The Mountains 2023- Holiday & Beyond Issue by The Mountains

F R O M T H E C AT S K I L L S T O T H E B E R K S H I R E S

WINTER 2024

exclusive

ALAN CUMMING BECOMING AMERICA’S SWEETHEART The Hollywood star finally finds his childhood—and his happiness—in the Catskills BY KEVIN SESSUMS PHOTOGRAPHY BY MIKE RUIZ

The holidays & beyond

makers|23

Meet the incredibly talented artists, chefs, musicians, designers, photographers, farmers, bakers, mixologists and other extraordinary creatives who enrich our neighborhoods with true skill, grace and wit

...and

plot twist POUGHKEEPSIE’S BACK, BABY! BY SIMON MURRAY

CHEF JORDAN SCHOR SOARS AT END CUT BY HAL RUBENSTEIN

“My place in the Catskills is my total sanctuary. I have a tree house you can sleep in. There are lots of childlike things about the place.”

10 REASONS WHY MIAMI STILL ROCKS BY TARA SOLOMON

CHRIS SALGARDO: FROM KIEHL’S TO HAPPY BY MARCO MEDRANO

WOW! SOHO HOUSE LANDS IN RHINEBECK

BY RICHARD PÉREZ-FERIA

TH EMOU N TA I N S M E D I A .CO M @ t h e mo u nt a in s m ed ia

H O L I DAY-R E A DY

Prep for the season with our complimentary home styling services. Book a virtual appointment: bloomingdales.com/homestylist

#23 Northeast Hotel 2023 Conde Nast Traveler Readers' Choice Awards

Historic Hotels of America Legendary Family Historic Hoteliers of the Year

SOUND AND SOUL ofThe Berkshires Bites, Cocktails, & Live Entertainment

scan qr code for event calendar.

SPIRITS & LIVE MUSIC FOR ALL

845-876-WOOD | www.williamslumber.com

NAIL IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME WITH HOLIDAY GIFTS FROM

Inside the holidays & beyond

W in te r 2 0 2 4

29 makers exclusive

30 Alan Cumming, Fearless At Last

By Kevin Sessums Photography by Mike Ruiz exclusively for The Mountains

special

39 THE MOUNTAINS presents

makers|23

T H E

reported by Sarah Carpenter Isabel Hochman Isabella Joslin Sean McAlindin Richard Pérez-Feria Mitch Rustad

54 Poughkeepsie, Again

M O U N T A I N S

exclusively for The Mountains

spotlight

By Simon Murray Photography by Daniella Murray gorgeous

62 Pretty Tough In The Catskills By Marco Medrano halfway there

64 The War Hero I Never Knew By James Long

on the cover Alan Cumming photographed by Mike Ruiz exclusively for The Mountains. Shot on location in Midtown Manhattan at Love Studios NYC. cover Coat and Turtleneck by Todd Snyder Jeans by Giorgio Armani Boots by Paul Smith this page Turtleneck by Todd Snyder Pants and Boots by Paul Smith Belt by AlphaDog Laserworks

THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA.COM

INSiDE

w i nter 2 0 2 4

11 You Are Here 14 The Team 16 The Summit

19 moments 20 Street: New Paltz T H E

M O U N T A I N S

22 Escrow: Real Estate Report 23 Get: Iconic, Elegant Watches 24 Extra! Extra!: News, With A View 26 The City: Holiday Traditions

69 mode 70 Still Hungry: Shadow 66, End Cut, The Elm 76 Thirsty: Champagne, Sparkling Wine 78 Jane’s Lane: Best Damn Espresso Truck 80 Let’s Go!: Miami 82 The Fix: Modern Holiday 83 Hundred Bucks: Tractor Supply Co. 84 Drive: HeliFlite 86 RSVP: Arts Calendar 88 Live Music: Darlene Love + 92 Then. Now. Next.: Chosen Family 94 Punch List: Holiday Essentials 96 Diary: Martha Frankel’s Home

the stylistics With college season in full gear in New Paltz, NY, fashion is as vibrant as ever as evidenced here. Photography by BETH SCHNECK

Win te r 2024 | The Hol i d ay s & B eyond

Design by Gabriella Truhlar Build by Rotches Construction

Recently remodeled boutique motel

• Luxury amenities

• Art and decor by local artists

• Artisanal coffee

• 14 rooms available

LANTERN HOUSE Located in the heart of the Berkshires. Steps from fantastic restaurants, shopping, cultural venues and a short drive to Butternut Ski Resort.

Scan here to book

256 Stockbridge Road, Great Barrington, MA 01230 • @lanternhouse.luxury

1. 407 Cherry Hill Road High Falls, NY. 3BR. 2.5 Baths. $1.275M. Web ID 22618557. Nancy Felcetto 917-626-6755 Chris Pomeroy 917-838-4692 2. 450 Union Street Hudson, NY. 6BR. 3.0 Baths. $970K. Web ID 22637649. Jean Stoler 518-660-1309 3. 2705 County Route 9 East Chatham, NY. 5BR. 3.5 Baths. $4.5M. Web ID 22701922. Richard Orenstein 212-381-4248

4. 2205 State Route 203 Chatham, NY. 3BR. 2.0 Baths. $498K. Web ID 22715358. Maret Halinen 518-828-0181 5. 26 Chatham Street Kinderhook, NY. 3BR. 2.5 Baths. $649K. Web ID 22644528. Scott Olsen 718-613-2059 6. State Route 97 Narrowsburg, NY. 370 Acre Lot. $2.95M. Web ID 22727685. Richard Orenstein 212-381-4248 Felicia De Chabris 212-381-6513

7. 439 Lake Drive Rhinebeck, NY. 6BR. 7.5 Baths. $838K. Web ID 22476081. Marc Wisotsky 718-613-2047 Jackie Lew 718-613-2046 8. 165 Vaughn Hill Road Middleburgh, NY. 5BR. 3.0 Baths $1.895M. Web ID 22507389. Richard Orenstein 212-381-4248 Nancy Felcetto 917-626-6755

9. 14 Koeppel Avenue Catskill, NY. 4BR. 1.0 Bath $288K. Web ID 22662168. Nancy Felcetto 917-626-6755

IT’S THE FUTURE. YOUR WOVEN TREEHOUSE CONDO HAS AMAZING VIEWS.

BUT CAN IT SEE YOU THROUGH A BIDDING WAR? THAT STILL TAKES MASTERY. 150 YEARS AND COUNTING.

Mastery of the Craft. It's Timeless.

The only way to head into the force ﬁeld otherwise known as winter is through it, not around it. Our lives here aren’t for the timid, so let’s face the harsh elements with enthusiasm. From hectic holidays to frigid nights, your favorite magazine, The Mountains, has you covered. Have you seen all the goodness waiting for you inside?

Albany

You are here. We are, too.

Boston

index | our towns

New York City

Art by Jan Kallwejt

exclusively for The Mountains

Accord ...................................................... 23, 94 Ancram ............................................................22 Ancramdale .....................................................22 Austerlitz .........................................................41 Bantam ........................................................... 94 Beacon .............................. 20, 55, 56, 89, 94, 95 Becket ............................................................ 94 Boiceville ........................................................ 96 Catskill.................................................22, 47, 95 Chatham ....................................................22, 32 Copake ............................................................22 Ghent...............................................................72 Great Barrington ........24, 47, 74, 75, 90, 94, 95 High Falls .........................................................22 Hillsdale ............................................... 22, 41, 85 Hudson ............... 20, 22, 24, 32, 36, 40, 43, 70, ....................................................... 90, 91, 94, 95 Hyde Park ................................................. 24, 58 Kerhonkson .................................................... 23 Kinderhook .................................................... 95 Kingston ...............22, 24, 43, 45, 52, 56, 90, 94 Lakeville ..........................................................22 Lee .................................................................. 95 Lenox ........................................................ 94, 95 Litchﬁeld .................................................. 94, 95 Marlboro......................................................... 89

Middletown .................................................... 52 Millbrook ........................................................ 94 Monticello ...................................................... 95 New Paltz.............................................14, 20, 94 New Preston................................................... 45 Newburgh ................................................. 56, 94 Pawling............................................................ 89 Phoenicia........................................................ 36 Pi sﬁeld ................................................... 59, 94 Poughkeepsie....................14, 16, 54, 90, 94, 95 Red Hook ........................................................ 93 Rhinebeck .............................. 24, 45, 93, 94, 95 Roxbury ...........................................................22 Salisbury ..........................................................22 Saugerties .......................................... 23, 94, 95 Shandaken ...................................................... 93 Sharon .............................................................22 Stockbridge .............................................. 45, 94 Wallkill ............................................................ 94 Warwick .......................................................... 48 Washington .....................................................22 West Park ........................................................74 West Point ...................................................... 64 Woodstock ....................... 32, 52, 89, 92, 94, 95 Wurtsboro .......................................................72 Youngsville ..................................................... 94

Alan Katz

FOUNDER | CEO

Richard Pérez-Feria EDITOR IN CHIEF

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Kathleen Gates MANAGING EDITOR James Long PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR Erika Phenner SENIOR EDITOR | RESEARCH DIRECTOR Sarah Carpenter DESIGN EDITORS Eduardo Rodríguez, Herman Vega ASSOCIATE EDITOR | SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER Isabel Hochman DIGITAL MANAGER Isabella Joslin DESIGNER Linda Gates EDITORS AT LARGE Martha Frankel, Jane Larkworthy, Marco Medrano

Hal Rubenstein, Kevin Sessums, Tara Solomon

EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Toni Gerunda CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Robin Baron, Greg Calejo, Kate Doyle Hooper

Anthony Giglio, Rebecca Hardiman, Bill Henning Sean McAlindin, Simon Murray, Todd Plummer Melissa Reid, Jack Rico, Mitch Rustad

WRITERS Bibiana Álvarez-Gaviña, Abbe Aronson

Jonah Bayliss, Bill Cary, Renee Jermaine Sandy MacDonald, Mira Peck, Robyn Perry Coe

PHOTOGRAPHERS | ARTISTS Fahnon Bennett, Natalie Chitwood, Bryan Derballa

Jan Kallwejt, Daniella Murray, Robert Risko Mike Ruiz, Beth Schneck, Matthew Sussman

Amy Smith

EXECUTIVE SALES DIRECTOR ACCOUNT DIRECTORS Libby Hall Abeel, Barbara Bank ACCOUNT MANAGER Livi Perrone FINANCE AND OPERATIONS DIRECTOR Caryn Whitman CREATIVE DIRECTOR Betsy Low MARKETING DIRECTOR Bill Gibbons MARKETING STRATEGIST Randi MacColl TEXAS SALES DIRECTORS Ellen Lewis, Michael Stafford LEWIS STAFFORD COMPANY, INC

CANADA SALES DIRECTORS Lori Dodd, Bob Dodd DODD MEDIA GROUP

PRODUCTION Digital Workflow Solutions

advertising inquiries: advertising@themountainsmedia.com editorial submissions: editorial@themountainsmedia.com follow us on social media: @themountainsmedia

The Mountains

No words or images from this publication may be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without the expressed written permission from MountainView Media 1 LLC

SAY HELLO TO THE NEW WINDHAM MOUNTAIN CLUB The Elevated Winter Experience of the Catskill Mountains.

Get ozy with

THE team

Beth Schneck started her professional

photography career nearly three decades ago at her studio in Boston. After photographing throughout Europe, California and Alaska, she moved to Manhattan and shot Sotheby’s auctions, celebrity-filled events and worldrenowned works of art. Since relocating to the Hudson Valley, Schneck’s continued to provide product, fashion, portrait, landscape and event photography. “Creating photos of wonderfully stylish people on a lovely November day in New Paltz, NY was inspiring and rejuvenating,” she says. “There’s so much happening in this community that’s full of vibrant energy and it’s reflected in these photographs.”

Daniella Murray is an editorial and brand

T’is the Season for Elegant Décor 860-485-3887 25 Main Street, Millerton, NY WWW.MONTAGEANTIQUES.COM

photographer based in New York City and The Berkshires. She’s shot for luxury hotel chain Life House and popular coffee brand Stumptown Coffee Roasters. She draws inspiration from renowned fashion photographer Peter Lindbergh, finding beauty in storytelling through photography. “Poughkeepsie surprised me in endless ways—the eclectic and quaint restaurants that you might see in Brooklyn as well as the city’s striking architecture. I couldn’t put my camera down.”

YOUR PERFECT BERKSHIRE COUNTY WEDDING DESTINATION

CEREMONY | RECEPTION | PRIVATE EVENTS info@winbrooke.com 8 Webster Rd, Tyringham, MA 01264

WWW.WINBROOKE .COM

the s

ummit

POughkeepsie From new home construction to all general contracting projects Providing high-quality construction and craftsmanship for 20+ years to Great Barrington and the surrounding areas

LET US BRING YOUR VISION TO LIFE FIND US ON HOUZZ 413-854-1882 ● SRCGB.COM

when i was 13, I somehow convinced my parents and three siblings to go to a Saturday afternoon showing of the latest Woody Allen movie, Annie Hall. To say this selection was an unusual one for my family would be the single biggest understatement I can make. My dad loved The Three Stooges and Wonder Woman (Lynda Carter, oh my!); my mom was into romance and epic tales (Doctor Zhivago, Love Story); my brother was all about Star Wars, Star Trek, “Star” anything, really, and my sisters were impressed by The Goodbye Girl, an early rom-com with terrific turns by Richard Dreyfuss and Marsha Mason. Woody Allen didn’t noises off Actor Alan Cumming has conquered the even enter the realm of the planet’s biggest stages in London, Hollywood and NYC and, like me, has chosen this region as his respite from the plausible in my Cuban-American intensity and relentless cacophony Manhattan serves up. suburban household. But by Here, the Tony Award-winner chills after the magazine allowing me to choose the film, photo shoot at Love Studios NYC in midtown. I think my mom was respecting my latest intellectual pursuit: As luck (fate?) would have it, my aunt invited reading the epic novels One Hundred Years Of my brother and me to spend the rest of that Solitude (Gabriel García Márquez) and On The very summer with her and my cousins in NYC Road (Jack Kerouac). Not exactly Spider-Man (they lived in Washington Heights at the top territory. Annie Hall makes a bit more sense in that context. So, off we went. of Manhattan). I couldn’t believe my good To say the Pérez-Ferias were aggressively fortune. I’ll never forget the first time I saw the unimpressed and, importantly, incredibly mythic skyline from my plane window. I mean, unamused by this movie would again be can anyone ever forget that moment? It was underselling a point. My family didn’t utter a incomprehensibly exciting and that feeling, that sound throughout the entire movie even as I wonderment still hits me now after literally could hardly stay in my seat from my guffaws hundreds of times bearing witness to that and howls of laughter. I mean, is anyone same bird’s-eye view of Gotham. Once there, funnier than Woody Allen in his groove? the greatest city on Earth lived up to its billing: It was that afternoon riveted by Annie Hall Bergdorf Goodman! Rockefeller Center! The Plaza! that convinced me of an even bigger truth: Central Park! My goodness, I was irrevocably and Miami was too small for me. I had to go—and unquestionably in love with New York. conquer—Manhattan. And that’s where my After graduating from Tulane University love of megalopolises began. The bigger in New Orleans, I did indeed move to NYC the city, the quicker I fell. New York City was for decades before finding my way to calling, and I was ready. So ready. Los Angeles after years of visiting and, yes,

falling in love with that global metropolis as well. And, with every opportunity I had to visit the world’s biggest, greatest cities that would present itself, I was first to say “yes.” London, Sydney, Madrid, Paris, México City, Toronto, Rome…yes! yes! yes! The bigger the city, the happier I was. Then, I went on a different path and moved from Las Vegas (don’t ask) to Long Island’s bucolic East End; specifically Southampton, NY. After a spell, and a solid year of house hunting, I bought a home deep in the heart of the Empire State’s Hudson Valley in the biggish/smallish city of Poughkeepsie not far from either the Hudson River or Vassar College. My home in the Queen City’s south side was lovely, yes, but the very idea of living permanently in a place with so few people, services, restaurants, activity was out of the question. Then, COVID-19 slapped me—and the planet—across the face. Hard. Since 2020, Poughkeepsie has been my fulltime residence and I’ve not only learned to embrace the circumstances but see the genuine pluses living Upstate provides. Cheap parking! Brunch reservations! Bigger homes! And Poughkeepsie, in addition to the abundance of beautiful trees, stunning vistas and salt-ofthe-earth residents, is also the first and last stop on Metro-North’s Hudson Line so the hour-anda-half commute to Manhattan remains in play. It all works for me. Truly. I was thinking about my addiction to large cities in relation to Kevin Sessums’ terrific cover story on Alan Cumming and how Cumming, too, has conquered the planet’s biggest stages in London, Hollywood and NYC and, like me, chose this region as his respite from the intensity and relentless cacophony Manhattan serves up. Anytime I can compare myself to one of our greatest actors is an opportunity I’ll happily take. OK, Poughkeepsie isn’t, perhaps, on any person I know well must-live-in-that-city list, but better rethink that now. As Simon Murray’s reporting details inside, this former capital city is making a legit run at modernizing and relevance once again. If only Woody Allen wasn’t so decidedly cringe and creepy, he would’ve already made a classic movie about Poughkeepsie. But mark my words, someone will. And soon.

