Herein / Season 6 / Spring & Summer /

EDITOR’S LETTER

With every season of herein, we delight at being both home and away, and attempt to shine a light on ways to enrich readers’ lives. Welcome to our season six journey, one that sees us playing pickleball way out west in Los Angeles, taking in the historic, moss-draped delights of Savannah, Georgia, taking in the beautifully designed homes of awardwinning architect David Montalba, and eating MICHELEN-starred Mexican in New York City at the table of chef Cosme Aguilar. We also hop over to Manchester, UK, which has seen an explosion in innovation and growth of late, take in the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto, and so much more. We hope you love the issue as much as we loved putting it together. As always, enjoy the journey herein.

SET SAIL ON A JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY

With the freedom to immerse yourself in life’s exceptional experiences, explore unexpected hideaways, and stir curiosities that inspire deeper connections. Marvel at the beauty of the world through fresh eyes.

Marriott Residences Owners can enjoy a 5% fare savings on voyages with The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection. For reservations, call (833) 716-7500 or contact your travel professional.

georgia

Savoring Savannah* | 66 image

16 Manchester*

CREATIVE MANCHESTER

You may know the UK city for its famous football teams, but there’s so much more to discover.

30 Global PLAY BALL

Pickleball is exploding. Meet the coach to the stars.

38 Canada*

STEPPING THROUGH TIME

Toronto’s Bata Shoe Museum beckons with both fashion and stuffing modern architecture.

48 Global

SENSE OF PLACE

Architect David Montalba believes good design can improve your mood.

66 Georgia*

SAVORING SAVANNAH

This classic Southern destination has been experiencing a rebirth.

86 Japan

IN PURSUIT OF PERFECTION

A master champagne maker has unique ideas for the future of sake.

100

New York City

A PIONEER IN MEXICAN CUISINE

New York City-based chef Cosme Aguilar’s embrace of regional flavors has turned him into a culinary sensation.

110 Maryland

RYE ON EARTH

New distilleries are both reviving and evolving the tradition of Maryland rye whiskey.

118

Al Marjan Island, UAE / Da Nang, Vietnam / Houston / Manchester, UK

LES NOUVEAUX

Discover the newest Marriott International branded residences.

120

LIST OF RESIDENCES*

124

Dominican Republic / Dubai / Jakarta / Miami / Portland

WELL & GOOD

Explore some of the world’s most iconic destinations for coastal living.

126 Portland

AROUND THE BLOCK

Discover a beautiful block in scenic Portland, Oregon.

 each story in herein shares a location with one or more of these residences

by adam kuehl

CEO & PUBLISHER

Jason Cutinella

GLOBAL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

Brian McManus

Editorial

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Kathryn Drury Wagner

Operations

Merri Gruesser

VP GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT & STRATEGIC OPERATIONS

Joe V. Bock CORPORATE AFFAIRS

Sabrine Rivera OPERATIONS DIRECTOR

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VP GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS claudia@nmgnetwork.com

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GLOBAL DESIGN DIRECTOR & CREATIVE PROCESS

Chelsea Vaccaro

Marriott International Residences

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Ayanna Wiggins DIRECTOR, GLOBAL RESIDENTIAL MARKETING

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About the Cover

Design by David Montalba. Image by Kevin Scott.

The shore less traveled New

Welcome home to the protected shores of Estero Bay, Florida’s first aquatic preserve. Just north of well known. Where curated living meets unspoiled nature. Walk to your private lagoon for cocktails or the marina for a fishing excursion. To extraordinary golf or a nature preserve. But whatever the day brings, Ritz-Carlton hospitality will make it even better. From the $3 millions. Secure your home now at the Sales Gallery.

SW Florida | TheResidencesEsteroBay.com | 239.920.7622

Memories create a journey you can always return to.

Uncover the perfect sanctuary of private refuge, crafted for the souls of wanderers seeking more than mere accommodations. Submerge yourself in a haven dedicated to serenity and renewal, where each detail is crafted to elevate your experience beyond expectations. Contact your travel professional, or visit ritzcarlton.com/doradobeach or ritzcarlton.com/turksandcaicos.

©2024 The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C.

ARUBA CANCUN FORT LAUDERDALE KEY BISCANE, MIAMI SAN JUAN SARASOTA SOUTH BEACH ST. THOMAS

VISIONARY DESIGN, EXCEPTIONAL BEAUTY.

Private condominium residences with expansive lakefront views blend classical design with the natural surroundings. At The Ritz-Carlton Residences, The Woodlands, you’ll discover estate-style living in a magnificent setting.

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, The Woodlands Sales Gallery | 9950 Woodloch Forest Drive, Suite 1350 | The Woodlands, TX 77380 346 559 1123 | residencesatthewoodlandsliving.com

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, The Woodlands are a proposed development in The Woodlands, Texas that does not yet exist. This is not an offer to sell, or solicitation of offers to buy condominium units in states where such offer of solicitation cannot be made. The Ritz-Carlton Residences, The Woodlands are not owned, developed or sold by The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. or its affiliates (“Ritz-Carlton”). Lakefront South Condos, LLC, the Developer of the project, has an agreement with Ritz-Carlton to use The Ritz-Carlton marks under a license from Ritz-Carlton, which has not confirmed the accuracy of any of the statements or representations made herein. We are in compliance with Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968. We have not, and will not, either directly or indirectly, discriminate against you or any other prospective purchaser on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. © Copyright 2024. Equal Housing Opportunity

Restrictions for New York Residents: LAKEFRONT SOUTH CONDOS, LLC, IS NOT LOCATED IN OR A RESIDENT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK. THE OFFERING PRESENTED IN THIS ADVERTISEMENT IS (I) NEITHER MADE IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK NOR MADE TO THE RESIDENTS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK; AND (II) NOT DIRECTED TO ANY PERSON OR ENTITY IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK BY, OR ON BEHALF OF, LAKEFRONT SOUTH CONDOS, LLC OR ANYONE ACTING WITH THE WOODLANDS LAND DEVELOPMENT COMPANY, L.P.’S KNOWLEDGE. NO OFFERING OR PURCHASE OR SALE OF PROPERTY IN THE RITZ-CARLTON RESIDENCES, THE WOODLANDS SHALL OCCUR AS A RESULT OF THE OFFERING DISPLAYED IN THIS ADVERTISEMENT, UNLESS AND UNTIL ALL REGISTRATION AND FILING REQUIREMENTS UNDER THE MARTIN ACT AND THE ATTORNEY GENERAL’S REGULATIONS ARE COMPLIED WITH; A WRITTEN EXEMPTION IS OBTAINED PURSUANT TO AN APPLICATION IS GRANTED PURSUANT TO AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH COOPERATIVE POLICY STATEMENTS #1 OR #7; OR A “NO-ACTION” REQUEST IS GRANTED.

WARNING: THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF REAL ESTATE HAS NOT INSPECTED, EXAMINED OR QUALIFIED THIS OFFERING.

Exclusive project broker is Real Estate Associates of Houston, LLC, doing business as “Douglas Elliman,” whose principal place of business and post office address is 2001 Kirby Drive, Suite 600, Houston, Texas 77019.

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, The Woodlands are a proposed condominium project located in The Woodlands, Texas. The project is currently being developed but is not yet complete. Visual depictions of The Ritz-Carlton Residences, The Woodlands are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent actual units, amenities or facilities within the project and should not be relied upon in deciding to purchase or lease an interest therein. The Ritz-Carlton Residences, The Woodlands are not owned, developed or sold by The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. or its affiliates (“Ritz-Carlton”). Lakefront South Condos, LLC, the Developer of the project, has an agreement with Ritz-Carlton to use The Ritz-Carlton marks under a license from Ritz-Carlton, which has not confirmed the accuracy of any of the statements or representations made herein. The termination of any such agreement may require the removal of The Ritz-Carlton marks and prohibit its use in the future by the project.

Resort Pool

hello

A welcoming gesture

image by all the people

los angeles / manchester / canada / global

a rapidly changing skyline and booming cultural scene , this

Manchester Creative

Whenever I tell people where I’m from on my travels, they’ve always heard of Manchester’s world-famous football teams, United and City. And they often mention Manchester’s music scene and its legendary bands such as The Smiths.

text by cathy toogood

images by all the people

left : the colorful food at erst above : image

by david levene installation from manchester international festival 2023 exhibition ‘ yayoi kusama

- you , me and the balloons ’ at aviva studios

But they don’t tend to know about Manchester’s booming creative scene—this city in the northwest of England has always put culture at the heart of its regeneration strategy. Or that it’s a UNESCO City of Literature with beautiful libraries to slip into. Or that the suffragettes were founded here.

Manchester doesn’t sit still, with new venues constantly upping its standards. Two recent openings, Aviva Studios and Co-op Live, have been designed to let artists push boundaries. Aviva Studios, which opened in 2023 as the home for arts organization Factory International, has two large, flexible spaces that artists can change to suit their needs. You can watch an intimate performance here one night, then a huge warehouse-scale concert another.

