside me, and I could feel her warmth. Her night dress fluttered in the bitter wind that swept down Katonah Avenue. “We found Arthur,” she said softly, and she was looking at me with such concern that I knew she wasn’t only talking about this one singular event and how it would affect her. I’d only known Beatrice for a short while, but I could tell she was invested in what had happened to me. I could sense she’d spent a lifetime caring for others, and not just herself. I could feel it like something I’d always known. “We’re going to find James,” Beatrice said, proving me right. “Don’t you see? We were meant to do this together. None of this has happened by chance.” “And Chrissie?” I asked. “What about her?” Beatrice shook her head with wonder. “Can you believe Arthur and his sister have returned to lifetimes where their souls inhabit the same circle? You wouldn’t believe how often it happens, groups of souls reunited, traveling together across lifetimes.” N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

193

THE BEDFORD OAK “Then why have you been left out?” I ask, not wanting to hurt her feelings, but not understanding everything I needed to. Beatrice seemed to lighten as she thought it over, her gray eyes twinkling. “Maybe I haven’t been left out. I’m here, aren’t I?” “True,” I said. “So now what?” I stared at her, no longer caring about the Katonah bystanders who must have thought I was staring and talking into thin air. No one seemed to notice me, anyway. Parents shepherded children through the steely winter morning into shops or parked cars. Katonah residents looked down at their phones and raced to make it to the train. A woman who might have been a grandmother emerged triumphantly from a toy store called G. Willikers, and a young couple held hands and visited an eyeglass store. No one seemed to notice me seemingly talking to myself, which was certainly for the better. Beatrice opened her mouth to answer, but then the door to the coffee shop swung open and out came Chrissie. Her blue eyes were icy, her gaze piercing. She held the gold locket inside her hand. “I don’t recognize these people,” she said to me as she opened the locket and displayed it before me. “I know, I understand…” I started, exasperated. She’d already told me she had no idea who they were. “You don’t understand,” she said, her voice urgent. And then she turned her head to look at Beatrice. At first, I thought I must be mistaken, that perhaps Chrissie couldn’t hold eye contact with me any longer and that her eyes had coincidentally fallen on a ghost. I was so sure I was the only one who could see Beatrice… But then, in a fervent whisper, Chrissie locked on Beatrice’s gaze and said, “You.” I heard a gasp and wasn’t sure if it belonged to Beatrice or me. Beatrice put a bony hand over her seethrough heart. Chrissie didn’t take her eyes off my ghost as she continued, “I don’t recognize these people inside this locket that you and your human friend here say I should. But I can see you. And I’ve seen you before, usually at night and sometimes in my dreams, and I always worried you were a figment of my imagination. But now that I see you in the broad daylight in my place of work, I know I’m not making you up. And now you’re going to tell me exactly who you are, and why you’ve been haunting me for years.” My heart pounded. I turned to Beatrice, waiting for her to answer, for her to defend herself, but suddenly, she flickered, and her form dissipated like smoke. Chrissie reached forward as though she could grab hold of Beatrice’s arm and keep her here with us, but it didn’t work. I watched them both, my breath shallow. Chrissie staggered a step back, staring at the space where Beatrice had just been sitting. A whistle sounded across the street as the train screeched into the station. Chrissie and I stared at the bench, and then at each other. Beatrice was gone. … TO BE CONTINUED IN A NOVEL IN THE NEAR FUTURE 194

BEDFORD & NEW CANAAN

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

2 0 2 3

914.273.3074 | ARMONK | NY

914.401.9111 | KATONAH | NY

203.966.3555 | NEW CANAAN | CT

THERE’S NOTHING LIKE

Breeze Airways

™

Fly nonstop from Westchester County Airport to Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport to experience what Hilton Head Island is all about. Book today at F L Y B R E E Z E . C O M .