—Richard Pérez-Feria EDITOR IN CHIEF

SALISBURY, CT

OPEN DAILY • DINE IN OR TAKE OUT BREAKFAST & LUNCH 7 DAYS A WEEK DINNER SERVED THURSDAY-MONDAY 860 435 0030 • WHITEHARTINN.COM

The STANDARD by which all other pools are measured. www.scottpools.com

(203) 263-2108

moments li fe , a little bit at a time

the magic inside Owner Myron Shefer describes Magic Hill Mercantile as “a really fun, eclectic, colorful department store—a one-stop shop where you can buy a little bit of everything.” The store has locations in Hudson and their new outpost in Kingston, NY.

moments | life, a little bit at a time

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

20 the kids are alright The style in

st r e et

New Paltz, Old Ways Relish in the lush college town’s nonconformist, yet stylish vibe. | By Todd Plummer Photography by Beth Schneck exclusively for The Mountains

Win te r 2024 | Th e Hol i d ay s & B eyond

people come to new paltz to reinvent themselves. It’s why the French Huguenots settled there in 1678. It’s why students go there to study at the State University of New York. And it’s why outdoors lovers, artists and everyone seeking a quieter pace of life relocate to this idyllic village. New Paltz is a completely different vibe from the art galleries of Beacon or the seeand-be-seen verve of Hudson, and a lot of what you encounter here has to do with the town’s idyllic surroundings. New Paltz sits surrounded by lush forests, secluded hiking trails and some of Ulster County’s most dramatic mountains and ridges, making it a picture-perfect playground for nature lovers.

New Paltz is an offbeat, anything goes, come-as-you-are mix of high and low, at the intersection of cottage couture and rugged outdoorsiness. It’s also very much a college town.

With such a vivid history and rich landscape, the energy here’s an eclectic mix that represents a little bit of everything the region has to offer. Sleek city dwellers on weekend escapes wander around the historic 17th century structures that line the aptly named Huguenot Street. Flannelclad college students linger on downtown corners pouting over cappuccinos. Rugged rock climbers pass through on their way to or from the nearby Shawangunk Ridge, an iconic climbing spot. And on weekends, you can spot them all gathering

ELLSWORTH HOME A R C H I T E C T U R E + I N T E R I O R S

for brunch at The Parish Restaurant & Bar, or downing craft beers at Yard Owl Craft Brewery. Whoever they are and wherever they’re going, the people here dress exactly how they want to. The style in New Paltz is an offbeat, anythinggoes, come-as-you-are mix of high and low, at the intersection of cottage couture and rugged outdoorsiness. Vintage pieces are worn with fleece jackets, and well-worn boots and gloves look like they’ve been around the block several times over. Fashion in New Paltz serves its purpose. There’s a sense that people here actually live in their clothes—they aren’t just putting them on for the sake of it. Nobody in this town’s yearning to conform or fit in—and that’s precisely how they like it. I n q u i r i e s – 860 492 0500

i n f o@e l l swor t h h om e . c om

ellsworthhome.com

moments | life, a little bit at a time market fresh “For now, it’s still

a sellers’ market,” says Berkshire Hathaway’s Tim Sweeney; A two-story contemporary at 49 Sky Top Road in Copake is selling for $2.795 million listed with Corcoran Country Living.

“After COVID, a lot of people moved up here full time and now they’re bringing their friends and family,” she says. “It’s really four seasons here—we’re not the E SC R OW Hamptons.” Before winter weather comes and snowy landscapes dampen a luxury home’s appeal, they’re photo-shooting 15 homes and prepping them now to go on the market in early 2024, Morris says. “We’ve never had that many.” As inventory begins to tick up, In Litchfield County, the “strong prices may actually drop. Connecticut towns are Salisbury/Sharon/ Lakeville and Washington/Roxbury,” By Bill Cary she says. “In Columbia, it’s Ancram, Photography by Walker Esner Ancramdale, Copake and Hillsdale while the Berkshires always remain strong.” Hudson continues to shine as well. I was there a couple of weeks ago for lunch, and I’m still amazed at the turnaround from the dark days of the 1980s and ’90s. The current market in Hudson is “very, very healthy, a little slower than during the craziness of COVID, when people were buying houses over the phone,” says Jeb Hart, an agent with Corcoran Country Living who splits his time between homes in Chatham and Brooklyn. “It has So what’s in store in 2024? How will i keep thinking it’s been a decidedly calmed down. If a home is priced right, the real estate market perform? I’m still sluggish real estate market so far this it will sell very, very quickly. There’s still skeptical, mainly because of interest rates year. Indeed, the number of year-to-date a tremendous demand. Being close to and inventory shortages, but many agents closings in my home county of Ulster is Warren Street is always the goal, and close are hopeful about a turnaround. down 23 percent compared to the same to the riverfront train station. period in 2022 (923 vs. 1,201 in I’d say the sweet spot is in the mid-October). “If you have 100 people coming to $800,000s. The average sales are Similarly, in the mid-Hudson buy property in the Hudson Valley, in the $500,000s and there’s great Valley market (Dutchess, only a handful of them want to inventory in the $700,000s. Columbia, Greene and Ulster), It’s a very specific buyer for closings are down 22 percent be in the cities of Kingston, Hudson, says Raj Kumar, an agent compared to last year (4,990 vs. Hudson or Catskill. The typical with Four Seasons Sotheby’s 3,899 in mid-October). buyer wants more land.” International Realty. “If you But because inventory has been have 100 people coming to buy so low, prices have ticked up a property in the Hudson Valley, only a bit. The year-to-date average sale price in “I’m very optimistic,” says Elyse Harney handful of them want to be in the cities of Ulster this year is $501,000 compared to Morris, broker/owner, Elyse Harney Real Kingston, Hudson or Catskill. The typical $474,000 in 2022. Estate in Salisbury, CT. Buyers are paying buyer wants more land. Hudson is like an “We’re seeing buyer fatigue,” says Tim full price or perhaps four percent less than urban environment in the middle of the Sweeney, broker/owner, Berkshire Hathaway asking. She recently listed a $795,000 countryside. I have 35 acres and horses Home Services Nutshell Realty in High Falls. house in Lakeville on a Saturday and had a and I’m six minutes outside of the city.” “People are sick of losing out on properties.” contract at full price the next day.

The Real State Of Real Estate

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

Win te r 2024 | The Hol i d ay s & B eyond

darker light, and a bright white hue in brighter conditions. Equally robust and comfortable in any circumstance, the Explorer 40 also features an Oysterlock folding clasp, which prevents accidental opening, and an Easylink comfort extension, which allows the wearer to increase the bracelet length by approximately 5mm for enhanced comfort. In a word, spectacular. $7,700 Rolex.com

Citizen Tsuki-yomi A-T

g et

Want some good news impacting 2024’s inventory? In some markets, more houses became available for sale toward the end of 2023. As of mid-October, there were about 400 properties on the market in Ulster, compared to the mid-200s last year, Sweeney says. “As inventory starts to creep up, we could see a downturn in prices, which would bring back those fatigued buyers,” Sweeney says. For now, it’s still a sellers’ market. Interest rates matter and there’s no immediate sign that they’re coming down. Let’s say you want to buy a $500,000 house, with $100,000 down. At 3 percent, your monthly payment would be $2,108; at 5 percent, $2,684; at 7 percent, $3,326, a whopping $1,218 more than your 3 percent bill. “That takes people out of the market because they can’t qualify for a mortgage,” Sweeney says. Cash is still king, of course and most buyers in the $1 million plus range are all or mostly cash.” As far as hot markets in Ulster, “Saugerties exploded, and the town of Rochester (Accord and Kerhonkson) has done exceptionally well,” Sweeney says. So let’s put our crystal ball aside and take a wait-and-see approach to how the market will play out in this corner of the planet in 2024. As always, as we enter spring, more answers should be clearer regarding the state of real estate in our neighborhoods.

Iconic Elegance These historic watches go well beyond just telling time. By Mitch Rustad

Rolex Explorer 40

Whatever your outdoor sport may be, it’s time to step up your game with the latest iteration of a true classic. Forever known as the watch that accompanied the first humans confirmed to summit Mount Everest in 1953, the Rolex Explorer is legendary, and the Explorer line has expanded with this spectacular new 40mm model. Crafted from Oystersteel, an alloy specific to the brand, this extravagant timepiece features a Chromalight display that emits a long-lasting blue glow in

Did you ever have a luxury watch that could literally read the moon? In addition to being a sleek, sporty and gorgeous timepiece, the Tsuki-yomi A-T is the world’s first moon phase watch, combining Citizen’s legendary and innovative atomic timekeeping with styling that embodies the moon’s surface and a window at six-o’clock displays the current moon phase. Beyond just telling the time, this timepiece features a moon phase display, world time in 24 time zones, a perpetual calendar and day-date functionality. $850 CitizenWatch.com

Breitling Endurance Pro

When it comes to luxury meeting lifestyle, it’s hard to top the Endurance Pro, the ultimate athleisure watch. In other words, this lightweight beauty is ideal for high caliber athletes and the casual, everyday hiker—for those whose professional and sporty lifestyles blend seamlessly together. Who says rigorous workouts and being fashionable don’t go together? The Endurance Pro comes loaded with delights: an ultra-light case, a robust material 3.3 times lighter than titanium and 5.8 times lighter than stainless steel. Better yet, this timepiece is non-magnetic, thermally stable and hypoallergenic, which makes it highly resistant to scratches, traction and corrosion. $3,400 Breitling.com

bey watch Breitling Endurance Pro comes loaded with delights and is the perfect gift for that special someone.

THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA.COM

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

Win te r 2024 | The Hol i d ay s & B eyond

when i first heard the title of Hal Rubenstein’s latest can’t-put-down-style-meets-culture-knowing-smartzeitgeisty-delicious book, Dressing The Part: Television’s Most Stylish Shows, I burst out laughing. I mean, has there ever been a better person suited to write a book on this topic than Hal Rubenstein? As the founding editor and former fashion director of InStyle Magazine—and being a fashion designer himself—as well as an inarguably voraciously discerning entertainment observer, Rubenstein helps us sort out what’s worth it in a sea of TV/movie pop offerings. With his latest best-selling tome, Rubenstein sticks the landing. Fashion and TV have been inextricably tied but it wasn’t until this book did the obvious find its groove. Sex And The City? Check. Gossip Girl? Check. Mrs. Maisel? Check. Stop kidding yourself, go out and buy this book right now. Your coffee table—and all your dinner guests—demand it. And, if you’re like me and can’t get enough of Hal’s bon mots, check out his restaurant reviews in The Mountains (see page 70).

From Carrie Bradshaw to Mrs. Maisel: Let’s talk about the dress. | By Richard Pérez-Feria

Project Boob Tube

read this

isit the Dassai Blue Sake Brewery in Hyde Park, NY to start your Japanese spirits journey. This unique location is open Thursday and Friday afternoons and offers private tours and tastings

that include Dassai Blue 50, a 14 percent ABV sake with rice grains that’ve been polished down to 50 percent of their size— their first sake brewed in Hyde Park. Cheers to a new era in the Hudson Valley’s sake crafting story.

Japanese liquid gold in Hyde Park. | By Isabella Joslin

Heaven’s Sake

spirit

Owner and Principal Broker, Corcoran Country Living

“The Hudson Valley is New York City’s most undervalued second-home market—by a lot. If you’re waiting to buy a home when interest rates come down, guess what? So is everybody else. Here’s a better idea: Buy it now. You’ll negotiate a much better price now than waiting until everybody else also gets back into the game and you’re competing with six other offers in a bidding war. Saving 2% on your mortgage rate means nothing if you’re paying 10-15% more for the property. Negotiate a better price now and when interest rates come back down, you can refinance. Marry your dream property now and you always can ‘date the rate’ later.” —JASON KARADUS

{ The Best Advice You’ll Get Today } ➳

ard to believe that it’s been exactly two decades since I was among the thousand or so very lucky pretty people and other (mostly) creatives—the term “influencer” didn’t exist—who christened the red-hot social club cum HQ of Gotham’s private after hours civilized debauchery, Soho House New York, as members of the after dark glitterati spilled out into the suddenly chic Meatpacking District. What a ride that’s been. So, it’s not entirely surprising, then, that the Hudson Valley, specifically Rhinebeck, NY, will be the location of the latest Soho House at Grasmere House, a 250-acre former farm. According to Soho House: “The design inspiration will reference the romanticism of the nearby woodlands and incorporate natural elements from the historic Roycroft Arts and Crafts movement in the 1800s.” After party at the farm? Count me in. Yet again. –RICHARD PÉREZ-FERIA

Grasmere House in Rhinebeck is all set to become the next epicenter of cool.

Our Own Soho House

the spot

THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA.COM

(Beekman Inn) ROLF MÜLLER; (The Lantern House) SAM BACKHAUS PHOTOGRAPHY

makers|23 honoree and Hudson resident Chad Silver has crafted a poetic message for your loved one this Valentine’s Day. We say, what could be cuddlier than a lovesick teddy bear? Check out loveislame.com

DARE BARE

ook, food writer and The New York Times best-selling author Alison Roman has taken her love of food to neighboring Bloomville, NY, where she has opened First Bloom, a corner store with groceries, coffee and essentials. @firstbloomcornerstore already has more than 21,000 Instagram followers and the outpost showcases specialty items from ceramics to candles, granola, canned goods and more. –ISABEL HOCHMAN

Gabriella Truhlar. She enlisted the help of Shimon Rotches (Rotches Construction) and local artists Judy Bates (Happy Place Berkshires) and Aaron Luxe and function reign Meshon (find his art at The Lantern House exclusively at Railroad in Great Barrington. Street Collective). aving friends “We wanted to visit the maintain a feeling of Berkshires local appreciation,” and unsure Truhlar says. “We want where to recommend our guests to feel as if accommodations? they’ve stepped into pillow talk Comfort awaits The newly redesigned a high-end boutique at The Lantern House. and reimagined The hotel, whether they’re Lantern House in Great here for just one Barrington is the perfect combination of night or an extended stay. Comfort, style mid-century aesthetics with contemporary and a sense of being are at the heart of comforts. The Airbnb listing offers 14 everything we do.” As it should be. –ISABEL HOCHMAN individual rooms and was designed by

Keeping The Lights On

Beekman Arms and Delamater Inn is in the heart of the business district of historic Rhinebeck, NY. Today, the historic inn retains much of its Colonialera charm with antique-filled rooms, a comfy tavern and lush grounds. Over its more than two centuries in existence, the inn has played host to many famous people including Franklin D. Roosevelt, who’s home in Hyde Park is just a few miles south of the inn and ended each political campaign with a rousing speech to the Rhinebeck townspeople from the front porch of the inn.