Talking about Manchester, John McGrath, artistic director and chief executive of Factory International, says there’s an “extraordinary range of arts and culture in the city” and the region has a “forward-thinking cultural ambition, which makes it such a great place to make and experience art.”

Music arena Co-op Live is the UK’s largest live entertainment arena. It features a low ceiling and tiered seating, so fans are closer to artists.

The city’s food scene is constantly evolving too. Big openings in 2024 include Skof by

highly-acclaimed chef, Tom Barnes, who has worked in multi-Michelin-starred kitchens, and Maya by the team behind London’s Isabel Mayfair. “It feels like the right place for me,” says Barnes of why he chose Manchester for his restaurant’s location. “The food scene is changing so frequently.” Maya’s head chef, Gabe Lea, echoes this sentiment: “The past 12 months have been a special time for the city, with some really fantastic restaurants cementing Manchester’s position on the global map,” he says.

While you’ll only scratch Manchester’s surface on a weekend, a good place to start is in its central Northern Quarter neighbourhood which has independent businesses and colorful street art. It’s also where Chanel chose to hold its Métiers d’art show in 2023.

The Northern Quarter is often used as a stand-in for New York in movies due to its red brick buildings, many with wraparound metal fire escapes— look out for locations from Captain America and Morbius as you stroll.

For unique gifts, head to Manchester Craft and Design Centre. In a light, airy former Victorian market building, browse workshops selling ceramics, jewelry, prints and more. Afterward, walk around the corner to Mackie Mayor, a food hall in a former meat market

building. Treat yourself to a creatively put together cocktail from newcomer, Stray (try the tomato margarita) and tuck into a slice from Honest Crust Sourdough Pizza.

Another buzzy neighborhood, Ancoats, borders the Northern Quarter. One of the best areas in the city centre for food, Ancoats was once an industrial textile hub; walk its mill buildings and canals.

Look for the terraced houses on Anita Street, originally called Sanitary Street, that was built in the late 19th century for workers. Then head to Islington Marina, between the Rochdale and Ashton canals, to see colorful canal boats, dog walkers galore, and waterside coffee shops and bars.

For something different, book a time slot to leaf through the records on the cheerful yellow and royal blue floating canal boat shop, Rubber Ducky Records. Specializing in electronic music, it can be found moored up next to Redhill Street when it’s in the city.

You can’t visit Ancoats without eating. Book in advance to get a table at Michelin-starred Mana where owner-chef Simon Martin and his team prepare beautifully presented tasting menus in its open kitchen. A couple of doors away, Erst has a selection of well executed small plates and natural wines.

After food, finish the day with a pint in the Edinburgh Castle pub, which has been in Ancoats since 1811, or nip around the corner to natural wine store and bar Kerb.

If wine is your drink of choice, explore the city with Manchester Wine Tours. Run by food and wine writer Kelly Bishop, you’ll be taken to four wine shops, restaurants and bars, tasting wine and learning about some of Manchester’s highlights along the way.

Another canal-side neighborhood worth exploring is Castlefield, at the other side of the city centre. This is the oldest part of Manchester, with the Roman fort of Mamucium. Start on Castlefield Viaduct, a Victorian steel viaduct that’s been turned into a High Line-style “sky garden.”

Aviva Studios is less than a 10-minute walk from here in a striking white angular corrugated metal and concrete building. Designed by the Office for Metropolitan Architecture, lead architect Ellen van Loon says that it “embraces Manchester’s industrial as well as its creative past.” Check what’s on or just pop in for a drink in its bar.

Aviva Studios is just one of the new buildings changing the skyline in this part of the city and a development that you can’t miss is the four gleaming towers of Deansgate Square In its shadows, try the fastest growing racquet sport in the world, padel, at the new Club de Padel, which offers coaching.

Afterward, eat at modern GreekMediterranean restaurant Fenix, which has opulent interiors—think lighting that mimics the sun setting in Greece and a spiral staircase surrounding a 25-foot olive tree. Or try 20 Stories, a restaurant

and bar whose rooftop terrace has some of the best views of the city’s skyline.

Cozy Another Hand is on Deansgate Mews, the Great Northern Warehouse’s hidden street. You’ll enjoy creatively put together small plates (try its hay-roasted Hasselback potato).

Higher Ground, on the border of Chinatown, is worth seeking out too, as the British bistro serves some of the best food in the city. Focusing on seasonal ingredients—many from its partner farm, Cinderwood Market Garden—it has a laid-back atmosphere.

So, while a concert or an exciting football match should feature on your list of things to do in Manchester, they are only a part of what makes it special. Allow the city to surprise you.

castlefield viaduct , a victorian steel viaduct turned into a highlinestyle “ sky garden .”

Play Ball

Pickleball’s star is on the rise, and so is the profile of Matt Manasse. Thanks to the interest in one of the fastest growing sports, Manasse has became Hollywood’s go-to-guy at the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, coaching comedian Larry David, Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel, and United Talent Agency co-founder Jim Berkus. His nickname is “Pickleball McNasty” to many of his former clients, including Entourage creator Doug Ellin, and regularly makes house calls to train people at their multimillion dollar L.A. mansions. Not bad for a game much of America only started hearing about over the last two years.

A blend of badminton, tennis, and ping pong, pickleball is a game that can be played by pretty much anyone, from ages eight to 80. It’s easy to pick up, doesn’t require a wide range of movement or much exertion, and can quickly get competitive. It’s also on

“ pickleball brought them together that ’ s pretty special .”

the come up, with a 2021 Sports & Fitness Industry Association report estimating that 4 million active “picklers” pick up a racket at least once a year, a number that represents a 21.3 percent increase from the number of players in 2019.

Though he’s a pro now, Manasse himself only found the sport when he was stuck at home during the early days of pandemic lockdowns. A former collegiate tennis player turned professional coach, Manasse was working with tennis pro Shelby Rogers when the pandemic shut down the WTA Tour.

Finding himself out of a job, he returned to his hometown of Erie, PA, where, looking for a little exercise and excitement, he looked up his old tennis buddies only to find they’d all switched over to pickleball. He gave it a try and quickly became enamored. “I was home alone with nothing to do,” says Manasse. “I got into [pickleball], and kind of became obsessed. It was my escape during the pandemic when there was nothing going on.”

With his competitive tennis background, Manasse quickly outpaced his Erie peers in terms of pickleball skills. One day, while he was clicking around online, he happened upon a video of one of his old friends, who’d since become a pickleball coach in Florida. “I saw videos of him playing with top pros and I felt like I could hang,” Manasse says. He quickly found himself in Florida teaming up with Pickleball Pro Ryan Sherry for an upcoming tournament.

“We trained for a week and then I ended up going to a clinic with the No. 1 [ranked] woman in the world and No. 1 [ranked]

guy in the world: Simone Jardim and Ben Johns,” says Manasse. “I actually stayed with them during the clinic, which would be like if, three months into playing tennis, I was able to go to camp with Roger Federer and Serena Williams and live with them for the week while they were teaching me.”

After the tournament, Manasse came out to California, where he ended up playing with Ellin and Tennis Pro Sam Querrey.

Manasse says meeting Ellin and others convinced him he could make the move to L.A., where he quickly focused on The Riviera because of his familiarity with the club. “I remember one of the first mornings we drove in we almost hit Mark Wahlberg. He got out of the car and took pictures with my whole team and was really nice. It was like, ‘This club is where everyone’s at. This is where people make things happen.’”

Noticing the club didn’t have a pickleball program yet, Manasse pitched one to management, who took the bait. He says The Riviera is “a nice place to be every day”—a suggestion that’s perhaps an understatement given the almost 100 year old club’s sterling reputation, lush grounds, exclusive clientele, and spot on the PGA Tour.

Manasse says the Riviera’s clientele also embraced him. “It’s funny,” he says. “If you told me these are the circles that I’d be running around with… Now, in a way, it seems normal. I consider a lot of my students friends.”

One of those groups has came to hold a special place in his heart. Dubbed “The

NOW UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Sunday Crew,” the group’s heavyhitting roster was composed of Larry David and his wife Ashley Underwood; There’s Something About Mary producer Bradley Thomas and his wife Izzy; Berkus and his wife Ria; Emanuel and his fiancée Sarah Staudinger, and producer Joel Silver, who prefers to watch.

“I think the husbands used to just play golf and then the women were left behind,” he says. “This is something they found they can all do together.”

Manasse says he’s especially impressed with the group’s camaraderie, despite Jim Berkus and Emanuel’s status as heads of opposing talent agencies. “The fact that these two power figures can come together on a Sunday and play… Pickleball brought them together. That’s pretty special.”

Serving up the Fun at Marriott Residences

text by marc graser

Developers are paying close attention to America’s fastest-growing sport, and making pickleball courts a must-have amenity for resortlike living. This easy-to-learn sport, a mix of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong, requires minimal space, and fosters a vibrant social scene, making it perfect for Owners to connect over friendly competition. Here are some Marriott Residences that will appeal to pickleball enthusiasts, whether they are novices or expert-level pros.

At The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Pompano Beach, pickleball courts overlook a marina with 14 boat slips and a yacht club on the waterfront set Sunset Deck of the Marina Tower, which also offers a bocce court, putting green, and golf simulator.