Did You Know? The Oldest Inn In America Is In Rhinebeck Established in 1766, the

There seems to be some strong headwinds heading to Ulster County. Breeze Airways is set to offer round-trip flights from Stewart International Airport to Charleston and Orlando starting in February. Finally, traveling to these two highly sought-after destinations just got simpler—easy-breezy. –ISABELLA JOSLIN

Myron describes the store as “a really fun, eclectic, colorful department store—a one-stop shop where you can buy a little bit of everything.” And, as if the delightful curation of always-in-style vintage pieces wasn’t enough of a draw, the three-story Kingston store also features a coffee and juice bar. Is there even a reason to leave?

Far Out! Breeze Airways Debuts At Stewart Airport

agic Hill Mercantile has celebrated more than a decade in Hudson and has expanded its offerings with a new store in Kingston. Myron Shefer and his business partner Bruce Mishell source vintage furniture mainly mid-century modern pieces from Denmark and Sweden.

By Isabel Hochman

Hudson mid-century vintage furniture store, Magic Hill Mercantile, opens new location in Kingston.

Abracadabra!

shop

First Bloom sprouts tasty grocery store in Bloomville.

Is This The Next Roman Empire?

moments | life, a little bit at a time t he cit y

Traditions Get A Twist

Ditch the cliché New York City holiday staples and explore new (and classic) gems this magical season.

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

By Jack Rico every year, the allure of New York City during the holidays is nothing short of sublime. It’s a picture-perfect fairy tale you never want to end. The towering tree at Rockefeller Center, the Radio City Rockettes, the Bergdorf Goodman holiday windows on Fifth Avenue—but beyond these nostalgic destinations lie some unique and off-thebeaten-path holiday experiences waiting to be experienced. From an ice rink tucked below the Brooklyn Bridge to a German Christmas haven, each spot is a holiday story awaiting your discovery.

26 winner schnitzel

Rolf’s German Restaurant is the perfect setting for a Jäeger Schnitzel and a holiday martini.

W ill

ale akeville

herri gt

c m

T H E

(Starbucks) MATTHEW GLAC; (Brookfield) HEIDI LEE

activity Glide Ice Skating Rink

This holiday season, swap the expected New York City winter ice rinks for a new ice-skating experience underneath the iconic Brooklyn Bridge. Open daily from November 15 to March 1, 2024, skate against a wintry urban backdrop that feels plucked from a movie montage—it’s a postcard moment you won’t soon forget.

restaurant Rolf ’s German Restaurant

Spruce up for a magical holiday date night at Gramercy’s Rolf’s German Restaurant, where the North Pole meets Oktoberfest. It calls itself “The Most Christmasy Place in NYC,” and this photographic winter wonderland doesn’t disappoint—and

glowing light show set to holiday classics like Michael Bublé and Pentatonix. Open from November 24 to January 6, 2024, inside the Winter Garden.

it’s the perfect setting for a German Jäeger Schnitzel and a holiday martini accompanied by yuletide charm. Clink your glasses and lose yourself in a holiday fantasy.

art Luminaries At Brookfield Place Meet Battery Park City’s best-kept holiday secret: Luminaries at Brookfield Place. Picture hundreds of colorful lanterns that you can interact with to create your own

spot Starbucks Reserve Roastery

Escape the cold and snuggle up with steaming hot cocoa or a coffee-infused cocktail inside Chelsea’s luxurious Starbucks Reserve Roastery. Spanning 23,000 square feet, this architectural marvel embodies java amusement park vibes. From coffee beans zipping through glass tubes overhead to roasters working in full view, this industrial-style venue is a must-visit holiday destination.

Fiskars Norden™ cookware exemplifies lasting Nordic design inspired by nature with durable cast iron cookware that brings out the rich flavors of every meal. available at

37b North Front Street Kingston, NY 12401 845.514.2300 bluecashewkitchen.com

M O U N T A I N S

We’re here to insure your entire world. With three offices in Copake, Valatie, and Chatham we are here to help you with any of your insurance needs. Contact us today for a quote on your home, auto, business, health insurance or life insurance. We are the Kneller Agency and we’re here to insure your world.

Auto • Home • Farm • Business & Commercial • Life, Health & Long Term Care 518.392.9311 • knellerins.com • Copake • Chatham • Valatie

makers genius, in human form

family man “I’m an art photographer who makes family portraits. I go in a family’s home and ﬁnd these little moments,” says Doron Gild of his compelling, eye-catching work. Photography by Doron Gild

great scot “My home in the Catskills feels very much like the terrain I grew up in as a little boy in Scotland,” the Tony Award-winner says.

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

Turtleneck by Todd Snyder Pants and boots by Paul Smith Win te r 2024 | The Hol i d ay s & B eyond

exclusive

ALAN CUMMING

FEARLESS

AT LAST THE HOLLYWOOD AND BROADWAY STAR RECONNECTS WITH HIS INNER CHILD AT HIS LONGTIME HOME IN THE CATSKILLS THE PLAY’S THE THING INDEED

BY KEViN SESSUMS PHOTOGRAPHY BY MIKE RUIZ exclusively for The Mountains

THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA COM

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

was sitting in a parking lot of a McDonald’s outside Asheville, NC, when I got the call from Alan Cumming. If San Francisco and Santa Fe had done mushrooms together, made mad love and decided to keep the rather marvelous child that resulted—that would be Asheville. If Sean Connery and Judy Carne had done so, that would be Cumming—or maybe if Miriam Margolyes and Ian McKellen had—for Cumming is a chameleon nestled rather nicely, thank you, within his being an actor, singer, writer, club owner, television host, world traveler and political activist. Asheville, itself chameleon-like, is nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains and is more smoked salmon these days than its neighboring Smokies yet retains a countercultural 1960s vibe. Think the Catskills skewed more toward Woodstock than Hudson or either of the Chathams, yes, nestled between them. It is imbued, as Cumming is himself, with musicality and artistic endeavors with a whiff of an old hippie about it and the durability of the Dionysian. “I thought you were going to be at this photoshoot where I am in New York to do this interview,” he told me that day I was waiting in the car in that parking lot with my sister’s wife while my sister was inside the McDonald’s getting herself a Dr Pepper. Cumming wasn’t in any sort of diva-mode—he never unnecessarily is—but was just a bit confused since this is a man who sticks unerringly to an invariably busy schedule. I apologized profusely for any mix-up and explained that I was in the Blue Ridge Mountains having just come from an LGBTQ pride festival in a tiny North Carolina mountain hamlet surprisingly filled with drag queens, some of whom looked a lot like Dolly Parton who grew up a mountain range over, and what appeared to be a gaggle of druids and goddess-celebrating radical faeries rather heroic in their hedonism so freely displayed in such a place, the latter reminding me a bit of Cumming when he’s in his own mountain mode. I told him that. He laughed. And we scheduled a Zoom call the next week when he’d be in his East Village apartment in New York, and I’d be staying at the Mary Heaton Vorse House in Provincetown under the auspices of the Provincetown Arts Society. “I was just in Provincetown last week with Grant,” he said, mentioning his husband, artist Grant Shaffer, before his being called back to the photoshoot. Cumming, a sweetheart of a man, and his sweetheart of a husband have a home in the western Catskills where they retreat when they are craving privacy, which is itself a creatively camp endeavor in their shared life. In fact, he and that other mountain lover, Dolly Parton, have managed to maintain a sweetheart swagger that so many stars lose when their stance in the show business world enlarges to a loping lack of grace as they grub about for more and more success and power. Dolly has certainly been a mountainous version of America’s sweetheart for decades now and I’d audaciously add “America’s sweetheart” to that earlier litany of public roles in Cumming’s life. The more conventional versions over the years have been curated from the ranks of Julia Roberts and June Allyson and Jennifer Aniston and Doris Day and Tom Hanks and Debbie Reynolds and Timothée Chalamet and Meg Ryan and Mary Tyler Moore and Taylor Swift. America’s first sweetheart was Mary Pickford who was born in Canada and was known as the “girl with the curls.” Cumming was born in Scotland and because of his antiWin te r 2024 | Th e Hol i d ay s & B eyond

THE SQUAD

fashion stylists: Samantha Brown @samanthabrownstyle Angel Macias @angelfelix24 hair: Marco Medrano @mrmarcomedrano grooming: Alexandria Gilleo @alexandriagilleomakeup on-set coordinator: Isabella Joslin @isabellajoslinn

Alan Cumming has grown from the Emcee in Cabaret and Eli Gold in The Good Wife and its sequel The Good Fight to a silver-tongued éminence grise of downtown Manhattan and Upstate New York who emanates both a homey and homie openhearted welcome to those who need to feel as if they truly are.

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

Blazer, pants and shoes all by Todd Snyder Shirt by Giorgio Armani Socks by Missoni following page Shirt by Todd Snyder Jeans by Giorgio Armani

THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA.COM

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

circumcision activism is known as the guy with the foreskin. Too audacious? I don’t think so. Alan Cumming has naturalized audacity in the same way he has become a naturalized American citizen—with equal measures of panache and knowing and a grinladen likability. He’s grown from the Emcee in Cabaret and Eli Gold in The Good Wife and its sequel The Good Fight to a silver-tongued éminence grise of downtown Manhattan and Upstate New York who emanates both a homey and homie openhearted welcome to those who need to feel as if they truly are. There’s diplomacy in his crossover appeal, a directness and empathy that he learned at his own knee when he was a boy navigating the wilds of Scotland and the wilder violent moods of an alcoholic father. A survivor’s sagacity limns his more impish impulses that give them a wrinkle of wryness, even a twinkle of it. He’s the quick-witted Puck, Oberon’s fairy henchman, if they—which I think of as Puck’s pronoun—had steeped themself in a kind of humane stoicism along with their choice bits of poetic mischievousness. It’s an interesting combination, the fairly humane affixing itself to a fairy’s humor, and really rather, well, OK, becoming.

hat stoicism was part of the now 58-year-old actor’s moving Upstate 22 years ago. “When you could get out of the city the Saturday after 9/11, I went with a friend who had a place in the Catskills,” he tells me. “The land next to him was for sale. I thought, ‘Oh, God I need this.’ I had never understood why people said, ‘Oh, I have got to get out of the city.’ I had always just thought: ‘Why?’ Why would you want to leave on a weekend back when I was in my honeymoon phase with New York. Well, I’m still in my honeymoon with it really. But then I got it with 9/11 in the way that the pandemic more recently made lots of people think about living outside the city. It made me realize I wanted an escape. So, I bought the land. It was a week to the day after 9/11. I have built on it over the years, other cabins and things. It’s more like a compound now.” “Or a camp?” I ask. “I quite like that. A camp. Compound always sounds like that place in Waco, Texas, where they all got blown up.” “Plus, camp has a double entendre aspect to it,” I tell him. “There’s Club Cumming,” he says, this merry wanderer of the night, mentioning his combination bar and cabaret space and dance hall in the East Village. “Hmmm… Camp Cumming. Yes, I quite like that. The place Upstate is my total sanctuary. It feels very much like the terrain I grew up in as a little boy in Scotland. It’s a great intensive Win te r 2024 | Th e Hol i d ay s & B eyond

way to see your friends. You can do everything with them—yet at the same time I want them to have their privacy, too. I learned from going to stay with people how lovely it is to have time with them but also to have your own time and be able to escape to a guest house or whatever. I’ve been adding to it. I now have a tree house you can sleep in. There are lots of childlike things about the place,” he muses and agrees when I say that he’s not trying to recreate his childhood, but to reconfigure it. “Definitely. When my brother came to visit the first time he said, ‘You bought your childhood.’ I think he’s right. When you grow up you don’t really appreciate your surroundings and you certainly don’t appreciate how bucolic things are ’til you go away, and you realize it. But my childhood was also tainted with my dad, so I sort of just rejected everything about it— the countryside and my connections to nature and the outdoors. But as I’ve grown older I have realized I love those things. I loved growing up in the middle of nowhere. I loved not having to lock the doors. I loved being in a storm in the middle of the woods. All that stuff—to walk out and see no one. Especially now with the way my life is, it means so much to me to have that privacy and sanctuary. I even have a camera on the house looking out at the view that is connected to my phone and I put it on sometimes just to look at it even when I’m not there.” Cumming takes out his phone and pulls up the view. He holds the phone’s screen up to the Zoom camera so I too can bask in it, a trampoline in the distance awaiting his need to jump and tumble about. Does he perhaps see too there in a temporal distance his retiring to this cherished refuge Upstate? “I think so. The pandemic for so many people was life changing. Grant and I spent a good six solid months up there. It was magical. I had one of the most magical years of my life during it. We both sort of rebooted the time we spend in the city and the time we spend up there. We spend much more time Upstate since then. Since the pandemic I’ve done things like taking a month off. I took July off. I’m taking December off. I actually just want to have more time to myself. I suppose retiring is just a big version of that. But if you’re an actor, you can sort of semi-retire and just do less. I don’t want to say that I never want to work again. I can’t imagine that. I don’t really consider my work work. It just sort of feels like my hobby.” “You had to grow up very quickly as a boy when dealing with the trauma of being raised by a violent father. In some ways you have evolved into a childhood,” I say, trying out the theory. “I do feel like I have sort of lived my life backwards,” he says.

keep it cumming Versatility comes to mind when thinking of Cumming’s career. (clockwise, from top left) with Julianna Margulies in The Good Wife; as host of the delicious reality show The Traitors; winning GLAAD’s Vito Russo Award in New York City; the cover of his heartwrenching memoir; starring in My Old School in 2022; his winning turn as The Emcee in Cabaret; standing outside his NYC music venue, Club Cumming; with Tom Cruise in a scene from Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut.

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA.COM

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

“You’re your own version of Merrily We Roll Along,” I tell him. “You’d be great in either of those male lead roles in that Sondheim musical now back on Broadway. Just putting it out there.” Cumming chuckles at the prospect of another Broadway run of eight shows a week in his future, then turns back to his childhood. “I had to understand adult things when I was very little. I am nearly 59 and I still get boyish and puckish and childlike, so I realize there is something in my spirit and in my demeanor that comes across like that. I like that about myself. That means you’re open to life and adventure and you’re not afraid—maybe to my detriment sometimes. I have retained some of the qualities I wasn’t allowed to have or had the space to enjoy when I was very little.” “You say you’re not afraid now. But did you have fear as a boy? Or were you just angry—is that where you placed the emotional need to survive?” “When I was little I wasn’t mad. I was just, yes, surviving and living with fear, the fear of what was going to happen with my father exploding and getting violent. I genuinely feel aside from dying the worst things that could happen to me in my life have happened—unless I get kidnapped and horribly tortured. I think that is why Grant and I are such a good match. He is a bit more anxious and worries about things I would never worry about.”

I tell Cumming that when he called me at the McDonald’s that day down in North Carolina that I was visiting my sister and her wife who live a cocooned nomadic life in an RV much like the RV that he and Miriam Margolyes drove around in the travel show, Lost in Scotland. “If you were driving Miriam around in that RV Upstate in a version called Lost in the Catskills, what would you want to show her?” “Hmm… I once went to the Delaware county fair. I went with Murray Hill,” he says, mentioning the comedian and drag king performer. “We had such a laugh. I had never known anything like it. It was completely unlike anything I had grown up with. There was a demolition derby. This was what was so crazy. It was sold out. I mean, you could not get into it. I had to get my publicist to call up and get me in. We got seats, but they were very, very bad. There was a big burly man sitting next to me. I didn’t really know what was going on and couldn’t understand the rules, so I was asking him questions. He was a bit gruff with me. But later on, there was an intermission, and he came back with his beer, and he said, ‘I want to apologize. I didn’t mean to be rude when you were asking me questions, but I didn’t have my teeth in.’” “Where did he have them? In his pocket?” “I guess he didn’t have them with him and went to get them during the intermission. But I loved the demolition derby. Loved it. And the things that people eat there were umming bought the incredible. Those big, gigantic cakes Upstate property that are sort of fried. Hmm. What when he was with else? I would love to take Miriam someone else but skiing. Or tubing. I love tubing. That then they split up is such fun. I prefer tubing down a as he was building ski slope to skiing actually. There is a alan’s apple “I do feel famous in the Catskills. it. It was a massive project to get place in Phoenicia you can go tubing What’s nice is that I’m aware that people get it that completed on his own with its down a river when it’s warmer. That’s I don’t go there to be famous,” Cumming says of array of cottages and a pool, etc. “I such fun, too. There are so many his considerate Upstate neighbors. remember going there on my own to things to do that are fun. But we kind the house when it was finished but of go there and hide. I mean, I go to completely empty—it smelled so beautiful with all the lovely wood— the shops and the farmers market but mostly we keep to ourselves.” and just bursting into tears thinking, ‘Oh, my God. I’ve now got this Does he feel famous when he’s there or is it a place he goes to feel less beautiful home and now I’m on my own.’ I felt it was the so? “I do feel famous there. What is nice is that I’m aware that people end of this long odyssey and my life was in a bit of a mess. Shortly get it that I don’t go there to be famous. I try not to do show bizzy things after that I had a party—half a housewarming party and half a there. I do try to help with the local community where I can help, of Fourth of July one—and one of the people who came to that party course. But I kind of keep the famous ‘Alan Cumming’ out of the way. It was Grant. So, Grant and I got together at that house. It has been is just something you have to factor into your life wherever you happen such a special thing for us both. We have a big, strong connection to be. I do love the western Catskills because it doesn’t feel as if I’m going to the house because we got together there. The style of the house to bump into people and it feels more removed. You walk down the was to be welcoming and to be open to people and to life, and the first street in Hudson, and you run into someone you might know, and they thing to happen there was meeting Grant. I had made this amazing go, ‘Oh, Alan, hi,’” he says, his voice growing plumy with how pleased it place for myself—this cocoon—and then someone came along and sounds to itself. “‘I was going to send you a script.’ The western Catskills was able to be happy in it.” feel a little more sleepy. Not sleepy. Gentle. That’s the word: gentle.”

Win te r 2024 | Th e Hol i d ay s & B eyond

“I do feel like I have sort of lived my life backwards.”

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

Sweater by Todd Snyder Undershirt by Missoni Jeans by Giorgio Armani Boots by Paul Smith opposite page Turtleneck by Todd Snyder Blazer by Etro THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA.COM

BUY IN THE BERKSHIRES FOR THE WINTER FUN

special

PRE SENTS

makers|23 reported by SARAH CARPENTER ISABEL HOCHMAN ISA BELLA JOSLIN SEAN McALINDIN MITCH RUSTAD

o, when I first moved to this corner of the planet, I kept hearing cool, creative people being referred to as “makers.” Makers? Really? Aren’t they simply artists and designers and chefs and photographers and musicians and so on? Yes, but collectively, in this region, they’re proudly stamped with the “makers” moniker. When in Rome… To inaugurate the now annual roster of celebrated makers in The Mountains— we’re calling it makers|23—we’ve assembled an impressive list of our most talented neighbors. To be clear, we’re not inferring that these particular people are the best or even among the best makers in our area, we’re just saying these 23 individuals are impossibly interesting and gifted and should be on the guest list for your next cocktail party. We live in a ridiculously makers-rich environment. In fact, you can’t throw a rock 50 feet without hitting a legit world-class maker in these parts. These 23 folks are just the ones we chose to throw our rocks at this time around. Have a look. Doesn’t your guest list need a boost? Our makers|23 honorees can help. ☞ – R I CH ARD PÉ REZ-F E RIA

THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA.COM

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

makers|23 Lisa & Tom Motzer

“We’re both born and raised here in the Hudson Valley and watching it grow into thriving communities has been really exciting for us,” says Lisa Motzer, who with husband Tom operates The Lone Duck Farm, their family-owned farm specializing in pastured poultry and eggs, woodlot raised pork and fresh produce. “This is an incredibly supportive area for small farms, and we’ve been lucky to witness it first-hand.” Her vision for the future’s clear: “I dream of people working together to form community sufficient systems. Farming brings people together while rewarding you in so many ways.”

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

Chad Silver I was thinking the other day what a loaded question that softest of softballs we all get hit with upon entering every cocktail party must be a toughie for one Chad Silver: “So, what do you do?” It must take him a full minute to gather his thoughts. Silver, for starters, is a Hudson-based interior muralist as well as a master woodworker, an accomplished photographer and inventive videographer who happens to be married to the sublime cookbook author (and former feature in these pages), Colu Henry. If there ever was a “maker” in our midst, I present you with Chad Silver, Exhibit A. But, the question must be asked, is Silver doing too much? “Working on diverse projects is the key for me maintaining interest in my art and craft,” Silver says. “Whether executing the craft meticulously reproducing huge mural designs from blueprints passed down from museum design departments or grabbing a wood carving knife and seeing where the meditative process leads me, I cherish both kinds of art, craft and learning.” I wonder about his creative environment and there, too, Silver hardly disappoints. “What I love most about working in this region are the differences between the relatively close areas,” Silver says. “I’ve had workspaces from the Catskills to The Berkshires. It gets weird in the Catskills and quiet in the Berkshires and with almost 20 years of having a studio in Brooklyn, it took moving my studio to Hudson to find my first dead rat!” C’mon, now…who doesn’t love some cat-and-mouse shenanigans to spice up the work day? – R I CH A R D P É R EZ-F E R I A Win te r 2024 | Th e Hol i d ay s & B eyond

coffee + sandwiches + ice cream prepared foods + specialty grocery

Now open

BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE HANDS & HEARTS OF GB EATS (413) 248-1322 132 South Main Street Shefﬁeld, MA

WALTON GOGGINS

Nadia Conners Before writing each morning, Nadia Conners walks through the forests nearby the restored hunting lodge on the border of Hillsdale and Austerlitz, NY where she lives with her husband, celebrated actor Walton Goggins. Best known for writing and directing environmental documentary The 11th Hour with Leonardo DiCaprio, Conners is releasing her first feature film, The Uninvited, in 2024. “It’s a story about self-absorbed people coming into consciousness when faced with their own mortality,” she says. “I’m very interested in this idea of dysfunctional denial.”

makers|23

While no one seems to know exactly where Long Pond recording studio is, Swifties will tell you it’s about a mile from the Hudson River. Fans of indie rockers The National have loved Aaron Dessner since 1999, but he shot to superstardom after producing Taylor Swift’s Grammy-winning pandemic albums folklore and evermore. Maybe it’s because he’s a twin, but Dessner feels like he was born to collaborate—just, now with the world’s biggest pop stars. His most recent landmark project was Ed Sheeran’s Autumn Variations.

JOSH COLEMAN

Aaron Dessner

Lidey Heuck

“The Hudson Valley is an inspiring place to be a cook and recipe developer,” says Lidey Heuck, who shares musings on home, entertaining and travel, along with easy, crowd-pleasing recipes on her website, LideyLikes.com. “There are so many people doing interesting things in food—from restaurateurs to farmers to food purveyors, and it’s invigorating to be a part of.” Looking forward, Heuck’s first cookbook, Cooking In Real Life (“a dream come true”) will be published in March 2024—and that’s just the beginning, she says. “At the moment, much of the work I do (and recipes I share) happens online, but one day I’d love to open a store that features the food and culture of our region.”

Jeffrey Gibson

(Leuck) DANE TASHIMA

With a wide-ranging, inclusive and critical approach to art-making, the Hudson, NY-based queer indigenous artist Jeffrey Gibson has work featured in the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art as well as the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. By fusing together American, Native American and queer perspectives, Gibson continues his aim to make the art world value Indigenous histories and artistic representations. “There’s this gap historically about these histories existing on the same level and being valued culturally,” he says. “My goal is to force them into the contemporary canon of what’s considered important.”

Kelli Galloway

Meet Kelli Galloway, the incredibly talented florist who works her magic in the picturesque Hudson Valley region. With her floral expertise, she’s the go-to guru in Kingston for creating stunning arrangements that elevate weddings and other special events to a whole new level. She says she’s always loved this industry because of the way flowers become little messages, bringing people closer together. “We offer a way for people to communicate with one another, delivering flowers or hosting a party for loved ones,” she says. “To be able to send an artful gift to someone who needs you or is important to you is a real treat.”

SPONSORED CONTENT

PRESENTS

A Color Refresh for You and Your Home A fresh coat of paint is the quickest, least disruptive and most costeffective way to “renovate.” And, you can repaint as often as you like!

It’s an energy boost for you and your family. Whether you use a vibrant color to bring energy to your home or calming hues to help you relax, color has a definitive effect on your mood and outlook. Using new low- and zero-volatile organic compounds (VOC) is a health improvement. They literally improve the air you breathe. Both interior and exterior paint simultaneously protect your investment and increase your real estate value. The curb appeal of your home is increased with a refreshed exterior and the attractiveness of each room is boosted with a clean update. The results are almost immediate. No need to move out if you update one room at a time. Within days, your room has a new personality.

Need some inspiration?

Shades of blue are hot for 2024. Benjamin Moore named Blue Nova, and Valspar named Renew Blue, their Colors of the Year.

may aff

ay— e of een, the openness of white or the sense of comfor

Williams Lumber & Home Centers is here to guide you through their amazing variety of color and texture options. At every store, you’ll find inspiration, guidance, service, and all the tools you’ll need if you are a DIYer. Visit one of our locations or williamslumber.com

—Robin Baron, Interior Designer

makers|23 Claire Raposo

Michael DePerno & Andrew Fry

(Raposo) CALLIE BUCHAN; (Martinéz) ANDREA MONDELLO

Michael DePerno and Andrew Fry, co-owners of Plain Goods in New Preston, CT, have an impeccable sense of style and design, showcased at their boutique where they’ve curated a collection of home furnishings and décor, men’s, women’s and children’s clothing, antiques and plenty more. “Everything in my life has in some way been linked to being creative,” DePerno says. “It’s a constant; it always has been. I find ways to engage my creativity that are meaningful to me, so that it always feels inspiring and relevant. Plain Goods is the perfect platform to engage and share this process.” The inspiration behind the curation comes from the region itself. “The physical beauty of Litchfield County, the land, the architecture and our clientele,” he says, keeps them inspired and productive.

In 2020, at 19, Pastry Chef Claire Raposo opened The Lost Lamb, a French-Berkshire patisserie in Stockbridge, MA. What were you doing at 19? She graduated top of her class from Le Cordon Bleu Paris and has brought her passion, creativity and youth to the Berkshires. “I think the region is really everything to my craft because this is where I grew up and learned so much of what I put into the bakery. I love the access we have to fresh produce that is really amazing, and changes all the time,” Raposo says. In addition to her Instagram following (@lost_lamb_patisserie) she has grown her loyal customer base, focusing on seasonal ingredients that keep her customers coming back for their favorite pastries. “I don’t know if this is the most creative moment of my life, but I’ve never made more pastries before and that’s really changed how I see creativity. I have a practical need to streamline everything I do now that the bakery is doing so well. It’s really pushed me into making more delicious treats because I’ve gotten down to the heart of each pastry, trying to perfect each recipe so the batch sizes can increase, and we can sell more of everything.”

T H E

Gary Keegan

Gary Keegan, a fifth-generation master craftsman originally from Dublin, Ireland, now works at Livingston Farms, where his shop is surrounded by 145 acres of bucolic land. “Living and working in the Hudson Valley—being able to engage with other creative people and projects in a historic and picturesque part of the world—is truly a joy and pleasure.,” Keegan says. “Art is beautiful, but it’s hard work. Being creative is a long road of emotions, depth, understanding and love. To get out every day for decades and stand at the bench working with wood: lovely.”

Alejandra & Pauline Martínez

Alejandra and Pauline Martínez are sisters from Peru who’ve created a line of dogwear that’s sure to make even the most fashionable canine parent envious of their furbaby’s wardrobe. Alejandra moved to Kingston, NY in 2009 and launched Paco & Lucia there after quitting a job in Manhattan (and ditching the hellish daily commute), asking her sister Pauline to collaborate with her from Peru. The animal lovers source baby-soft Peruvian textiles for their high-end dog coat designs. “I wanted them to be pieces that we’d wear, so nothing kitschy—like a human coat but fitted for a dog,” Alejandra says. Pauline handles production and quality control from Peru, Alejandra handles sales and marketing here in our neck of the woods, and the two merge on design work. Because they live so far apart, collaborating on Paco & Lucia has only brought them closer together. “The best part for me is getting to work with my sister,” Alejandra says. Find some of their timeless pieces in local shops like Pause Dog Boutique in Rhinebeck, or shop directly from their online store at PacoAndLucia.com. THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA.COM

M O U N T A I N S

makers|23

Visit Us

HELPING YOU GET OUTSIDE SINCE 1974! rentals | sales | service

91 Pittsfield Rd Lenox 413-637-3010 arcadian.com

Helen Dealtry A creative visionary whose unique artwork and stunning printed textile patterns are lighting up the Hudson Valley, Helen Dealtry is nothing short of a multi-talented artist—and host of her Magnolia Network television show, Art In Bloom—who explores her craft through watercolors, inks and paint. Working professionally at her craft since 2000, Dealtry hails from Surrey, England. “My work is always inspired by the natural world, so moving to the Hudson Valley has profoundly influenced my practice and growth as a painter,” she says. “This area has always been a magnet for artists, and it’s easy to see why. The light here feels different to me.” Find dazzling prints, greeting cards, Dealtry scarves and original paintings on her popular online shop.

CHAD SILVER

bikes | kayaks | travel clothing footwear | sportswear | camping

Mikaela Davis

(Davis) WYNDHAM GARNETT; (Jack) CHRISTIAN BADACH

Rock ’n’ roll harpist Mikaela Davis is on the road with her tightknit band, Southern Star, somewhere between Denver and Los Angeles. “We stayed in the desert in Utah last night,” she says. “It was really beautiful.” It’s all in a day’s work when you’re breaking musical ground. Davis’ timelessly imaginative psych-folk album, And Southern Star, was recorded at Old Soul Studios in her newfound hometown of Catskill, NY. “I like being surrounded by inspiring people, so it’s a cool place to be,” she says.

Billy Paul Jack

Billy Paul Jack, arguably the most popular mixologist in Great Barrington holds court at Moon Cloud and 229 Cantina, is known for his unique style and thought process in cocktail making. “Creativity ebbs and flows,” Jack says. It takes a lot of experience to be able to channel creativity. He says he’s come up with a name for the place in his mind when he’s able to focus on mixology: The Lab. Here, he says, “I go in my head and play with ingredients, recipes, themes and incorporate flavors in an effort to come up with something altogether new.” Something he loves about working in this region is collaborating with the small businesses. “Collaboration is community,” Jack says.