As the tallest residential property on the ocean in South Florida, the North Tower of The St. Regis Residences, Sunny Isles Beach, Miami, will offer residents access to pickleball and paddle courts as part of its expansive fitness and wellness amenities. The two 62-story towers will have 336 units and soar 750 feet. The property is set to open in 2027, so there’s plenty of time to brush up on your pickleball skills beforehand.

Play pickleball with views of Biscayne Bay at The St. Regis Residences, Miami, as part of the Brickell property’s more than 50,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor amenities. They also include a fully equipped fitness center, an indoor lap pool, salt spa room, saunas, and steam room.

The second phase of The Ritz Carlton Residences, Tampa will include pickleball and tennis courts, fitness center, professionalgrade golf simulator, on-demand spa service treatment rooms, steam rooms and

saunas, and a viewing deck with views of the Bay when it is completed in 2026.

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, The Woodlands, the first standalone Ritz-Carlton residences in Texas, will include pickleball courts, in addition to a golf simulator, restaurant from legendary chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, community herb garden, wine storage and tasting room, and dock with kayaks and paddle boards.

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Orlando, Grande Lakes provides access to The Ritz-Carlton Golf & Tennis Club’s illuminated pickleball court at the 500-acre luxury resort. It also features an 18-hole championship course that’s a Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary.

While The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Fort Lauderdale and W Residences Fort Lauderdale won’t have their own pickleball courts on site, the world’s first dedicated pickleball stadium, named The Fort, is slated to open in 2024, with 43 professional pickleball courts in Snyder Park.

Pickleball is finding a strong following in Singapore, as well, with at least 200 courts available around the city. But Owners at The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Singapore, Cairnhill, just minutes from the upscale dining and shopping options at Orchard Road, get access to their own courts at the 36-story tower.

And owners of villas and estate homes at Nekajui, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residence, coming soon to Peninsula Papagayo, an acclaimed 1,400acre resort community on Costa Rica’s north Pacific coast, have access to three pickleball courts with Har-Tru surfaces at the Peninsula Papagayo Club. It has its own pickleball pro who offers weekly clinics and private lessons.

Stepping Time Through

Walk down Toronto’s Bloor St. Culture Corridor, and you’ll likely notice a unique building shaped like a shoe box. Clad with French limestone resembling the texture of leather, the Bata Shoe Museum houses the world’s most comprehensive collection of footwear— nearly 15,000 shoes and related artifacts spanning 4,500 years of history. From a 16th-century Italian velvet mule to Elvis Presley’s blue and white patent loafers, every object tells a story. With permanent and rotating exhibits, the museum explores how culture, history, politics, nature, and people have shaped that narrative.

text by julia eskins images courtesy of bata shoe museum

The treasure trove of shoes was born out of the personal collection of Sonja Bata, who began traveling in the late 1940s with her husband, Thomas, of the shoe manufacturing and retail business Bata Shoe Company. Fascinated by traditional footwear, she started accumulating examples, soon amassing one of the largest holdings of moccasins in the world. To maintain the artifacts and fund field research, she established the Bata Shoe Museum Foundation in 1979. After more than a decade of searching for the right location, the Bata Shoe Museum opened in 1995 on Bloor Steet, steps away from Toronto’s high-end shopping district and other cultural institutions like the Royal Ontario Museum.

At the time, fashion wasn’t taken seriously in the world of academia—Sonja Bata helped bridge that gap. “She was not somebody who simply wanted to look at shoes and think of them in terms of their beauty and their construction,” says Elizabeth Semmelhack, director and senior curator at the Bata Shoe Museum. “She saw shoes as an entry point into larger cultural ideas.”

A collection this vast needed an equally inspiring home, which is why Bata enlisted acclaimed Canadian architect Raymond Moriyama to design the building. Inspired by the boxes that protect shoes from light, dust, and moisture, Moriyama conceptualized a container-like building with a copper “lid” and a wedge-shaped glass entrance. The award-winning threestory structure welcomes visitors with a light-filled atrium and a cantilever glass-andsteel staircase that leads to the exhibition spaces and conservation facilities. Nods to the artisanal craftsmanship—leather signage and cast bronze medallions

depicting shoes—are integrated into the space. Downstairs, subterranean vaults store the collection. Only three to four percent of it is on view at any given time.

Many of the artifacts in the permanent collection, which unfolds in the lower level, were among Bata’s favorites. The journey starts with some early examples of footwear: 6th-century sandals from ancient Egypt; 13th-century socks made by the Ancestral Puebloans; and ornate silver mules from 19th-century India. As guests wind through time, they can also view shoes worn by celebrities, such as Queen Victoria’s ballroom slippers, Robert Redford’s cowboy boots, and Elton John’s monogrammed silver platforms.

Since Bata’s passing in 2018, the curatorial team has continued her legacy of collecting, conserving, and studying these items through different lenses. In April 2024, the museum opened “Exhibit A: Investigating Crime and Footwear,” which explores a range of issues from social biases related to fashion and reflected in how people are policed to footwear forensics. The exhibit starts with a pair of butler shoes—a nod to the typical “whodunit,” in which the silent and overworked butler is often the prime suspect—and concludes with a look at the Kingston Penitentiary, which taught prisoners shoemaking as a reform tactic. (The exhibit will be on display until fall of 2025.)

When it comes to fashion, people often consider the designer or the wearer, but there are endless opportunities to tease out stories about all the hands that went into making a pair of shoes, says Semmelhack, who co-curated the exhibit.

When including indigenous footwear in an exhibit, the museum takes a “nothing about us without us” approach, adds Semmelhack. For example, with “In Bloom,” an exhibit focusing on plant motifs and materials, the team collaborated with three indigenous guest curators who shared their expertise on a set of floral moccasins. (“In Bloom” is on exhibit until October 2024.)

The museum is also sensitive about provenance when adding to its collection, she says. Historical items are often donated by families. And with future exhibits in mind, the team acquires noteworthy contemporary pieces like the New York art collective MSCHF’s Big Red Boots, which took the internet by storm in 2023.

After noticing the collection’s deficit of 1980s footwear and the decade’s recent revival in pop culture, Nishi Bassi, curator and manager of exhibitions, came up with the idea “Dressed to Impress: Footwear & Consumerism in the 1980s,” now on exhibit until March 2025.

The exhibit explores how popular trends like the oxfords worn on Wall Street, the “Silicon Valley Uniform,” and low-heeled shoes made popular by Princess Diana reflected an atmosphere of conservative politics, globalization, and technological innovation. The exhibition space, designed by Toronto-based Arc & Co. Design Collective, feels like stepping into a mall from the era of excess, with white tiles, artificial plants, and retro display cases.

Infinite Possibilities

“It strikes a really good balance between some serious probing questions about culture and consumerism and a very nostalgic look at a period where conspicuous consumption was all the rage,” says Bassi.

“We still love to create very immersive spaces, whereas a lot of other institutions are moving more toward a more minimalist design.”

That immersion extends to the museum’s programming, including live panel discussions, performances, shoe design workshops, and free admission on Sundays. Upstairs, a conservation lab offers visitors a behind-the-scenes peek at the process of restoring footwear artifacts. And on the lower level, family-friendly crafts engage a fresh generation of footwear fanatics. Thanks to Bata, the world’s most special shoes have a home inside a dazzling stone shoebox—and a growing audience to step into their stories.

one of the museum ’ s latest exhibits , dressed to impress .

home

A haven worth savoring

los angeles / savannah image by kevin scott

Sense of Place

As a child, David Montalba’s favorite pastime was rearranging his bedroom. He thrilled at the seemingly endless configurations of furniture, the latent potential of unlocking the novel in a room that just before felt stale in its familiarity: changing the orientation of the bed to open up the space or moving the desk from the shadowy entryway to face the windows instead, so that natural light can spill unencumbered onto its surface.

Growing up, I too enjoyed the act of transforming my childhood bedroom. After all, commanding sovereignty over one’s personal space is a natural symptom of coming of age; an expression of one’s fledgling independence.

For Montalba, though, the act transcended that typical adolescent itch for autonomy. Because even from a young age, he knew a room wasn’t just a room. That the spaces we inhabit are more than places to eat or sleep or congregate. Our relationship to our built environment isn’t unilateral, it’s reciprocal: as we change our surroundings, so too do our surroundings change us.

“Something as silly as reorganizing the furniture in my room when I was 10 years old and realizing how much that affected me emotionally—that quickly gave me an awareness of the power of design,” says Montalba, from Santa Monica, where he currently lives and works. In true Los Angeles fashion, he dials into our virtual meeting from his car as he drives from one appointment to the next. It’s symbolic of that famous facet of L.A., its residents’ so used to life on the go.