Cannabis and CBD 71 Main Street South Egremont 413-429-4400 Devineberkshires.com Hello@devineberkshires.com

Black owned & female owned.

makers|23

Est. 1973

Timothy Hull

“The Hudson Valley is a highly dynamic and creative region. I have both a studio in the city and in the country and I find the different energies feed into what I’m doing,” says Warwick, NY-based artist/ painter Timothy Hull, whose work’s been featured and reviewed in The New York Times, Artforum, Interview and The Los Angeles Times. “Sometimes I really need the drumbeat of the city and other times the solitude and quiet of the country. Growing up in the Hudson Valley has always made it truly home for me and where I feel a true sense of place.”

Ellen Ann Kafkalas & Rita Kogler Carver

Sisters by choice Ellen Ann Kafkalas and Rita Kogler Carver are the founders of the Green Womxn and use their creativity to make canned goods out of perfectly edible parts of plants that normally get tossed out. It’s a second career for both women, so they’ve been able to combine their past skills and spark new creativity to concoct scrumptious relishes and sauces with a positive environmental impact. They say this region is the perfect place for their plant-based venture. “The combination of rural and city areas helps us get our product out to people through festivals and farmers markets, where we offer tastings of our products.”

Michael Robbins

With a group of gifted artisans, Michael Robbins works as a designer and craftsperson to create impressive modern furniture pieces and other wares from an evolving collection. “Having spent the last decade building a brand and growing a small business, I’m now in the position to look around and appreciate the growth we’ve achieved. The culture and landscape of our region is integral to how we work and offers us an avenue to realize our vision—whether it be through material, architecture, nature or the incredibly versatile community that surrounds us.”

2950 Church Street Pine Plains, NY 12567

thestissingcenter.org JANUARY 27, 2024

SLOCAN RAMBLERS

MA MARCH 8, 2024

DANCE PARTY! FEBRUARY 10, 2024

24 Your home for World-Class Arts and Culture

(Robbins) STEVEN PANECCASIO; (Wild) SHANNON GREER

The Stissing Center

LADY BLACKBIRD FEBRUARY 17, 2024 24

Growing up in the impoverished outskirts of Moscow, talismanic troubadour Dmitry Wild says he owned only three vinyl LPs: The Beatles’ White Album, Soviet protest punks Kino’s Black Album and Johnny Cash’s I Walk The Line. Get symbolic much? And after the USSR collapsed, Wild immigrated to Queens at age 14. His latest single “Rock-n-Roll is my Business” is a saxophone-drenched, garagepsych romp through 21st-century materialism and transcendence. “If you ain’t got that thing that makes you rock ’n’ roll, you ain’t got it,” he says.

THE STISSING CENTER

Dmitry Wild

makers|23 Doron Gild Being in a Doron Gild photo is like stepping into a strange, compelling work of art. His “extravagant family photos” infuse everyday people into weird, wild fantasies, both quirky and deep in meaning—otherworldly, yet totally accessible moments in time. “I’m an art photographer who makes family portraits,” Gild says. “I go in a family’s home and find these little moments. It becomes my art and the way I see it. When I get an opportunity to form ideas, it’s everything to me.”

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

( Your House Here )

Beautiful homes. Happy clients.

jackmillercontractors.com

Dan Horan “We’re really trying to keep farmers farming,” says Dan Horan, CEO of Five Acre Farms, which he founded with the mission of making highquality, local food more broadly available throughout the Hudson Valley region and beyond. “When you pick up a bottle of buttermilk, kefir or any food product with the Five Acre Farms label on it, we also include exactly whose local farm that product’s from. This allows the consumer to reach out directly to them and learn more about where their food’s coming from.”

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

1133 Broadway, New York, NY | 646 336 6270 www.plattdana.com

makers|23 Jason O’Malley

Among the companies that’ve featured this Hudson Valley resident’s vivid and colorful illustrations internationally are Gap, Ikea and American Express. But Jason O’Malley’s work out of The Rural Modernist studio includes bespoke modern ceramics, wallpaper and art prints so you can bring his eye-popping, fabulous and at times, camp, illustrations into your home. “Being a part of this vibrant midtown Kingston arts community has really changed everything. I’m an illustrator and graphic designer by trade but being here in the Hudson Valley has provided so many opportunities for creative exploration.” Check out his fabulous work at the Kingston Design Connection Showcase where he will be signing copies of his new coloring book All My Divas.

Union Street Brewing Co. 716 Union St. Hudson NY 12534 Open Thursday - Monday

Alexis Tellefsen

The work of this exceptional ceramic artist from Middletown, NY isn’t just visually charming but also highly functional. She’s keen on making pottery that serves a purpose, aligning with the growing trend of mindful consumption. In her own words, “In a world where there is a clear shift of focus happening towards consuming less, usefulness and purpose are qualities I deeply value and infuse into my creations.”

Sarah Omura

“The Hudson Valley truly has an amazing community of fellow makers here,” says Sarah Omura, founder and maker of SO Handmade in Woodstock, NY, who creates eco-friendly toys that are portable and practical for families on the go. “I’m committed to continuing to develop products that can truly be lifesaving for parents. As a busy parent myself, I know how important it is to have smart and useful play mats and toys for our little ones.”

Your business deserves a success story.

Let’s write it together.

Choose a team that’s top rated by our customers — and by Forbes. NBT Bank’s local relationship managers are committed to providing expert guidance and personalized service designed to fit each organization’s unique needs. Our industry-leading banking solutions, reliability, and results set us apart — that’s why our customers have voted NBT one of Forbes World’s Best Banks.

Capital and Treasury Management Solutions

Local Perspective and Decision Making

Fraud Protection and Secure Banking Solutions

See how NBT can make a difference for your business at www.nbtbank.com/business

Member FDIC

spotlight

POUGHKEEPSiE, AGAIN TIRED OF WATCHING OTHER TOWNS HAVE THEIR MOMENT POUGHKEEPSIE IS GETTING READY FOR A REVIVAL IF EVERYTHING GOES AS PLANNED THEY WON’T HAVE TO WAIT MUCH LONGER

BY SIMON MURRAY

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

PHOTOGRAPHY BY DANIELLA MURRAY exclusively for The Mountains

Win te r 2024 | The Hol i d ay s & B eyond

don’t call it a comeback The very idea of having revitalization without gentriﬁcation is taking root in Poughkeepsie. Some examples include (from top) Brandon Walker, executive chef and owner of Essie’s Restaurant; Zeus Brewing Company overlooking the Mid-Hudson Bridge; and Charlie Webb, chef and owner of the award-winning Detroit-style pizza parlor, Hudson & Packard on Academy Street.

hen my fiancée needed an externship to finish her master’s in speech language pathology, we were drawn to a small town near Poughkeepsie. Born and raised in Florida, she looked to her de facto guide to the Northeast for insight. Unfortunately, I couldn’t offer much. Besides driving up I-87 to attend a college Upstate, my only exposure to the Hudson Valley came from a visit to Beacon. Far from the tourist destination it is today, back then, gentrification’s creep from New York City had yet to claim its first footholds along the Metro-North railway. Beacon, warts and all, still retained a diverse population of residents, including good friends of mine, who had lived there for generations. Right now, it has more in common with Brooklyn’s Williamsburg, where a gourmet pizza will run you $30 and swanky cocktail bars refrain from printing drink prices on their menus. As a result, longtime Beaconites are being priced out. But what of Poughkeepsie, its northern neighbor? Depending on who you ask, my fiancée and I had either missed its heyday by decades or it was a vague notion on the horizon. IBM’s colossal manufacturing presence—a 400-acre plant along the Hudson River that built everything from rifles to typewriters and computers up until the ’90s—was long gone as the most powerful force in town. Without its economic backbone, postindustrial decline had done a number to the “Queen City on the Hudson,” a lesser-known nickname for the seat of Dutchess County. It’s hard to feel regal when Main Street still bears the pockmarks of urban blight: boarded-up storefronts, abandoned homes with broken windows and overgrown grass, empty lots, buildings in disrepair. A few years before we settled here in 2022, the decay became all but impossible to ignore. A powerful windstorm knocked the roof off a seven-story high-rise between Main Street THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA COM

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

esident Gallery ssistant

80 Railroad Great Barrington

The Boathouse american bistro & sushi restaurant in lakeville, ct open 7 days a week! for lunch and dinner 11:00 am to 9:00 pm

dine-in or take out online ordering available with private rooms for corporate events, rehearsal dinners, baby showers and more

860-435-2111

349 main street theboathouseatlakeville.com

and Cannon Street in the downtown corridor. Seemingly overnight, the city skyline had lost one of its tallest buildings. The effect wasn’t unlike being forced to fly a flag at half-mast. “I think that’s really the case,” says Evan Menist, Poughkeepsie Second Ward Councilmember. “Which is why it’s critical to get rid of underutilized space and maximize its use for a more efficient and productive city center.” To atone for the sins of long-since-failed urban renewal plans implemented in the late 20th century, city leaders like Menist are rezoning neighborhoods to boost population density and dangling tax breaks for developers. Encouragingly, the early signs show promise, though it’s hard to blame incredulous residents who’ve seen their fair share of false starts. Progress, while slow, is appearing in pockets. Apartment buildings and brick-and-mortar businesses have started to pop up here and there. But the most surprising development is IBM expanding its manufacturing footprint, with roughly 3,000 workers at its Poughkeepsie campus building mainframes and computer chips. With the help of a world-class oncology department at Vassar Brothers Medical Center (Dyson Center) and two highly rated liberal arts schools in Marist and Vassar College, this surging town has a lot to offer professionals of all ages. Tired of watching other towns around them find their way, the people of Poughkeepsie are ready for a rebound. There’s a vibrant energy here, not to mention a lot of pride as a municipality filled with familiar, neighborly faces. But don’t let its small-town charm fool you. At twice the size of Kingston and Beacon and slightly larger than Newburgh, Poughkeepsie is a regional economic powerhouse. It also doesn’t hurt that it’s the geographic heart of the Hudson Valley and the last stop on the Metro-North’s Hudson Line. You can see its potential when walking down buzzy Academy Street, with its assortment of neighborhood bars, bakeries, pizza parlors and barbecue joints. It’s at these watering holes where locals rub shoulders with visitors, and where the idea of revitalization without gentrification is taking root. “From an outsider’s perspective, they might look at the city and think revitalization here is happening slower or it’s not really taking off,” says Menist, who has a background as an urban planner with the nonprofit Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress. “But I would say that’s

a very uninformed view. We’ve worked hard to ensure the policies we’ve put in place allow development without displacement, so at the end of the day, we don’t have a brand-new city with brand-new people.” Downtown revitalization always starts someplace exactly like 40 Cannon, a mixed-use retail and residential building a block away from Main Street. When developers Jim and Gina Sullivan purchased the property from its previous owner in 2013, the brick building had been sitting vacant for a couple years after being gutted by ﬁre. The scope of the project rivaled anything the husband-and-wife duo had previously undertaken. Jim, a licensed plumber and electrician, was used to building things with his hands, so he took a calculated risk. Before breaking ground, they reached out to workforce development programs in the area to employ about 60 local workers. These able bodied individuals came from all different kinds of backgrounds. Some had zero construction experience and came right out of jail or rehab. “And we put them through this program where they’d work with journeymen as apprentices,” says Jim. Upskilling these workers took time, delaying the project by about eight months. But the results were worth it. While a few didn’t stick around to see it through completion, “others went on to hold steady jobs in the trades that they learned, which was really rewarding.”

ll a g n i l l a C e ers!

n” i a t n u o “M

sletters om/new .c ia d e m untains to themo

walk this way Much of Poughkeepsie is best appreciated on foot with the city’s famed Walkway Over The Hudson and (inset) Vassar College’s campus with its classic Gothic architecture serving as gorgeous examples.

Today, the 49-unit apartment building on the site of the iconic Kings Court Hotel encompasses a brewery, a café, a standalone art gallery and ten dedicated affordable units for lower-income workers. And it’s far from a one-off idea. The Sullivans are onto their fourth residential development on Cannon Street alone. “I can’t say we had plans to buy the block, but it kind of happened like that,” adds Jim. Developers like the Sullivans are starting to put a dent in the 537 vacant or abandoned buildings around Poughkeepsie, and businessowners are taking notice. “Within two to five years you won’t recognize this city based on the plans that I’ve seen,” says Jillian Grano, owner and co-founder of Canvas + Clothier. Marooned on a side street, this “micro-department store” encompasses two floors (and even boasts a café). It was important for the owners to focus on American-made home goods, accessories and clothing that’s practical and fashionable. While most of their sales are generated online, Grano’s hopeful the bet they’ve made on a physical location in Poughkeepsie will pay off. For that to happen, more shops and boutiques will need to move into the area. If they do, it might resemble a modern version of the Poughkeepsie Main Mall, a failed urban renewal project that was supposed to save the historic business district in the ’70s. Instead, thanks to other unfortunate policies at the time, it only hastened its demise. It’s hard to believe when walking downtown, but the Main Mall

was an outdoor shopping plaza connected by a pedestrian thoroughfare with rows of boutiques on either side. It looked practically European. Foot traffic in Poughkeepsie’s a far cry from those days, though you’re starting to see an uptick. The issue remains how fractured the city’s become. The Walkway Over the Hudson—a former railroad bridge turned resplendent bike trail offering unrivaled views of the surrounding area—is a big draw for locals and tourists alike. And yet it’s isolated, with only a few storefronts nearby to take advantage of the steady influx of bikers, joggers and people out enjoying a stroll. The inverse holds true for the Hudson River waterfront, an outrageously underutilized district that’s never gotten much traction. Plagued by questionable policies of years past, the most disastrous continues to be the “Arterial,” a three-lane, one-way highway that pinches off and restricts large parts of downtown. To alleviate traffic at any cost, it almost does its job too well: rerouting drivers to the stores and outlets along Route 9 and discouraging foot traffic in what should be a very walkable city. “The more locals we have dining out and walking around the city, the better for everybody,” says Chef Brandon Walker, owner of Essie’s Restaurant. (It also happens to be one of the first places we ever patronized as a couple in Poughkeepsie.) Walker, a finalist on the Food Network show Chopped, is originally from Brooklyn. He became smitten with the area after graduating from the Culinary Institute

Unique web content, special event invites and more of what you need to know before know you need to know it.

THE MOUNTAINS NEWSLETTER Weekly. Free. Inbox.

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

of America (CIA) in the bucolic Hyde Park. “I thought New York was just the five boroughs,” he says with a smile. “I had no idea it had farms, because you just don’t see that part growing up in New York City.” He founded Essie’s, named after his beloved grandmother, seven years ago and has witnessed a lot of change in that time— including other ambitious CIA graduates setting up their own eateries in Poughkeepsie. “These other restaurateurs are trying to provide a great service and experience and it’s important that everybody thrives,” he notes. “But in order to do that, we have to do things ethically and equitably.” Two blocks away, the Fall Kill Creek winds through backyards and under streets before emptying out into the Hudson River. Imposing wrought-iron fences and cracked concrete walls are the canal’s only distinguishing features. So, it’s entirely predictable that people will stroll right past it along the sidewalk, never giving it a second thought. It’s an unfortunate coda for a waterway that once powered Poughkeepsie’s booming manufacturing

industry. Sadly, the same could be said for the people living on the north side of the city, who are primarily Black and of lower socioeconomic status. Like the Fall Kill, their plight has been largely forgotten or ignored. Yvonne Flowers, a 57-year-old lifelong Poughkeepsie resident—and quite recently elected mayor—knows the struggle all too well. As a child, she grew up in public housing until the age of 15, first at the Smith Street Projects and then the Dr. Martin Luther King Gardens. A graduate of the Poughkeepsie City School District and Dutchess Community College with a degree in accounting, she never saw herself becoming involved in politics. It was her late father, John M. Flowers—a local hero

and Vietnam War veteran—who encouraged her to run for Fifth Ward Councilmember, a position she held for eight years. Flowers now holds the distinction of being the first Black mayor elected in Poughkeepsie. She tells me it’s not really something she thinks about. However, she understands the excitement around having a leader who’s been in the trenches; one who doesn’t cast a blind eye to what the Black and Brown communities are going through. “In terms of revitalization, the trend is going in the right direction,” she says after I ask her thoughts on it. “But at the same time, there are investors coming into the city that are being driven by profit margins alone.” She goes on to provide two examples—one a longtime resident; another a nearly threedecade salon owner—who were displaced after developers came in, conducted sweeping renovations—and then jacked up the rents. As a homeowner and landlord herself, she’s very sensitive to their plight. Flowers plans on fighting back against these predatory practices by imposing stabilized rents, while also developing

blank canvas At what may be Poughkeepsie’s most chic and surprising boutique, Canvas + Clothier, the retailer features clothing made in the US; (opposite) the city’s bustling train station.

the waterfront to boost tourism. Catering to multiple socioeconomic demographics requires a delicate balancing act. Finding the harmonious chord between enacting enough affordable housing and market-value apartments, sometimes on the same street, is unbelievably difficult. But if it pays off, it changes the future of this once-great city in search of a splashy second act. On an unseasonably warm fall afternoon, I trade the jaw-dropping views of Zeus Brewing Company’s rooftop deck for the stylish facades of Academy Street. In tow are my sister and brother-in-law, who compare the city to Pittsfield, MA, with its postindustrial charm (the manufacturing town in the Berkshires is where they’ve just bought a home).