And yet, it’s also indicative of the cadence of Montalba’s own life. As the founding principal of the award-winning firm Montalba Architects, he is undoubtedly always in demand. His daily itinerary is filled with business meetings and client consultations, not to mention helping to oversee the numerous multidisciplinary projects his firm handles. Theirs is a portfolio that encompasses breathtaking residential homes and mindful office spaces, sleek airport terminals and immersive resort properties—spanning the urban streets of New York and Los Angeles to the bucolic landscapes of Switzerland and Wyoming.

los angeles | design

montalba architects venice beach house in venice , california

previous spread : lr 2 house in pasadena , calif this spread : the firm ’ s venice beach house

He founded Montalba Architects in 2004, a firm rooted in a design philosophy that Montalba describes as a humanistic approach to architecture. “Ultimately, we’re designing a building or a space that’s really focused on how one experiences it,” he says. “Whether it’s crafting a large-scale building that acts as a public space or a home, it’s really about trying to craft and improve the day-to-day experience.”

It’s a philosophy Montalba traces back to those childhood days rearranging his bedroom, influencing his formative understanding of design’s visceral effects. For the past 27 years as an architect, many of which include his career as a principal founder of his own company, he has honed this humanistic approach into an ideology of thoughtful design. “We bring an experience-focused and humanistic approach to all aspects of the architect process,” Montalba has said in the past. “We focus on how we experience space and how the building will affect our lives.”

One can see this ideology manifest across Montalba Architects’ dossier of projects, which features works for the likes of Sony Music, The Row, and his own home. Though the firm has cultivated a signature style over the years—exemplified by pared down aesthetics in favor of elegant functionality and a championing of material integrity—no two buildings ever look or feel the same. Each one is alive with its own character, its personality manifesting

in its carefully curated materials or its distinctive expressions of technique.

This structural sui generis is a result of the firm’s approach to design, wherein a building’s context—its location, history, and landscape—is among the primary drivers of its look, feel, and flow. “You have to be contextual and really think about your surroundings,” Montalba explains. “For us, being thoughtful participants in the built environment, knowing what is around us and really responding to it, that is really important.”

Take the Headspace Santa Monica Campus as an example. When the popular meditation app’s success led to quickly outgrowing their original offices, the company turned to Montalba Architects to design a spacious multipurpose headquarters. It would be located in Bergamot Station, the nearly 5-acre swath in eastern Santa Monica that over the years has transformed from its original industrial roots, historically home to railroad stations and factories, to what is today a sprawling artistic complex.

Working within the context of Bergamot Station’s distinctive history, Montalba Architects chose to preserve two of the site’s existing steel structures, lending the headquarters’ buildings an industrialized feel. Materials like the corrugated metal exterior and concrete floors, and design choices like an exposed truss ceiling and the bi-fold garage door opening onto

montalba architects

vertical courtyard house lets in the natural light .

a sprawling courtyard, converted from an erstwhile parking lot, served to heighten the aesthetic. Repurposing the extant buildings wasn’t just for appearances, though. It meant a spacious floor plan, purposely kept open by the firm’s design team to facilitate the organic ebb and flow of productivity and communion—a key tenet of Headspace’s company values.

In contrast, Montalba’s own family home, dubbed the Vertical Courtyard House, takes inspiration from a surrounding neighborhood of single-family residential homes. Hoping to blend seamlessly with their Santa Monica Canyon neighbors, Montalba chose to limit the property’s vertical footprint. “We were allowed to build a taller home,” he says. “We intentionally built it smaller because we wanted to fit into the neighborhood.”

Whereas others would have turned to the surrounding environment for views of natural landscapes, Montalba chose to look inward. The house’s nickname is drawn from its three-story courtyard and atrium, ensconced at the heart of the property. In centering the courtyard, the home’s design blurs the divide between the internal and the outdoors. Expansive, operable glass walls eliminate the traditional physical and visual barriers, and the home’s interior spaces become a natural extension of the greenspace beyond. “Every outdoor space in that property is an extension of the indoors—that was really intentional,” Montalba says. Beyond inviting the outdoors

in, the fluidity of its boundaries delivers ample natural light and air into the space, making its rooms and corridors feel even more expansive. A Japanese Zen aesthetic brings a certain tranquility onto the space, compared to the innovative energy felt within Headspace SM’s industrial walls.

“They’re a little like children, right?” Montalba says, explaining the firm’s contextual approach. “You can’t force a personality on your children. Yes, you can influence them a little, but at the end you have to listen to them. For us, projects are about listening to the client and the site conditions. Sure, we want to guide that, but ultimately it needs to reflect a little bit of the client’s personality and the site’s personality.”

the design of venice beach house incorporates three gardens to enjoy the year - round temperate climate

Savoring Savannah

Draped in Spanish moss and organized around verdant city squares, Savannah has long been a sophisticated coastal city. Established in 1733, it’s full of stories, yet always ready to provoke new memories—Savannah loves nothing more than a good party. The past years have seen Savannah, known as “the Hostess City,” undergoing a rebirth, with new restaurants, shops, and hotels opening.

text by kathryn drury wagner

images by adam kuehl

Downtown Savannah is made for strolling— even more so in March and April when the azaleas burst out in bountiful hues of pink. But it’s beautiful in any season.

Start with the Forsyth Farmers’ Market, held on Saturday mornings, year-round, for people watching, fresh produce and trying prepared foods. Or meander along the Savannah River, where a recently revitalized waterfront features outdoor-seating restaurants and new shops, adding to the charm of the aged cobblestones and cooling breezes.

A little farther out of town, you can explore the ruins of a colonial estate at Wormsloe State Historic Site and interact with the past in the stately, circa-1846 Bonaventure Cemetery

For fine dining, The Grey has garnered national attention for executive chef/cofounder Mashama Bailey. She is the winner of two James Beard Foundation awards, and an expert in the diverse cultures of Southern food, which she references while elevating her menu to new heights. The setting is noteworthy, too: The Grey is inside a gloriously restored 1938 art deco Greyhound Bus station. It’s lovely

at night but equally worth visiting for brunch or an early dinner, to take in the full effect of the architecture and light.

Likewise, Common Thread has a historic, yet reimagined setting, in the Victorian-era Krouskoff House. The restaurant spotlights seasonal ingredients, including both global influences and Lowcountry delights.

Newcomer Saint Bibiana is a coastal Italian restaurant tucked inside a recently renovated, 1888 mansion. The resulting makeover gave it a sensual, date-night ambience. A recent visit included martini perfection, with the bartender using Japanese Nara gin; as well as a meal with fluffy focaccia; artfully presented scallop crudo; grilled branzino, and a moan-worthy budino for dessert.

Cocktail enthusiasts should also raise a glass at Savoy Society, a vibrant bar serving up drinks that will put you in a vacation state of mind—the Miami Vice with rum, for example—as well as local specialties like Chatham Artillery Punch.

But it’s in the Starland District, just outside historic downtown, where the culinary and nightlife landscape is most rapidly changing.

the clams with swiss chard and tumeric at late air , a wine bar

“When my wife and I were talking about moving back to her hometown of Savannah, one of the things that appealed to us was contributing to a developing food scene,” says chef Andrew Brochu, of Brochu’s Family Tradition, which was recently named to Bon Appetit’s Best New Restaurants. The Michelin-starred and James Beard Award-nominated chef, and his wife, Sophie, opened their lively restaurant in the Starland District, inside a former grocery store from the 1930’s.

“Savannah has some obvious staples, but there’s something exciting and scrappy going on right now,” says Brochu. “We’re happy to be a part of that new wave and we hope it continues to blossom.” Try his fried chicken, which is the pinnacle of Southern food, or some of the oyster preparations.

After dinner, stop by the restaurant Late Air, which has rotating offerings of natural wines, available by the glass or bottle.

For shopping, the historic retail area Broughton Street is feeling refreshed due to the Broughton Streetscapes Project. Browse through The Paris Market, where chic decadence greets you. There’s art, beauty products, chocolates, jewelry,

antiques, housewares—it’s one of those places where you feel transported and it’s easy to lose track of time.

Also downtown, Elizabeth Seeger’s company Satchel features leather accessories, such as totes, handbags, wallets, wristlets, and cuff bracelets. “My dad was a pilot and my mom was a flight attendant,” explains Seeger of her inspiration to craft classic leather goods that provide both luxury and everyday utility. Satchel products are made in-house by their sister company, Port City Sewing Factory. Custom pieces and private shopping events are available, too.

Emily McCarthy’s clothing and lifestyle brand features irresistible, vibrant color palettes and prints. “I’ve lived here for 18 years and have watched [the retail scene] ebb and flow,” says McCarthy. “We have so much variety now… I love to see a local community member bringing a concept to life.” McCarthy describes her brand’s aesthetic as “bright, joyful, but also always with a classic element, whether that is a silhouette or a detail.” McCarthy’s business has recently expanded into a new location, offering not only shopping for clothing and gifts, but also, the Joy Club, a bar featuring wines and sparkling wines.

Another good option: Jones and Bull, which curates new, vintage, and antique home décor, art and furniture, as well as gifts like beautiful lacquer trays and Savannah-specific toile tea towels.

Savannah also has a rich literary heritage— it’s the hometown of poet Conrad Aiken and short-story master Flannery O’Connor, after all—and enjoys a robust indie-bookstore scene. E. Shaver is a delightful warren in an 1842-built building (though it has also opened a satellite store in the Starland District). The Book Lady is a cozy spot with an extensive collection of Georgia and Southern history, alongside first editions and other hard-to-find titles. The Stacks in midtown is owned by a local author and is noteworthy for its inclusive curation and its disability accessible design.

But wherever you go or which neighborhood you explore, Savannah will make for an unforgettable visit.

eat & drink

A nourishing pastime

japan / new york city / maryland / imbibe

image by mariana pelaez

In of Pursuit

Perfection

Richard Geoffroy watches intently as you sip his sake. It’s surprisingly light, smooth, crisp and complex, sweet and citrusy with a nose of white pepper. It doesn’t have that lingering hint of licorice that fermentation can sometimes produce. Instead, this is more like a refreshing white wine you might enjoy on a hot summer day. It’s still sake, but it’s also something else. There’s a nuance that takes it to another level. It ultimately makes you question everything you know about Japan’s most recognized spirit.

“It is sake. I want it to be sake,” Geoffroy says. “If I were told it’s not sake, I would be devastated. So embarrassed.”

Geoffroy, 70, has nothing to be embarrassed about these days. After spending 28 years making Champagne as the chef de cave at Dom Pérignon in France (his family is also in the winemaking business), he is pursuing his newest passion as a brewer of sake in Japan.

After just three years, bottles of Geoffroy’s IWA 5 have captured the attention of an industry that has stuck with tradition as consumption has waned.

Sake is typically brewed with water, rice, koji (a type of mold also used to make miso and soy sauce), and yeast. Where each element comes from and how it’s processed impacts the final flavor, which can range from fruity to full-bodied.

But Geoffroy did the unthinkable and used his French winemaking techniques to blend 20 different sakes, three rice varieties, and five yeast strains to “introduce an element of newness within the frame of something familiar,” Geoffroy says. “It has a strong foundation of where it’s from.”

The beauty of Japan is that when people disagree with you, they don’t tell you. But Geoffroy instead found a following

among an elite fanbase, with bottles of IWA 5 being gifted to the country’s royal family and poured to premium class passengers on All Nippon Airways (ANA) flights to and from Japan.

That’s a huge honor for a Frenchman who has been visiting Japan since 1991, and always understood his place as an outsider.

“I’m not Japanese,” he says, “but I want to be accepted. I’ve been a visitor for a long time. I don’t want to be a visitor anymore. I want to be an economic contributor.”

To do that, Geoffroy knew he had to establish firm roots in Japan. He built his brewery in Tateyama, a small town near Toyama on the Sea of Japan coast, and hired sake master Ryuichiro Masuda to bring his vision to life. He’s hired dozens of staff from the local area. “People see that we’ve invested so much,” Geoffroy says. “We are a part of the community.”

Design has always been important to Geoffroy. “Aesthetics drive everything in Japan,” he observes. “It’s thought over, it’s thought out, nothing is random. It was important to deliver that dimension of aesthetics without being a cliché.”

Kengo Kuma, one of Japan’s most internationally renowned architects,

designed the brewery’s dark, sleek, modern but traditional structure made of charcoal wood known as yakisugi, and topped with a steel roof. Kuma designed the Japan National Stadium for the Tokyo Olympics, as well as Marriott’s EDITION hotel and residences in Tokyo’s Toranomon neighborhood, and hotel in Ginza.

Influential Australian industrial designer Marc Newson, nearly as big of a fan of Japanese culture as Geoffroy, developed the look of the sake’s distinctive dark brown, matte glass bottle, which creates a cohesive connection to the architectural aesthetics of the brewery.

There’s also a reason behind the three letters of the brand’s name. Sake brands are difficult for foreigners to recall, Geoffroy says.

“Three letters are about as long as people can remember.” The five is the universal symbol of harmony and represents union. “It’s my way of saying it’s blended sake.”

After years of being overshadowed by wine, sake is finding a new fan base around the world—2,500 years after being first introduced in Japan, where 95% of it is still consumed.

It couldn’t come at a better time. A younger generation of Japanese no longer drinks sake. And production has declined by two thirds over the past 50 years.

Yet while consumption is declining in Japan, sake sales are surging in the United States and elsewhere. Exports from Japan more than doubled in volume from 2012 to 2022, to nearly 36 million liters, according to the Japanese Sake and Shochu Makers Association, with the U.S. consuming more than nine million liters per year, up from just under four million liters during that same period.

Younger consumers are willing to try something new, especially those who have visited Japan and are coming back with tastes for the foods they’ve sampled. More than 2.2 million Americans visited Japan in 2019, up from 900,000 in 2010, according to JTB Tourism Research and Consulting. At the same time, sake is being poured by more bars across the U.S., making it less reliant on food experiences. Champagne sales started taking off when consumers started drinking it more socially, or to celebrate moments. Sake is still mostly consumed with a meal.

Sake is an acquired taste, and Geoffroy knew he had to make it more palatable. After many years of experimentation, he concluded the only way to accomplish that was to make it balanced and complex. That meant blending, something that’s long been done to make Champagne and wine. Most sake brewers, however,

the tools and ingredients used to make sake are as delicate as the drink itself

have operated independently and didn’t collaborate. And mixing sake is highly demanding technically.

To achieve balance, Geoffroy had to rethink how his sake could pair with international cuisines, not just the delicate flavors of Japanese dishes. Think spicy Chinese, bolder, fattier Korean, and rich French dishes. “It’s not shy,” he says of the resulting sake. “It’s so versatile. You can throw anything at it.”

The right sake requires amplitude. If it’s too dry, it’s difficult to balance bitter and sour elements. Where the dissolve and succession of sensations can seem too smooth with most sakes, it was important for Geoffroy to create one that didn’t transition so seamlessly where the experience ends up being almost flat. “Everybody was telling me to make it dry, but too dry is one dimensional,” he says. “In the end, it’s about emotion—the transition from one sensation to another.”

Geoffroy believes in the future of sake. After nearly three decades at Dom Pérignon, he could see storm clouds on the horizon. Global warming is taking its toll on the

quality and amount of grapes grown for the wine industry. And strict regulations are making premium wines more expensive to produce and sell, significantly impacting profit margins. At the same time, global demand is high, relative to supply, which is inflating prices, driving consumers to consider sipping something else.

Sake’s success isn’t impacted by those same challenges. Its ingredients are easier to come by; it’s a matter of what you do with them. “Sake is way more about processing than sourcing, which makes sake so modern,” Geoffroy says.

“This project is bloody ambitious,” admits Geoffroy, who will continue to stretch what sake can be. He currently has three variants of his sake, but wants to add new layers of complexity with each assemblage he produces.

To grow the IWA brand, Geoffroy knows he needs to convert wine drinkers to sake. “One hundred percent of sake drinkers are champagne drinkers,” Geoffroy says. “And now I want to turn that around and make 100% of champagne drinkers sake drinkers.”

A Pioneer in Mexican Cuisine

Among New York City’s go-to cuisines, Mexican has long held its own alongside local favorites like a cheesy slice of pizza and hand-rolled bagels with “the works.” But unlike the city’s luxe restaurants, where reservation lists stretch months out and extravagant desserts vie for a square on an Instagram feed, top-notch Mexican restaurants have notoriously flown under the radar, attracting foodies to eateries nestled in hidden corners of the five boroughs.

No one knows this better than chef Cosme Aguilar, whose popular Casa Enrique in Queens’ Long Island City neighborhood

became the first Mexican restaurant in New York to nab a coveted Michelin star. Aguilar is known for his traditional-yetinnovative dishes, such as Chamorro de Borrego al Huaxamole, a Colorado lamb shank braised in chili pulla, huajes (a legume with a flavor similar to tamarind) and cilantro, served with rice and beans. His mole sauce, featured in dishes such as Mole de Piaxtla, is the stuff of legend.

Aguilar prioritizes family recipes that have been inspired by his mother, he says. As for why Casa Enrique has consistently made best of lists 12 years after its inception, he says, simply, “The food is excellent.”

images by mariana pelaez

Though he has become one of the bestknown masters of Mexican cuisine in New York, Aguilar didn’t set out to be a chef when he moved to the U.S. in 1998 from Cintalapa, Chiapas, Mexico. It’s one of the southernmost parts of the country, known for its well-preserved Mayan architecture, fragrant coffee, and scenic beaches and rainforests.

“I was not looking to be a chef,” Aguilar says. “I was trying to make some money working for six months and then go back to Mexico,” he says. He landed his first restaurant gig at a now-defunct French spot in Chelsea called Le Solex.

“I was working overnight cleaning the kitchen and as a porter,” Aguilar recalls, saying the rest of the restaurant’s staff would clock into work just as he finished. “I worked from 12am to 8am, so they could start prepping.”

One day, the restaurant was hosting a party and needed extra help. He stayed, and the chef spotted his potential. “He said, ‘You belong in the kitchen.’” Aguilar gradually worked his way up through ranks, and never did make that move back to Mexico.

Now 43 years old, Aguilar has an expansive following and network of culinary contacts, which he attributes to his historic Michelin Star win in 2015. (The restaurant has also garnered the award six more times since.)