We stop into Hudson & Packard, the internationally award-winning Detroitstyle pizza place founded by Charlie Webb, an inked-up US Army veteran and CIA graduate. The day before, his neighbor, the cocktail bar Goodnight Kenny, just celebrated their first anniversary with a block party drawing a big nocturnal crowd. A storefront over is The Academy, part-grocery, restaurant, bar, bakery, event and co-working space—with apartments up above. It’s lunchtime, nowhere near as busy as the dinner rush, which Webb says can be “wall-to-wall.” We’re led into the basement,

where Brandon Bryant, another tatted-up former service member, gives us a run-through of the baking process like a sommelier reveling in the taste of a vintage bottle of vino. “Detroit-style pizza has good crumb,” he says with an undisguisable glint in his eye. “This looks like a brick but it’s light as a feather.” When he started working for Hudson & Packard, it’d just opened three years ago, but the footprint wasn’t big enough to sit most of their diners. When they were able to expand just a little, the business really experienced explosive growth. It’s no surprise, considering the large, long-vacant buildings being snatched up and revitalized all around them. “It was super small, and now it’s the exact opposite,” says Bryant. Isn’t it funny how change tends to happen slowly, and then all at once? Get ready for Poughkeepsie, people! The Queen City’s gettin’ all gussied up for yet another dance.

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

gorgeous

Pretty Tough In The CaTskills Men’s grooming titan CHRIS SALGARDO’s journey from Kiehl’s to Atwater has been epic. Now, he’s ready for more. BY MARCO MEDRANO

Win te r 2024 | Th e Hol i d ay s & B eyond

hether you’re incessantly following skincare trends (who isn’t?), flipping through men’s fashion magazines (they still exist, yes?) or scrolling through your socials full of movers and shakers, I know you’ve seen Chris Salgardo somewhere. I mean, the beauty industry A-lister makes himself noticed. Salgardo’s public persona—bearded, burly, playful, larger-than-life—belies how often he seems to downplay his formidable business chops. Honestly, who among us could credibly go from a biker convention to the boardroom…in the same outfit? Exactly. Salgardo’s long and public tenure as CEO of megabrand Kiehl’s in many ways helped to shape much of how the men’s grooming market is perceived today. With his patented entertaining, force-of-nature insistence, Salgardo showed tough guys how to care for their face confidently and efficiently at any age. Salgardo spoke to men who looked like him in a clear voice to counter the endless cacophony of contradictory (mis)information the beauty industry invariably is known for. A resident of the Hudson Valley/Catskills for more than a decade, the grooming executive says his environment has had a profound influence in developing his latest and most personal venture, Atwater, his new premium skincare brand for men. The handsome skincare brand contains all the good stuff and none of the bad stuff—really. And at a price his competition sells for twice or three times more. But who’s the real Chris Salgardo? Is he the couture suit-wearing dandy on the Chanel fashion show red carpet? Or is he the biker-booted leather-clad stud on a motorcycle ride fundraiser for amfAR? Or the T-shirt-and-jeans on weekends dude chillin’-and-grillin’ with his Catskills friends? Of course he’s all those things which tracks perfectly with his early career days on a retail floor working behind a beauty counter. Let’s see what the man of the hour is up to. How different has your work life been from Kiehl’s to Atwater? Oh, it’s been a significant shift in my dayto-day work life. While I cherished my 18 years at Kiehl’s, Atwater has introduced

me to a new dimension of responsibilities. As an entrepreneur at heart, the workload is allencompassing, and I find myself handling nearly every aspect independently. In contrast, at Kiehl’s, I had the support of an expert team and the backing of our parent company, L’Oréal. The opportunity to build a brand on my own terms is something I’m profoundly grateful for.

products, but there remains a stigma around men using such products, particularly in public settings like department stores. We must continue breaking down the stereotype that skincare is either egotistical or exclusively for women. Men need to know that we acknowledge their desire to take care of themselves, and it’s a commendable choice.

While some men have (quietly) used women’s Does living in the skincare for decades, Catskills influence what’s it like to develop your business much? female fans for your The environment in male-focused brand? the Hudson Valley and Developing a female fan Catskills has a profound base for our male-focused influence on my business. brand was something I Although I’ve lived here anticipated. Women often mansplain “Men often ask for a decade, I may not appreciate a compelling about the correct usage of our have fully appreciated the founder’s story, and since products, seeking assurance that they’re following the regimen natural beauty and slower I played a central role in correctly,” Salgardo says. pace of life until now. building Atwater, they Having the influence of resonate with the brand’s nature and a more tranquil setting allows me to authenticity. Additionally, women tend to be focus intensely on creating products that can be more informed about skincare ingredients, the best they can possibly be. making them more receptive to our products. Currently, 16 percent of our clients are women, If you could change one aspect of living and this number is steadily increasing. here, what would that be? It would undoubtedly be the availability of What’s the most frequent skincare services. Many residents, including those question you always seem to get? who have moved here from the city, miss the Well, that varies depending on the audience. convenience of urban amenities—you know, Men often ask about the correct usage of our dry cleaners, tailors, diverse food options and products, seeking assurance that they’re following comprehensive healthcare services. Personally, I the regimen correctly. On the other hand, women still find myself traveling to the city for some of frequently inquire if our products are suitable for these essentials when I wish they were readily them as well, and the answer is a resounding ‘yes.’ available locally. Did you think we’d reach a time when Recently, a media titan told me her men’s nail polish would be the norm? teenage boys break into her skincare The acceptance of men’s nail lacquer has been daily. Do you think men are more a long time coming, and I’ve always believed informed about skincare than they lead in its potential. My fascination with it dates on? Or, rather, do you think men are as to my first rock concert when I was all of 16. simplistic about their skin regimens as Nail products, particularly lacquer, have been a the industry makes them out to be? significant success for us, indicating that men When it comes to men’s skincare, I believe there’s have a growing interest in various grooming still work to be done. The younger generation categories. It’s an exciting evolution and a is becoming more comfortable with skincare testament to changing norms and attitudes.

EDITH W H A RTON’S HOME

Book online at EdithWharton.org Lenox, MA • 413-551-5111

Learn more and become a member today! FRIENDSOFCLERMONT.ORG 87 CLERMONT AVE. | GERMANTOWN, NY

halfway there

I T H E

M O U N T A I N S

t’s an imposing site. Whenever I take the train from Grand Central to visit friends north of New York City, I see the striking architecture situated on the west side of the Hudson River—an assortment of Victorian, Gothic and Tudor styles, its jagged arches, turrets and battlements the fruit of a hallowed devotion. I’m speaking about the picturesque campus of the United States Military Academy in Orange County. Established in 1802 by President Thomas Jefferson, West Point has been the alma mater of countless military leaders who’ve left an indelible mark in American history. I’ve always had an affinity with the military having grown up a military brat—both my father and oldest brother retired as Air Force colonels, while my godfather and namesake, an Air Force major general, was the executive assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs when I was born. An uncle served in the Army, however. Robert, called “Bobby,” was my mother’s only sibling, two years older, named after his father, the unique Army veteran among an Air Force ménage. Bobby was the impetus for my detour to see friends and visit West Point where he had graduated in 1943. Exploring West Point, one must begin by visiting its showcase—the West Point Museum, in Olmsted Hall, open to the public. Passing through its grand entrance, this oldest of federal museums expands on West Point’s history and its illustrious

graduates—the conflicting loyalties represented by its former superintendent Robert E. Lee, future presidents Ulysses S. Grant and Dwight D. Eisenhower and Gulf War commander Norman Schwarzkopf are among its alumni. There are more than 60,000 artifacts among its four floors and six galleries, a history of warfare ranging from Stone Age clubs and ancient Egyptian weaponry to signature arms—Napoleon’s sword!—as well as defenses used in modern US wars—artillery pieces, a World War I tank, an eye-opening full-sized replica of the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan and myriad automatic firearms. Battle

dioramas are intertwined with historically important paintings and sculptures that lend a patient and artistic thoroughness. One particular display gave me pause—the uniforms worn through the years by cadets, a poignant reminder of the thousands of young men and, eventually, women who spent characterbuilding years at West Point marking their relationship in the destiny of the nation. I thought of my uncle—how Bobby grew up in rural Tennessee and made his way to a congressional appointment at West Point. After graduating, having already received his pilot’s wings, Bobby was soon transferred to a combat unit overseas—the 358th Fighter Group—which played a critical role in the liberation of France in World War II. Returning from a mission on New Year’s Eve, 1943, Bobby’s P-47 fighter aircraft ran out of fuel and crashed landed in Southern England. He survived, but with near fatal injuries, returning to the US for treatment. After a lengthy hospitalization, remarkably, Bobby returned to full flying status. He’d made it through the war after all. Then, on August 1, 1947, on the day President Harry Truman established Air Force Day (the precursor to our current Armed Forces Day), honoring “the personnel of the victorious Army Air Forces,” during a commemorative air show in Jamaica, flying the only fighter in the show, Bobby completed the second roll of his aircraft. His

The War hero I Never KNeW MY EVOCATIVE DETOUR TO WEST POINT AND ITS STORIED MILITARY MUSEUM.

BY JAMES LONG Win te r 2024 | Th e Hol i d ay s & B eyond

P-47 lost speed, stalled and crashed. Captain Robert H. Fautt, Jr., 29, was killed instantly. Museums are places we visit to connect—with history, with art and culture, with the stories and shared experiences of humankind. The West Point Museum—and its compelling adjacent Visitors Center—are exemplary in that regard with fascinating artifacts. I’d highly recommend a visit. Museums are also a repository for memories, a place for reflection, a break from a breakneck world, allowing us to explore deeper questions and more soulful meanings. As I left the West Point Museum, while walking along the campus edge and its spectacular views overlooking the Hudson River, I thought of the uncle I never knew— how handsome Bobby must have looked in his cadet uniform, picked on as a “plebe,” returning the favor as a “firstie.” I pictured him with his best buddies, secreting away for a night in wartime Manhattan, with other uniformed men and women in the streets, the same streets where I witness US Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard service members during NYC’s legendary “Fleet Week.” I couldn’t help negotiating in my mind, however, what it was all for. From all the early

knight at the museum The West Point Museum is a huge draw for military and history buffs; (opposite) Captain Robert “Bobby” H. Fautt, Jr., my mother’s only sibling, a West Point graduate, was in the 358th Fighter Group during World War II.

and modern weapons of war I’d just seen, it’s impossible to shy away from the complexities a war museum brings to bear. Indeed, I’ve visited the Vietnam Military History Museum, in Hanoi, and more than a few captured American artifacts on display present quite a dispiriting perspective. “We learn that the soul of fate is the soul of us,” wrote Ralph Waldo Emerson. “All the toys that infatuate men and which they play for…All the drums and rattles by which men are made willing to have their heads broke… are led out solemnly every morning to parade.” As I resumed my journey on the train to see friends, looking again at West Point from across the Hudson, I saw another parade, those of its current class of cadets drilling in formation on its grounds. And I felt grateful.

SEASON 2023! OF LO

(Shows that Steal Your Heart)

The cast of Much Ado About Nothing, 2022. Photo by Nile Scott Studios.

70 Kemble Street Lenox, MA 01240

Tickets Available at 413.637.3353

SHAKESPEARE.ORG

SPONSORED CONTENT

Your First Stop for Holiday Memories When we turn the corner from Thanksgiving toward Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Year celebrations, the focus shifts once again to home decorating. Whether you go festive or cozy, Williams is your holiday partner.

s a family-run and community-focused local retailer, Williams Lumber & Home Centers is at the heart of your family’s and friends’ memory-making. All of the moments central to holiday traditions—picking the perfect fresh tree, finding that just-right ornament, choosing the ideal lights—Williams makes them memorable with an in-store experience that kicks off your month-long holiday season.

Visit one of our locations or williamslumber.com.

Visit the Williams Rhinebeck location and dive into the holiday spirit with us. Feed your, and your kids’, holiday spirit with a visit to our antique train display, browse the largest selection of ornaments in the Hudson Valley, hunt for the perfect live Fraser or Balsam tree, and immerse yourself in endless lights, garlands, wreaths, artificial trees, home decorations and gifts.

The best of the season for every mountaineer in your life.

ADVERTISERS Ash Smoke, Organic Pre-Rolled Cones (12ct) $11

Gi f t G u

Yew Yew, Wavy Mini Bong in Amber $140

ide

Gotham Knit Cap in Timber $25

Tsubota Pearl, Hard Edge Lighter in Brown Marble Tortoise $46 Eau Claire Resin, Jewel Roach Clips $40 each

Bodha, Vibration Therapeutic Perfume in Plants $120

Tetra, Portal Lighter in Navy $45

Gotham Goods, Scented Candle in My Sweet Jane $65 Pax, Pax Plus in Sage & Elderberry $250 each

Porter Yoshida & Co., Tanker Bag in Sage Green $294

Give the Gift of Gotham For the best selection of cannabis inspired gifts for everyone on your list visit Gotham. Explore an expertly curated selection of luxuries inspired by everyone’s favorite ﬂower, plus, their newly launched line of CBD wellness products, Gotham Goods. Available online at gotham.nyc or at Gotham’s ﬂagship location in NYC and the newest Gotham outpost in Hudson, New York. gotham.nyc I 3 East Third Street New York, NY 10003 I (646) 217-4544 highinhudson.com I 60 South Front Street Hudson, NY 12534

LikeMindedObjects, Mashup Shirt $260. Lite Year, Work Jacket in Charcoal Check $650. Leret Leret, Cashmere Crewneck No. 21, $475.