His latest venture is Quique Crudo, a seafood-focused bar on Bedford St. in Manhattan’s West Village that opened at the end of 2023. Quique Crudo’s launch has been a bit different than that

of Casa Enrique, which took place with the help of Aguilar’s brother, Luis.

Aguilar’s new eatery draws on some of the elements that made Casa Enrique a smashing success. It is, however, fully seafood forward, serving small-bite plates such as ceviche made with the day’s fresh catch, as well as fried oysters, and a crab tostada. A steak tartar tostada is a notable, land-inspired dish.

Though mole only makes a singular appearance on Quique Crudo’s menu, in a sumptuous chicken-and-mole dish, the sauce—authentically made with hot chiles, rich chocolate, and a blend of warm spices—is what Aguilar says he thinks of at the mention of Mexican cuisine. The rest of the refined menu Aguilar attributes to his experience fostering Casa Enrique, where he says “every day, we learned something new, so every day we got better and better.”

Cocktails also take center stage here, with roughly 40 delicious concoctions, featuring ingredients like mezcal, cachaça, and Mexican liquors.

While chef Aguilar still drops into Casa Enrique all the time, he says, he is happily plating food and working in the open kitchen at Quique Crudo. The copper-pot-lined galley is quintessentially New York in its size, with just enough room for two cooks, a couple of induction burners and a vat of ice to display the night’s fish on order. Still, the kitchen is the heart of the 700-square-foot, 20 diner-capacity space, where the best seat is no doubt at the bar that looks into the kitchen.

It’s also Aguilar’s favorite spot. For this chef, the ability to cook at the counter, chat with customers, and watch them enjoying the food is what makes manning Quique Crudo’s kitchen the best part of every workday.

On the lone day he allows himself off, Sundays, Aguilar whips up relaxed dinners for his wife and daughter. “I like to cook steak, pasta—everything simple, not complicated—unless friends are coming over, then I do something more complex,” he says.

Will Quique Crudo win a Michelin star too? It’s not a particular goal, says Aguilar. Still, he says, just “as an actor you don’t work to win an Oscar. But if it comes, welcome! Same here.”

aguilar ’ s new restaurant quique crudo is seafood forward

Rye on Earth

Like many good things, rye whiskey was invented in desperation. During the American Revolution, British naval blockades prevented colonists from importing or fermenting their preferred rum and brandy. The colonists weren’t about to quit drinking, though, so they looked to the Scotch-Irish settlers’ traditional pot-distilled whiskey, using a resilient grain called rye.

Rye whiskey accrued even greater popularity during another war time—the Civil War—and Maryland, because of its proximity to the nation’s capital and its position in trade routes, became one of the top producers of rye in the country.

That was only up to the early 20th century—Prohibition, the Great Depression, and a couple of world wars dismantled local production, and the government incentivized farmers and distillers to move production down to Kentucky, where corn grew better and distilled into a sweeter whiskey that became known as bourbon. By 1972, rye distilling had left Maryland entirely.

But Maryland rye never fully left the collective consciousness, and some brands elsewhere continued to produce a

“Maryland-style” rye, a debated term that typically signified a slightly sweeter taste than the spicier, higher-rye Pennsylvania varieties. Within the last decade, a handful of new distilleries have popped up, many of them drawing on tradition while concocting new expressions of Maryland rye.

Max Lents, a co-founder of the Baltimore Spirits Company, one of the first distilleries to emerge in Maryland in 100 years when it opened in 2015, noticed the prevalence of rye when he moved to Baltimore from Texas in 2008. Ordering whiskey at bars, Lents says, “if you didn’t specify, there were a lot of bars that would just serve you a shot of Pikesville rye.” The legacy brand of Pikesville had long before left its namesake town north of Baltimore, in 1972, and was eventually acquired by a Kentucky distiller. But its local ties remained strong.

Lents developed his own appreciation of the spirit, learning more about its history while working in bars. He and a couple of friends, future Baltimore Spirits Company co-founders Eli Breitberg-Smith and Ian Newton, had also gotten into the home-brewing craze of that era, which eventually morphed into an interest in

text by rebekah kirkman

baltimore

small-batch distilling. The three started working on a business plan in 2013 with the goal of bringing Marylandmade rye whiskey back to the state.

“The funny thing about whiskey is, you don’t know until it comes out of the barrel what it’s going to be like,” Lents says. He and his cofounders trusted their experiments and their production methodologies, and they knew they wanted something that tasted good and had character right out of the still, before it went to age in charred oak barrels. Epoch’s current formulation is 100% rye (sourced primarily from Maryland-grown grain), a quarter of which is unmalted, imbuing it with brightness. When Epoch entered the market, it was the first rye made in Baltimore in 50 years. Since its release, Epoch has won numerous top awards at international competitions, and the recipe has mostly stayed the same, with minor tweaks.

The resurgence of small-batch distilling is related to a wider industry trend of looking back to get ahead: in the midaughts, high-end bars were rethinking their cocktail menus after rediscovering recipes by Jerry Thomas, whose 1862 book “The Bar-tender’s Guide” was the first of its kind published in America. His recipes—for old fashioneds, Manhattans, and other classics that emphasize the spirit’s taste—often called for rye.

Generally, the designation of “Maryland rye,” Lents says, was more of a “claim of quality based on heritage and history” rather than a certain recipe or flavor profile—the same way that Kentucky bourbons can vary widely.

Sagamore Spirit Distillery has also built upon this local heritage. Founder Kevin Plank, the CEO of Under Armour, was looking into the history of the horse farm he’d purchased in 2007 outside of Baltimore, and discovered that it lay above a limestone shelf. The springhouse on the property, built in 1909 by a University of Maryland researcher, still bubbled with fresh water—heavy metals filtered out by the limestone, ideal for cutting whiskey. Plank and business partner Bill McDermott started kicking around the idea of starting a whiskey distillery and founded Sagamore Spirit in 2013.

To build up the brand, they sold rye that was contract-distilled through MGP, a major Indiana-based distiller, but they have been producing their own product in-house since the distillery opened in April 2017 in South Baltimore, not far from where the city’s historic distilleries once operated. Ryan Norwood, Sagamore’s vice president of operations, says about 25 workers comprise the distillery crew today, processing, fermenting, distilling, barreling, and then packaging the rye. Sagamore’s flagship rye is a blend of two recipes—one with a high percentage of the grain (95 percent), the other lower (52 percent)—allowing the distillers to create a “balanced” flavor profile.

In 2018, Sagamore began sourcing its grain from local farmers; that year, the distillery brought in about 35,000 pounds all from within the state. In 2023, Norwood says, they harvested about 1.2 million pounds of locally grown rye—an amount indicating, among other things, a growing demand for the spirit. Though

images courtesy of sagamore spirit

rye grows well in Maryland, there are few incentives for farmers to grow it compared to crops like corn, which the government subsidizes. Committed to local sourcing, Sagamore Spirit supports rye farmers by purchasing the seed and fertilizers up front, then paying a set price at harvest.

Sagamore’s most recent release is their first all-Maryland-distilled, and is available internationally—an opportunity to spread the gospel of Maryland rye to wider markets. Norwood says the local promotion stems from Plank’s desire to create “a destination, somewhere [travelers] can pull off, stop, and learn about the history of Baltimore.”

In Frederick, about 50 miles west of Baltimore, stands another figure of the rye renaissance: Tenth Ward Distilling. Founder Monica Pearce, who grew up nearby, has worked in hospitality since age fourteen, and started bartending at 18. About 10 years later, in 2016, she started the distillery.

“There were a ton of breweries popping up around,” Pearce says. “The craft brewing

scene was booming.” But she didn’t want to do beer: “I’ve always been a big whiskey fan.”

Tenth Ward started production in a 1,600-square-foot facility. The company now operates from a 9,000-square-foot distillery and a separate 6,000-square-foot tasting room, serving their rye, gin, absinthe, bourbon, and canned cocktails. The rye whiskey is made from 100% malted rye, grown and malted at a local farm that’s been cultivating the same strain of rye for three generations. “It’s an original Maryland rye from the early to mid-1900s that we can carry over in our product line,” Pearce says.

While building her business, Pearce has been an advocate for the industry. She lobbied the state with industry peers to change a law to allow distilleries to serve a “full pour,” the way breweries can serve a full pint. She also testified last year in support of a bill to declare rye Maryland’s state spirit, a designation that supporters say could boost tourism, similar to the way Kentucky has promoted its bourbon history.

Maryland distillers see the growth of their industry and the resurrection of the heritage spirit as a tide that may lift all boats. Partnerships with local farms have been promising, Pearce says: “One of our farmers now can solely support himself off of just selling to distilleries.”

Crucially, modern distillers aren’t fighting each other to claim authenticity over what constitutes true “Maryland rye.” The spirit was always a collection of multitudes, influenced by the tastes and times around it, connected by a common place. Beyond any particular method or mashbill, Maryland rye is a preservation of history, made new.

welcome home

Explore Marriott International’s collection of branded residences

Les Nouveaux

Exceptional developments that set a new standard in extraordinary hotelinspired living are taking shape in highly desired urban neighborhoods and serene beachfront escapes in Florida, Texas, Vietnam, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates.