ADVERTISERS

Gestalt Haus

The Pass Hash Rosin Gummies

If you have a design lover in your life, finding the perfect gift that celebrates their passion for aesthetics and creativity can be a delightful journey. Gestalt Haus offers a stylishly curated collection of homewares for the design devotee, including well-curated gift guides offering a treasure trove of ideas to help you uncover thoughtful and unique presents. Emma Fire Tool Companion Set $795 / Emma Wood Basket $695

Forget less is more. The Pass’ Hash Rosin Gummies combine the benefits of solventless, full-spectrum hash rosin with mouth-watering cherry and blueberry to make a truly unique edible experience. These full-spectrum hash rosin gummies provide a well-rounded high that will satisfy your mind, body and taste buds. Starting at $22.50

gestalt-haus.com 614 Warren Street, Hudson, NY 12529 (646) 248-6799

thepass.co 1375 N. Main Street, Sheffield, MA 01257 (413) 644-6892

ide

Photo: Shannon Greer

Gi f t G u

Mikel Hunter

Artsee Hudson

Proud to debut this amazing collaboration JCRT + SCOOTER LAFORGE. Sustainable production of inspirational mash up of JCRT plaids with Scooter’s unique street art…iconic motifs. All show stoppers this holiday season. Red Flower Plaid Chore Coat $350 / Reverse Tuxedo Trouser $250 B. May Safari Bags: Soft Zip Tote $1250 / Mini Soft Zip $1050 / Hobo Bag $1250

Artsee Hudson is an eyewear boutique/art gallery where you will be surrounded in a unique, warm, and calming atmosphere. Artsee has designs from around the world; including these replicas of Audrey Hepburn’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and those made famous by Michael Caine from Oliver Goldsmith London. $500 each

mikelhunter.com 533 Warren Street, Hudson, NY 12534 @mikel_hunter

artseehudson.com 529 Warren Street, Hudson, NY 12534 (212) 227-2400

Photo: Shannon Greer

ADVERTISERS

Silver Solutions MedSpa

Mikel Hunter

Voted Best of the Berkshires for state-of-the art medical aesthetic treatments, Botox, dermal ﬁllers, laser to address skin pigmentation, tone and texture, laser hair removal, and custom facials. Founded by visionary Nina Silver, RN. Treatments performed by expert Nurse Practitioners, Registered Nurses, Certiﬁed Medical Aestheticians and Laser Technicians. Holiday Gift Cards available (10% online discount) $250–1,000

The Luxurious cashmere Boyfriend Sweater from Printed Artwork is a must this Holiday Season. This Italian Brand respectfully pays royalties for the use of prominent artistic properties to print on inspired garments. Pictured on Else & Adrien in Turtleneck and Crewneck Sweaters featuring works by famed Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. $1200/$1100

silversolutionsmedspa.com 75 North Street Pittsﬁeld, MA 01201 (413) 441-8453

mikelhunter.com 533 Warren Street, Hudson , NY 12534 @mikel_hunter

Gi f t G u

ide

The Red Lion Inn From Our Inn to Your Living Room: The Red Lion Inn’s Coffee-Table Book 250 years of American history and ﬁve generations of family stewardship are celebrated in this newly published, 112-page coffee table book, The Red Lion Inn, the story of a treasured national landmark. Available for purchase at the front desk. First Edition: $75 redlioninn.com 30 Main Street, Stockbridge MA 01262 (413) 298-5545

It’s Cooler in The Mountains

The Mountains gear is the perfect holiday gift for all of your mountaineers. Cool and cozy. Rep your love for the Catskills, Berkshires and Hudson Valley. Gift one to a friend or family…and pick one up for yourself. Purchase two items and take 20% off. Plus free shipping for the holidays! Hoodie $60 / Tote Bag $25 / W e Beanie $30 themountainsmedia.myshopify.com

ADVERTISERS

Windham Mountain Club

Annie Selke

Nestled in the heart of the picturesque Catskill Mountains, Windham Mountain Club is poised to provide an unforgettable winter experience for skiing and snowboarding enthusiasts of all levels with enhanced snowmaking, upgraded lifts and a reimagined culinary program. Create lasting memories with friends and family for generations to come.

Looking for the perfect gift? Pop into the Annie Selke store in Lenox for fabulous options, like this bestselling Sheepy Fleece Robe. Designed with a smart shawl color, shirttail hem, and chic patch pockets, it’s available in an array of gorgeous colors. Super soft and plush, it’s a luxurious gift to give—or receive! $94 each

windhammountainclub.com 19 Resort Drive, Windham, NY 12496 (800) 754-9463

annieselke.com 36 Main Street, Lenox, MA 01254 (413) 551-7624

Gi f t G u

ide

Farnsworth Fine Cannabis Hand-blown in Italy by Italian artisans, the Nebula borosilicate bong collection are the rarest of glassware available anywhere. A simmer and splash of pink, green, orange, and blue hues. Each piece is one-of-a-kind. Fully functional as a smoking device or art piece. $1,250 each

Whether you love these mountains for the outdoor adrenaline or the culture, art, music and food, The Mountains will entertain and guide you to the fun and beauty right in your backyard.

farnsworthﬁnecannabis.com (413) 717-4102 126 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA 01230

Holiday BOGO! 33% off on 2nd 1-Year Subscription One for you $36 / 1 for a friend $24 themountainsmedia.com/subscriptions

Get The Mountains at Home

mode

ac tivate, with style

heli smart HeliFlite operates the single largest selection of twin-engine, dual-pilot helicopters on the East Coast that fly exclusively within a 250-mile radius of New York City, which includes private luxury service to the Hudson Valley and the Catskills.

mode| still hungry Shadow 66

nice to meat you End Cut can hold its own as a steak house thanks to prime cuts, cooked as ordered, with perfect crust and no culinary curveballs.

What’s Not On The Menu

Getting the food right is key, but it’s not everything. How did Shadow 66, End Cut and The Elm fare? By Hal Rubenstein

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

know people mean it as a compliment, so I let the dubious phrase go by with a demure thank you, but when someone says, “I really enjoy the way you write about food,” it takes Simone Bilesian stick-the-landing willpower not to scrunch my zygomaticus minor muscles into a post-lemon sucking grimace. If the contents on my served plate were all that mattered, my roster of favorite places to dine would triple in length. But when you’re writing about the joys of going out to eat—which is how I regard my four-decade-long fascination—there are other components to forming judgment that can’t be tasted with a knife and fork. Understanding a chef’s mission, if the chef has one, and sharing a chef’s passion, if the chef radiates any, in creating both a menu and the dining experience surrounding your meal are equally essential when spending a few hours in his/her/their charge. But as vital as these two responsibilities are, we rarely get to speak directly to kitchen maestros for much more than a few shared pleasantries as they amble over to your table during their cursory nightly walk through the dining room. The person you will converse with, hopefully learn from, and, if all goes well, trust next time out, is your server. That’s why, even more than learning to balance a table of four’s dinner entrées on one arm (now as uncommon as plate-spinning), the paramount task of anyone working the floor is to make you feel appreciated, as if your presence in the room tonight makes a difference. It’s an easier task to master than plate spinning, which is good news, since failure to do so causes more lasting damage than broken china. Win te r 2024 | The Hol i d ay s & B eyond

Seventeen years ago, long before Martha Stewart began chronicling her antiquing along Warren Street, or The Maker Hotel embarked on hosting slavishly devoted Vogue readers to Amtrak it up to Hudson, there was Astrid Jehanno, staking her claim on 6th Street with an outpost of her West Village café, Le Gamin. Astrid’s now a legend up here, due to her steadfast commitment to quality, her playful rapport with regulars, the Emma Stone-like rasp in her sexy alto voice and the deadly Thanos-like glare that emanates from her large blue eyes when asked something stupid like “How come you don’t have Wi-Fi?” (“Try having a conversation” is her answer, posted on a sandwich board in the street) or “Can I get an onion soup with the cheese on the side?” I apologize in advance for admitting to getting off on Astrid’s handling of the increasing raft of entitled day trippers. Oh, they’re so easily scared, often quivering once they discover that the customer isn’t always right. Astrid is. Let them call her an acquired taste. I find her delicious. And I’m not alone, since so many have waited in eager anticipation for her chef/ husband Patrick to open his dream project, Shadow 66. Now that the doors are open, it’s immediately apparent what took him so long (three years including a break for COVID). No restaurant I can think of looks like this. With its dark wood walls, polished concrete floor, retro signage all in red, expansive wraparound bar (Jehanno built everything), flattering lighting and two gleaming vintage Citroëns dominating the space, Shadow 66 could be mistaken for the world’s most rustically elegant garage with a liquor license. (Whether you like whiskey or not, order an Inspection. Gin lovers will savor a Route 66). And if you’re looking for the coolest space in the Hudson Valley to throw a party for a few dozen people, you cannot best the diner, complete with soda fountain that Jehanno found, restored and affixed to the far license to thrive Shadow 66 could be the world’s most rustically elegant garage with a liquor license.

side of the restaurant. Richie Cunningham never hung out anywhere this swell. The best news is that Patrick Jehanno is as adept in the kitchen as he is on a scaffold and offers one of the only menus in Columbia County serving French bistro cuisine. Jehanno’s father was a chef, and after benefiting from his tutelage, apprenticed under Michel Guérard, one of the first proponents of nouvelle cuisine, which eschewed the rich sauces and densely layered preparation of classic French cuisine in favor of lighter sauces, shorter cooking times, local produce, smaller portions, brighter presentation. So, if you still harbor any hesitation about French food because of the calorie count (for the record, an 8oz portion of veal parmigiana is 500 calories), let it go, come here and enjoy a nearly flawless Gallic menu. Here’s perfect onion soup laced How can you with caramelized pass up onions and topped by featherweight a sumptuous layer of Emmentale cheese blinis bearing (a version of Swiss). crème fraiche Ever tried snails? Of and caviar? course not, but if you love garlic, you must, because the escargots are seductively reeking of alium cloves and parsley butter. The beef tartare’s listed as an appetizer but it’s so cleanthe-plate substantial and satisfying, especially when scooped up with the accompanying French fries, it could sub as an entrée. The same goes for a hearty order of mussels, which can be prepared either Provençal, or—my choice—with a saffron base. I make damn fine crab cakes (adapted from Chef David Waltuck’s—former chef/owner of the sorely missed Chanterelle in NYC’s Tribeca—smart and doable cookbook, Staff Meals From Chanterelle) but Jehonna’s crab pillow is something slightly different and— hmph—slightly better. The lump crabmeat isn’t cooked but interwoven with smoked salmon and topped with a yummy sauce of mango and guacamole. And if you’re either flush with cash or dining on someone else’s dime, how can you pass up featherweight blinis bearing crème fraiche and caviar? No need to ask your savvy server which is his/her favorite entrée because there’s no disappointing option. All three beef variations would do a red banquette framed steak house proud. But at Shadow 66, there is, or rather there are, a few firsts among equals: a

Sunday—Thursday book 3 nights receive $100 restaurant credit Offer valid Valid 12/1/23–3/31/23 excluding holidays (Must mention ad for discount)

LITTLECATLODGE.COM (518) 660-8338 37 CATAMOUNT RD, HILLSDALE, NY 12529

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

crackling skinned, you-gotta-gnaw-thebone-it’s-so-good duck confit, the tender braised beef soused in red wine, a splendid veal blanquette, which was a special the night we were there, but may be on the menu by now since our table became a broken record imploring Astrid for its permanence, and the chef’s signature dish, a smashingly irresistible Moroccan Couscous Royal, boasting most of the vegetables you ever and never wanted, sharing a fragrant cumin broth boasting meatballs, merguez sausage, chicken and lamb. Be warned. Should you order the couscous and offer your tablemates a taste, your entrée will become a share plate. Each of the five dessert options is a quintessential version of a classic. The tarte Tatin is deservedly a staple at Le Gamin Country. But the café doesn’t offer the guilt inducing delight of these airy profiteroles with three different ice creams, or the ethereal, and for me, addictive pairing of peaked meringue with crème Anglaise known as Floating Island.

“This is my dream,” confessed Patrick Jehanno, “I’m sorry it took so long but I wanted to honor the cooking of my father, and my love of French cooking.” Oh, no! No apologies necessary. Because what could be better than someone who’s living their dream while letting us all share in his joy. And if that’s not wonderful enough, Shadow 66 doesn’t offer Wi-Fi either. So, if you’re from a generation that’s often challenged by face-to-face conversation, Astrid suggests you find something to talk about. If you’re stuck, start with the Citroëns parked in the corner. SHADOW 66 47 Old Post Rd Ghent, NY 12075 518.320.8566 open: Wednesday-Saturday, 5:30pm – 9pm

End Cut

I admit to a slight bias toward End Cut, since Chef/Owner Jordan Schor also considers his place the realization of a dream he had with his dad, and I adored mine, plus his

father worked at The Homowack Lodge in Wurtsboro, NY. I spent most of my childhood summers in the Catskills, and we’d always hitchhike to The Homowack because it was the only hotel in the Borscht Belt with a bowling alley and one of the first to have an indoor pool. And finally, the last time we were heading to End Cut, we hit a nasty swath of going nowhere traffic, guaranteeing our arrival minutes before the kitchen’s 9pm closing time. When I called Schor to inform and apologize, he replied, “Don’t worry. Focus on the road and you’ll get here when you get here. I’m not going anywhere, and it will be good to see you.” With a reply like that, we were tempted to drive along the shoulder. Instead, we walked in at 8:57pm. Schor greeted us at the front door with an easy smile and a sweeping hand to wipe away our apologies. What’s so cool about End Cut is that it’s local. All by itself along Route 9W, the space is not big, but it’s not cramped. The bar, which takes up about a third of the room, is directly opposite the entrance, allowing house regulars to see everyone

coming and going, so they may talk to you, but that’s what happens at a you’realways-welcome local spot, so don’t be a shit and ignore them. The staff, who know how to handle this, fit the room like a glove: comfortable, warm, unflappable and assuring. There’s live music on the weekends, but Schor has found the rare pianist who knows this isn’t his debut at Carnegie Hall. Consequently, his playing and pleasant baritone never dominate the room. In fact, his selection of Tin Pan Alley (look it up!) post-war (II in case you don’t know what that phrase usually refers to) standards is so appealing, diners sometimes get out of the chairs to dance for a bit cheek to cheek. If such sentimental spontaneity and the occasional, impromptu bar regular quip throw you, you’ve been in Manhattan for too long. It’s charming. Despite its name, you won’t find red banquettes here either. Nevertheless, End Cut can hold its own as a steak house thanks to prime cuts, cooked as ordered, with perfect crust and no culinary

KINGSTON 328 WALL STREET 12401

curveballs to diminish the indulgent succulence of those who crave ruby red beef. But there’s lots more temptation on the menu. Order the warm homemade dinner rolls and naan-like flatbread from nearby Hudson Valley Bakery along with a soothing drizzle of ricotta and honey. Meatballs arrive with the added surprise of bits of broccoli rabe and mozzarella. Huge, juicy, Homowack Lodge-worthy stuffed clams are so golden and so good (somehow New York-centric Jews believe there was some divine intervention that still keeps them from eating pork—except in Chinese restaurants—and milk with meat—except for cheeseburgers—but give them dispensation to eat seafood). Naturally, there are large, tasty shrimp encrusted in coconut, but the apricot chutney could use a dash of heat to tone down the sweetness. Crab cakes, however, tastes like crab instead of breading and a splash of sriracha gives the accompanying remoulade that desired kick of fire. Onion soup is exactly what you were hoping for. Clam chowder’s even better.

M AG I C H I L L MERCANTILE

T H E

yes, chef! Talented Chef Jordan Schor considers End Cut to be nothing less than a realization of a lifelong dream.

There’s a thick yet juicy double cut pork chop (ask if they would undercook to have a hint of pink), with a delish side mélange of potatoes, apples and bacon, and a superior rack of lamb which you should snare whenever it’s a special. Though I’m prone to steer clear of pasta in creamy meat-based sauces (see parenthetical in previous paragraph), the

HUDSON 307 WARREN STREET 12534

M O U N T A I N S

ricotta laced lamb ragu is solid. Equally pleasing is the chicken saltimbocca, which manages the neat trick of wrapping the breast in prosciutto and gruyere without smothering the flavor of the bird. The familiar steak house desserts: lemon tart, key lime tart, tarte Tatin, do the job nicely—but the standout, a hazelnut sundae so dangerously fine as to incite a spoon fight, is currently a special. End Cut is that rare restaurant that’s content to be what it is: an excellent neighborhood destination that, because it succeeds without overreaching, is well worth the trip. Chef Jordan should be very proud of that. I’m sure the spirit of his dad is proud of him. I wish I didn’t live an hour away from End Cut. However, if Chef Jordan would consider putting in a bowling alley and an indoor pool, I might consider moving closer.