Situated on the golden stretch of beautiful Non Nuoc Beach between the central coast city of Da Nang and the charming UNESCO heritage city of Hoi An, The Residences at Arbora, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, Quangnam, Danang will have 63 villas, and each of the 74 condominium homes comes with a private lift and pool. The accompanying resort will have 220 guestrooms and 12 villas available to guests. Both are close to world-class golf courses designed by Colin Montgomerie and Greg Norman, and offer views of the Marble Mountains, East Sea, and Cham Islands.

The W Residences Manchester will become the first branded residences in the city, and W’s first outside of London in the United Kingdom. Developed by former Manchester United soccer star Gary Neville, the 41-story tower, located in the heart of the city at St. Michael’s, a new luxury development near the iconic Town Hall and Central Library, will offer Owners of its 217 residences the alwayson amenities and services of a W Hotel when it opens in 2027, including its signature Living Room, W Lounge, W Wellness and FIT gym spaces. Nationwide award-winning property developer Salboy is the project’s JV partner.

The St. Regis Residences, Houston will be the brand’s first exclusive residential

development in Texas when it opens in 2027. The 35-story property will have sweeping views of River Oaks, Memorial Park, the dynamic skyline of Downtown and tranquil beauty of Buffalo Bayou, and feature St. Regis’ signature butler service, a full-time concierge, doorman and valet parking. Planned amenities include a swimming pool, fitness center and movement studio, a cognac room with wine storage, golf simulator, a children’s activity center, pet spa, and business center with a boardroom. There will be no hotel on site.

The JW Marriott Residences Al Marjan Island, in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates, will offer 474 residences, with one- to three-bedroom and duplex floorplans when it opens in 2026, alongside a new JW Marriott Al Marjan Island Resort, that will include 264 guest rooms on the coral-shaped retreat, an hour from Dubai International Airport. Amenities will include seven dining venues, a spa, pool and a fitness center.

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, The Woodlands, the first standalone RitzCarlton residences in Texas, will have 111 spacious two- and three-bedroom homes, penthouses and maisonettes once completed in 2026. Country clublike amenities include a restaurant, ornate European-style gardens and wellness facilities on eight acres with 1,200 feet of lakefront shoreline. The Howard Hughes-developed project in Houston reflects the work of John F. Staub, the acclaimed architect known for the unique sprawling estates of the city’s tony River Oaks neighborhood.

marriott residences manchester , uk

al marjan island , uae / da nang , vietnam / houston / manchester , uk

list of residences

United States & Canada

arizona

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Dove Mountain

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Paradise Valley

british columbia

The Residences at the Westin Resort & Spa, Whistler

The Residences at the Westin Bear Mountain Victoria Golf Resort

 california

The Residences at The St. Regis San Francisco

The Residences at The West Hollywood EDITION

The Residences at The Westin Monarche, Mammoth Lakes

The Residences at The Westin Verasa Napa

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, San Francisco

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Los Angeles

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Lake Tahoe

W Residences Hollywood

colorado

Beaver Creek Lodge, Autograph Collection Residences

The Residences at The Westin Riverfront Resort & Spa, Avon

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Bachelor Gulch

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Vail

The Sky Residences at W Aspen

district of columbia

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Georgetown

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Washington, D.C.

florida

JW Marriott Residences Clearwater Beach

The Residences at The Miami Beach EDITION

The Residences at The Tampa EDITION

The Residences at The St. Regis Bal Harbour

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Bal Harbour

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Coconut Grove

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Fort Lauderdale

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Key Biscayne

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Miami Beach

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Orlando, Grande Lakes

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Sarasota

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Singer Island

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Sunny Isles Beach

W Residences Fort Lauderdale

W Residences South Beach

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Waterline Marina, Autograph Collection Residences

 georgia

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Atlanta

The Residences at The St. Regis Atlanta

W Residences Atlanta — Downtown

hawai ‘ i

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Kapalua

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Waikīkī

Renaissance Residences Honolulu

illinois

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Chicago

The Residences at The St. Regis Chicago

 maryland

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Baltimore

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Chevy Chase

massachusetts

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Boston Common

The St. Regis Residences, Boston

W Residences Boston

michigan

The Residences at The Westin Book Cadillac, Detroit

a story in herein shares a location with one or more of these residences .

minnesota

The Residences at The Westin Edina Galleria

The Residences at Ivy, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Minneapolis

new jersey

W Residences Hoboken

 new york

The Residences at The St. Regis New York

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, New York, Central Park

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, New York, NoMad

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, North Hills

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Westchester

The St. Regis Residences, Rye

W Residences New York — Downtown

ontario

The Residences at The St. Regis Toronto Downtown

The Residences at The Westin Trillium House, Blue Mountain

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Toronto

oregon

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Portland

pennsylvania

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Philadelphia

quebec

The Residences at Delta Hotels by Marriott, Beaupré

The Residences at the Westin, Mont-Tremblant

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Montreal

texas

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Dallas

W Residences Austin

W Residences Dallas — Victory

utah

The Residences at The St. Regis Deer Valley

virginia

The Residences at The Westin Virginia Beach

coming soon

New locations opening between 2024 to 2026

 california

Beverly Hills

Santa Ana

florida

Estero Bay

Longboat Key Miami

Naples

North Fort Myers

Pompano Beach

Sarasota Bay

Tampa

West Palm Beach

 georgia

Savannah

massachusetts

Boston

ohio

Cleveland

tennessee

Nashville

utah

St. George

virginia

Reston

Learn more at marriottresidences.com

International

belize

Alaia Belize, Autograph Collection Residences

bermuda

The Residences at The St. Regis Bermuda

brazil

The Hotel Condominium Residences at the Sheraton Vitoria Hotel

british virgin islands

Scrub Island, Autograph Collection Residences

The Hotel Condominium Residences at the Sheraton Vitoria Hotel

cayman islands

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Grand Cayman

china

Bulgari Residences Beijing

Bulgari Residences Shanghai

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Guangzhou W Residences Guangzhou

costa rica

W Residences Costa Rica — Reserva Conchal

dominican republic

The Residences at The Ocean Club, a Luxury Collection Resort, Costa Norte

greece

The Residences at The Westin Resort, Costa Navarino

indonesia

The Residences at The St. Regis Bali

Bulgari Residences Bali

The Residences at The St. Regis Jakarta W Residences Bali — Seminyak

israel

The Residences at Jaffa, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Tel Aviv

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Herzliya

jordan

The Residences at The St. Regis Amman

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Amman

W Residences Amman

kazakhstan

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Almaty

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Astana

malaysia

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Kuala Lumpur

The Residences at The St. Regis Kuala Lumpur

Marriott Residences Penang

mexico

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Zadun, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residence

The Residences at Solaz, a Luxury Collection Resort, Los Cabos

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Mexico City

The Residences at The St. Regis Kanai Resort, Riviera Maya

The Residences at The St. Regis Los Cabos

philippines

The Residences at Westin Manila Sonata Place

The Residences at Sheraton Cebu Mactan Resort

portugal

The Residences at the Pine Cliffs Ocean

Suites, A Luxury Collection Resort

The Residences at Sheraton Cascais Resort

W Residences Algarve

puerto rico

The Residences at The St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort

Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve Residence

qatar

The Residences at The St. Regis Marsa Arabia Island, The Pearl Qatar

marriott branded residences are not owned , developed or sold by marriott international , inc . or its affiliates (“ marriott ”).

a story in herein shares a location with one or more of these residences

singapore

The Residences at The St. Regis Singapore W Residences Singapore, Sentosa Cove

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Singapore Cairnhill

south korea

Marriott Residences Daegu

JW Marriott Residences Jeju

thailand

The Residences at St. Regis Bangkok

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Bangkok

turkey

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Bodrum, Epique Island

Le Méridien Residences, Bodrum

JW Marriott Residences Istanbul Marmara Sea

The Residences at Caresse Residences, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa

The Residences at the Sheraton Istanbul Esenyurt

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Istanbul

turks & caicos

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Turks & Caicos, Grace Bay

united arab emirates

Bulgari Residences Dubai

The St. Regis Residences, Dubai

W Residences Dubai — The Palm

 united kingdom

Bvlgari Residences Knightsbridge

W Residences London

The Residences at the Westin London City

vietnam

Marriott Residences Grand Marina, Saigon

virgin islands ( british )

Scrub Island Resort,

Autograph Collection Residences

coming soon

New locations opening between 2024 to 2026

bahamas Eleuthera

belize

Ambergris Caye

brazil Gramado

Rio de Janeiro

Sao Paulo

costa rica El Mangroove Papagayo

cyprus Limassol

dominica Portsmouth

dominican

republic

Cap Cana

egypt

Cairo

guyana Georgetown

jamaica

St. Thomas

kazakhstan Astana

mexico Cancun

Costa Mujeres

Isla Mujeres Los Cabos Nayarit

Puerto Vallarta

Riviera Maya

oman Muscat

portugal Lagos

puerto rico San Juan

qatar

Doha

saudi arabia Red Sea

Riyadh

serbia Belgrade turkey

Istanbul

turks and caicos islands

Providenciales

united arab emirates

Dubai

 united kingdom

London

vietnam

Hanoi

Ho Chi Minh City Danang

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morocco Marrakech

Well and Good

Untapped demand for luxury branded residences has developers redefining upscale living with unparalleled amenities and exquisite design. The pinnacle of elevated waterfront high-rise living can be found in the newest penthouses hitting the market in dynamic cities like Dubai, Jakarta and Miami, Dubai, and resort destinations in the Dominican Republic.

Spacious penthouses at The Ritz-Carlton Residences Business Bay, Dubai offer a four-bedroom and six-bedroom layout boasting lavish living and dining areas with 360-degree views of the serene Dubai Water Canal and Burj Khalifa. Each residence includes expansive terraces with a private rooftop garden, Infinity pool, outdoor Jacuzzi, as well as private gym, steam room, and a high-tech home theater, and a spacious terrace for outdoor seating and dining.

With incomparable views of Biscayne Bay in Miami’s highly sought after Brickell neighborhood, two five-bedroom penthouses at The St. Regis Residences, Miami include a private roof deck with a pool and spa. The homes, which start at $45 million, span 10,000 square feet, and will be the only upper penthouse residences topping the 50-story development when it opens in 2027.

Just as The St. Regis Jakarta embraces Indonesia’s culture of art, the developer of The Residences at The St. Regis Jakarta has collaborated with local interior designers like BIKA Living, Magran Living, SANIHARTO, R8 Asia, and Vinoti Living to provide inspiration to Owners. Sky Residences overlooking the Golden Triangle district

of boutiques, restaurants, and attractions like the Monas Tower from the top floors of the 63-story tower, boast over 3,000 square feet of living space with three bedrooms and three en-suite bathrooms.

The highest penthouse in Oregon can be found at The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Portland. Named the Tahoma Penthouse after the Cascade Range, the 3,224-squarefoot three-bedroom home spans the top floor of the 35-story tower, the tallest in the city. The sky high $9 million residence features a 72-inch glass front fireplace in the living room and the building’s only private hot tub.

EDITION Residences, Miami Edgewater will offer three tri-level penthouses when it opens as the brand’s first standalone residential project. The sleek 55-story glass tower, will offer panoramic ocean views of the trendy bayfront Edgewater neighborhood in Miami. Each penthouse includes a private rooftop pool and garden, and access to the property’s two resort-style pools, a club lounge, a library, private training studios, a spa program, and six guest suites.

Described as the crown jewel of The Residences at The St. Regis Cap Cana, in one of the Caribbean’s fastest-growing destinations, in the Dominican Republic, the 20,742-square-foot Astor Penthouse, priced at $25 million, has seven bedrooms and five bathrooms, a contemporary Italianstyle kitchen, wine cellar, bar, and two staff bedrooms. The home’s two levels feature a circular design that offers stunning views of the ocean and the Punta Espada Golf Club, outdoor pool, hot tub, and private garden.

dominican republic / dubai / jakarta / miami / portland

Around the Block

The modern glass facade of The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Portland, the first for the brand in the Pacific Northwest, is a striking new addition to the city’s skyline. But it’s also a symbol for a transformation that is energizing the fashionable West End neighborhood known for its beautiful historic Victorianera homes and enthusiastically redefining modern luxury living while still embracing the beloved quirk of Rose City.

In fact, the new 35-story tower, the fourth tallest building in Portland with views of lush West Hills, and nearby Willamette River, is the centerpiece of the West End, which has long represented a mix of residential charm, diverse culinary options, and a focus on fostering a strong community spirit. Its three block radius has enjoyed more than $1 billion in investment to restore icons like the Alderway and The Galleria buildings, both on the National Register of Historic Places, and add new commercial, retail and residential, making it one of the most sought after places to live, work and play.

Only steps from Pioneer Place Mall, Pioneer Courthouse Square, or “Portland’s Living Room,” a light rail and streetcar

stop, this part of the West End is steps from local favorites and high-end restaurants, bars, specialty coffee shops, boutiques, art galleries and more.

WHERE TO DINE

You’ll never go hungry in the West End. Locally sourced ingredients take center stage on creative menus, reflecting Portland’s renowned food scene, which boasts the most James Beard Award winners per capita nationwide, and a farmers market most days of the week.

Bellpine is the signature restaurant and lounge located on the 20th floor of The Ritz-Carlton, Portland with panoramic views of the city and surrounding mountains. With a menu of New American cuisine with a Pacific Northwest influence, you’ll find highlights like albacore and wagyu beef tartare, a crab Berliner, and salmon crudo.

Nearby, Chef Simone Savaiano’s Mucca Osteria crafts perfect pasta dishes like the seasonal Tagliatelle al Coniglio with slow braised rabbit, mushrooms and pickled pomegranate seeds in an intimate setting. Rick Gencarelli’s Grassa also serves up heaping bowls of freshly made

pastas. He is bringing Rhinestone, a Tex Mex-style smoked meat breakfast burrito eatery, to the neighborhood.

The burrata “is out of this world, but the pizza is the real star” of Ken’s Artisan Pizza, which recently was named the third best pizzeria in America by Italy’s Top 50 Pizza organization, according to Pádraic Mulcahy, Director of Residences at The Ritz-Carlton Portland. He also highly recommends Ox, an Argentine steakhouse on the city’s east side that serves a perfect grilled asado, empanadas, “and the best milanesa on the west coast.”

For libations, Portland is a master at craft beers and creative cocktails that can be found at local bars and pubs with tons of character like 10 Barrel Brewery, Teardrop Lounge, Dirty Pretty, Sousòl, Blue Moon Tavern, Olive or Twist, Driftwood Room, and the Rum Club. Savor awardwinning Pinot Noirs, Chardonnays, and méthode champenoise sparkling wines of Oregon’s Domaine Serene and France’s Château de la Crée and Maison Evenstad at Domaine Serene Wine Lounge.

The Multnomah Whiskey Library is at the top of Mulcahy’s list of favorite bars in

Portland. “The member’s only restaurant and bar/lounge is one of a kind and houses the largest collection of whiskeys this side of the Mississippi,” he says. “Our Owners couldn’t be luckier as the MWL is just a block away from the Residences.”

Have a sweet tooth? Kristen Murray’s Måurice is a French-Scandinavian “pastry luncheonette” that whips up an otherworldly French toast. Grab a baker’s dozen from the original Voodoo Doughnuts, with its flagship store just blocks away.

You don’t have to leave the building to get some of Portland’s best coffee, with Meadowrue serving Coava Coffee Roasters and the hotel’s signature “Urban Forest” blend. But if you want to explore, “coffee shops are literally on every block of the city,” Mulcahy says. You’ll often find him at Umbria Coffee, a short walk away from the property. “It’s cozy and familiar, yet bursting with energy and the perfect flat white.”

WHAT TO DO

During the day, lose yourself in the endless stacks of Powell’s City of Books, a world-famous landmark. The Portland

Art Museum and Oregon Historical Society offer enriching experiences showcasing history, fine art, and contemporary culture. Downtown Portland offers a variety of upscale shopping destinations, including designer boutiques, high-end department stores, and specialty shops in and around Pioneer Place and the Pearl District.

The West End boasts several upscale theaters and concert halls, like the Arlene Schnitzer Auditorium, offering a diverse range of performances, from classical symphonies to Broadway shows. Cheer on the Portland Timbers, a Major League Soccer powerhouse, at Providence Park, which hosts concerts, and also becomes electric when Thorns FC, a pro-women’s soccer team, plays. “Portland is a great supporter of female sports,” Mulcahy says.

WHERE TO GO

Portland is also bursting with green spaces and curated gardens. Explore the fragrant blooms of the International Rose Test Garden. Nearby parks like Director Park and the South Park Blocks provide green spaces in the heart of the city. The RitzCarlton is also on the edge of the Green Loop, a planned six-mile linear park for biking and jogging that follows a safe

in portland , there are many things to discover right outside your windows

and scenic path through Downtown, Old Town, the South Waterfront and other riverside neighborhoods.

For pleasant day trips or weekend getaways, visit Oregon’s wine country, historic landmarks like the Pittock Mansion and the 5,200-acre Forest Park, the largest urban wild space in North America, with more than 80 miles of walking, hiking, and nature trails, as well as Tom McCall Waterfront Park, spanning the Willamette River. Locals are also less than a two-hour drive from the beaches of the Pacific Coast or the snow-capped mountains of Mt. Hood and the Cascade Range, and the countless waterfalls and

hiking trails of the Columbia River Gorge.

For avid hikers, Mulcahy recommends Angel’s Rest, an exposed blufftop with panoramic Gorge views. For those more experienced, Dog Mountain “is not for the novice with a steep 700-foot climb.” Purchase tickets in April or May to see the wild flowers on the mountain.

“Portland is an incredible place to live and work,” adds Marie Browne, General Manager of The Ritz-Carlton, Portland. “It is a city that my husband and I immediately fell in love with when we moved here two years ago. The city is very welcoming and has a warmth unlike anywhere else that I have ever lived.”

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