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

END CUT 1746 Route 9W West Park, NY 845.384.6590 open: Thursday – Monday, 4pm-9pm Until 10pm Friday & Saturday

The Elm

emulsion laced with parsley oil, meaty If going out to eat was octopus brightened by a just about the food, I’d charged salsa verde and implore you to drop a kick of pepper coulis, everything, go on Resy burrata savvily paired as you jump in the with squash and a brisk car and drive to Great anchovy vinaigrette. Barrington, because Even King’s oysters there’s a new, extremely get special treatment gifted young chef in thanks to his pink town. Ian King is just out peppercorn mignonette. of CIA (Culinary Institute However, the marinated of America), but he’s one lobster salad may be terrific find. my favorite item on great expectations Chef Ian King has elevated The fare was good the menu. Not only is it The Elm’s food to being the when we first sampled sensational, but it’s also best in Great Barrington. The Elm right after its priced to be irresistible. opening, but King’s There are two recent arrival has elevated its food to the appealing pastas on the menu: a vibrant best in town. We greedily devoured just preparation for gnocchi using pistachio about everything on his menu: sweetly arugula pesto and chili oil, and the housecharred beets in taleggio counterbalanced made semolina strands in a rich medley of by crispy leeks, citrusy hake crudo locally harvested mushrooms in a sauce accompanied by an unexpectedly of cognac and ricotta. I don’t remember conversation-stopping buttermilk the last time I had scallops that made me

Protect what matters most

with SmartTech home security

y u m , f mily d bu i f wi cu m-d ig d cu i y

MA License 1483C | NYS License 12000323277

sit up and take notice. King’s flash seared rendition with pancetta and truffle oil almost made me ignore my guests. The seared duck breast is superb, the flaky halibut is surrounded by a lively piperade of onions and tomatoes. And though I’ve more than had my fill of kale salad, I’d readily order King’s version with roasted grapes and hazelnuts the next time I’m back. The question is: Am I going back? The first time we walked into the restaurant, there was no one to greet us. We just sort of stood there. Then something must have registered with the gentleman sitting at the bar who suddenly got up to seat us. How did you miss us? We were eight feet away. The next time we dined at The Elm, friends of that same gentleman—he’s either a manager or co-owner, though we never found out— showed up for a pre-party cocktail or two and he proceeded to sit with them for the rest of the evening. When we left, our waitress, whom we liked a lot, thanked us but we walked out without the guy or anyone else ever getting up to thank us

and wish us good night. The third time, though there was still one table left in the room, there was no one on the floor even after waiting. Unbelievable. Finally, to check on the veracity of this review, I often call and ask to speak with the chef to confirm preparation and ingredients, and as with the other reviews, to find out a little history about the chef as well as his goals and intent. I was especially eager to speak with Chef King because of my enthusiasm for his talent. During the week, I left three messages on The Elm’s voicemail. No call was returned. When I finally did get someone to pick up the phone on a Saturday, though I made clear my affiliation to this magazine and my delight at having enjoyed Chef King’s dishes, I was brusquely informed, by a voice that sounded a lot like the gentleman at the bar, that the chef could not speak to me until late the following week, though the restaurant’s closed on Monday and Tuesday and was then admonished for not having called sooner. Upon being informed of the three previous messages, the voice

hesitated for a moment, then said there was nothing he could do, wouldn’t take my number to pass the message on and hung up. Suddenly, I wasn’t hungry for that lobster salad anymore. And now I don’t know if I want to go back. Ponder this: How many restaurants do you go to, where the food’s just fine, but you frequent the place because you like the way you’re greeted and treated, plus the people who work there are happy to see you? Now how many restaurants do you go to where the food’s superb, but no one gives a crap whether you show up once a month or once a week. Exactly. I really do want to go back to The Elm. I just wish my being there mattered more, or at all. Makes me wish I had Astrid’s withering glare. Maybe the next time I go to there, I’ll bring Astrid with me. That’ll show ’em. THE ELM 20 Railroad Street Great Barrington, MA 413.644.0146 open: Wednesday–Friday, 5pm-10pm Saturday & Sunday, 11am-10pm

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

mode | thirsty

Champagne: Can we Talk? There are different ways wine can sparkle resulting in a luxurious concoction. By Anthony Giglio

Years later, my aunt told me it wasn’t actually Champagne, but rather Asti Spumante. And that got me thinking about how often we’re handed coupes or flutes of sparkling wine at parties and weddings and told it’s Champagne. What I’ve come to realize is that it’s almost never Champagne, usually because of costs, but also because few people understand the differences between Traditional Method (a.k.a. Champagne) and ‘Charmat method’ (a.k.a. Prosecco) sparkling wines. With the toasty holidays upon us, there’ll be lots of bubbly poured. Let’s break down which is which.

henever I’m asked how I got into writing about The Traditional Method: Where Champagne Got Its Name wine, spirits and cocktails Champagne is a region in France that lends professionally, I answer its name to sparkling wines made only in this truthfully: I took my first region. Everything else made like Champagne sip in utero! I even have (I’m getting to the how next) is either Crémant proof (no pun intended) if it’s from elsewhere in France, or Traditional by way of a Technicolor Super 8 home movie Method sparkling wine everywhere else. In from a New Year’s Eve party my grandparents Champagne, the holy threw in 1966. When the trinity of Chardonnay, clock strikes midnight, Pinot Noir and Pinot my mom, dressed in Meunier reign supreme. a ballgown, holding a The grapes are Parliament in one hand, handpicked and carefully and a Manhattan in the sorted to ensure only other, shouts “Happy New the best make the Year!” takes a gulp of her cut. Once the grapes cocktail, followed by a are pressed (typically puff of her cigarette, as without skin contact), the camera pulls back to the juice goes through reveal she’s eight months its first fermentation, pregnant with me. creating a still wine that You see, I grew up in an big gulp I gulped my very first is pale and clear—all Italian American family Champagne down quickly. It was a wine is born white until that had absolutely no prescient moment, the author says. skin touches juice, which discomfort with alcohol whatsoever. In fact, my is why most Champagnes siblings and cousins were given wine are white, even though they’re made with during Sunday lunches when we were kids, both red and white grapes. Got that? a tumbler of ice-cold red wine with a cream Next is the second fermentation. The still soda floater (to dilute it for us). We called it wine (a blend of several different barrels) is a Spaghetti Spritzer. However, a memory transferred into bottles, and a mixture of that stands out from my childhood is my sugar and yeast is added, causing a secondary first sip of Champagne. When I was seven fermentation in the bottle. As the yeast years old, my godfather got remarried and I consumes the sugar, it produces carbon was the ring bearer at his wedding, sporting dioxide, which has nowhere to escape, a black crushed velvet tuxedo with a white infusing the wine with effervescence. ruffled shirt and a giant black bowtie. As my The wine is left to rest on its lees, those dad was making the best man’s speech, we spent yeast cells, for an extended period, were poured coupes of Champagne, which often years, which imparts a complexity and was so sweet and delicious I gulped it down toasty, creamy, brioche-like character. This quickly. It was truly a prescient moment. lengthy aging process is where the wine’s

personality matures and evolves, resulting in a nuanced and refined expression of its terroir, or the place where it was made. Finally, before being released to the world, the wine undergoes a laborious process called riddling, where the bottles are gradually turned and tilted until the yeast collects in the neck. This yeast plug is then disgorged, and a ‘dosage’ of wine and sugar is added to balance the acidity and sweetness, creating the final blend. Net-net: Traditional Method sparkling wines are known for their elegance, complexity and ability to age gracefully.

The Charmat Method: The Party in a Bottle

The Charmat Method is often used in the production of Prosecco, Asti and many other sparkling wines, and it’s all about capturing the essence of freshness and fruitiness, preserving the primary fruit flavors of the grapes. The grapes used are typically different from those used in the Traditional Method. In the case of Prosecco, Glera grapes are picked for their youthful, zesty character. The primary fermentation produces a still wine, just like the Traditional Method, but that’s where the similarities end. Instead of undergoing a secondary fermentation in individual bottles, the wine is transferred to large tanks called autoclaves, and this is where the Charmat method gets its nickname as the “tank method.” In the autoclave, sugar and yeast are added to trigger the second fermentation, and the carbon dioxide that’s produced is trapped in the tank. The wine is kept under pressure, forcing the bubbles to dissolve into the liquid, creating a fresh and frothy effervescence. This method allows for a quicker and less labor-intensive process, resulting in wines that are meant to be enjoyed in their youth. Net-net: The wines are often bright, fruity and approachable, with a focus on freshness and simplicity. What they lack is the complexity and depth of Traditional Method wines, but they more than make up for it with their easy-drinking deliciousness. So, which method is better, you may ask? I liken this choice as between tangerines and grapefruits; they’re from the same family but very different. For me, Champagnes and their brethren are more for savoring every sip, while Prosecco gets the party started. Bottom line? This is the classic win-win situation. Cheers!

SPALIDAY IN THE HILLS Indulge in a day of wellness at Litchfield’s award-winning spa destination with this luxury spa package that features a 50Minute Cause+Medic CBD Massage, OSEA Organic Spa Facial, Spa Pedicure and Spa Manicure.

HOLIDAY

BAZAAR

NOVEMBER - DECEMBER The Holiday Bazaar offers an unparalleled shopping experience in a heated pop-up shop with gifts for everyone you love! Shop our new beauty counter with an extensive selection of popular indie brands, along with curated collections of fun wellness and festive lifestyle items. SALON | SPA | SKINCARE

litchfield-spa.com | 860-567-8575 407A Bantam Rd @thespaatlitchfieldhills

mode| jane’s lane

Squeals On Wheels Looking for truly great coffee in the Berkshires? Best Damn Espresso truck is here. | By Jane Larkworthy

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

mr coffee “Cycling through an espresso beverage menu with a barista that you trust can be extremely satisfying, interesting and informative,” says Highsmith, co-owner of Best Damn Espresso Truck.

nyone who grew up in the ’60s or ’70s suburbs likely remembers the thrill that the distant clanging of Good Humor truck bells elicited. Whenever I spot the bright red Best Damn Espresso coffee truck, I can feel the smile forming across my face. BDE is the brainchild of Asio Highsmith, whose masterful blends have earned him respect in the Berkshires and beyond. A trained

Become Yourself.

Waldorf Education in the Berkshires for Toddlers through Teens.

berkshirewaldorfschool.org

berkshirewaldorf.com

mixologist, Highsmith owned a sneaker shop in Brooklyn in the late Aughts. During daily visits to a neighborhood coffee shop, he noticed its owner’s inconsistencies in creating his Americano. When challenged about it, the owner offered to sell. Highsmith bit. “The attention to detail that goes into building a cocktail translated fluidly (for me) to the process of producing a tasty coffee beverage.” Meanwhile, Highsmith, his wife Angela and their two kids had begun spending summers in Columbia County thanks to the Harlem Valley Waldorf School program and their interest in the area quickly started to—pardon the pun—brew. “We didn’t know that we liked a slower paced lifestyle until we started to come to the Berkshires,” he tells me. “It really calmed our nerves and served to our better well-being.” In 2021 they made the region their home. A year later, he purchased the truck online (“It only had 7,000 miles on it”) and opened for business this past July. One sip will prove the name isn’t hyperbole,

and Highsmith says he chose the name to constantly challenge himself. “Cycling through an espresso beverage menu with a barista that you trust can be extremely satisfying, interesting and informative.” To find where he’ll be next, text BDE to 844.659.1203.

I Hope it Fits… A selection of gifts for a variety of recipients, all with a warm comfort theme.

Mountains Lover

Byredo Susanne Kaufmann Bregenzerwald Fragrance Oil is Austrian Alps, bottled. Earthy, green and with a mild hint of pine, its small roll-on size means they can take the mountains anywhere. $125 Byredo.com

Always Cold

Bleusalt’s Classic Sweatpant means never having to shiver again. Made of 95 percent TENCEL (sustainable, made from wood pulp), their softness is unmatchable, so best to buy yourself a pair as well. $142 Bleusalt.com

Body Skin Aficionado

Protéger Dermal Sérum is formulated with as many skin care ingredients as a face moisturizer. A pure joy to apply. If you really like your giftee, throw in one of their skinissue-specific boosters, too. $115 ProtegerDaily.com

Dinner Party Host Crafted Candle’s 30” tapers will add a sleek elegance to every table. And, at this height, they kind of last forever (burn time is 24 hours). $36 CraftedCandles.com Shower Lover 79 Luxe Polish is a blend of Himalayan salt, sugar and essential oils which, together, polish up the driest of skin, then impart a lingering that will likely encourage limb or clavicle exposure (maybe once the heater’s on). $58 HarveyNichols.com Cashmere Lover Can’t afford cashmere? Uniqlo’s 3D Knit Seamless Souffle Yarn Mock Neck Jumper is a darn near close second for a fraction of the price. $50 Uniqlo.com

scout house

apparel books home décor open Wednesday-Sunday 11-5

21 Elm Street Great Barrington, MA 01230 (413) 645 3455

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

mode| let ’s go! Instead, trust my foolproof list of Miami moments that are civilized, pop-culturally significant and, more importantly, will leave your hair Instagram-able.



RUBELL MUSEUM One of my favorite Miami spots, the Rubell Museum complex in the Allapattah ’hood houses both the renowned family-owned museum of contemporary art as well as acclaimed Spanish restaurant Leku, both open Wednesday through Sunday. Make this your first Miami outing so that you can get lots of content to post in case you want to make Day Two a beach day. 1100 Northwest 23rd Street, Miami; RubellMuseum.org

T H E

Doesn’t A Trip To Miami Sound Great Right Now? Get the insider scoop on all things 305 with our FAB resident expert.

M O U N T A I N S

By Tara Solomon

MIAMI DESIGN DISTRICT A buzzy, 18-square-block microcosm of fashion, art and trendy dining, Miami Design District is home to brands including Gucci, Chanel and Louis Vuitton and, thanks to developer Craig Robins’ largesse, two dozen important works of public art. 140 Northeast 39th Street, Miami; MiamiDesignDistrict.com

MIAMI BEACH BOTANICAL GARDEN A clandestine urban green space a few blocks north of Lincoln Road, this intimate three-acre oasis features flowering trees, orchids, native wading birds and a Japanese garden. If you find yourself in Miami during Art Basel (see below), it’s literally steps away from the main fair. 2000 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach; MBGarden.org

ART BASEL MIAMI BEACH Held in the first half of December, the annual threeday international contemporary art fair has been dubbed “Burning Man for the Rich.” The epicenter of activity is the Miami Beach Convention Center, where more than 200 top galleries present museum-quality works. Don’t miss sister exhibit Design Miami (located a block away), which showcases contemporary furniture and design. 1901 Convention Center Drive, Miami Beach; ArtBasel.com

hen you’re defrosting the driveway and pulling out the puffers (or whatever it is those of you who don’t live in Miami have to do every winter), it’s time to book your flight for the Sunshine State’s hottest (read: coolest) destination. Miami, for all its reputational hiccups, is truly The Most Fun City in the World. You can do anything in Miami and be anyone. No one cares. Bring that pink-and-orange neon tiki outfit your wife/husband/ caregiver has threatened to destroy– everyone’ll ask where you got it. I’ve lived in Miami Beach since the late 1980s (please don’t do the math) after Win te r 2024 | The Hol i d ay s & B eyond

graduating from University of Miami and going on to be The Miami Herald’s “Queen Of The Night” columnist. I arrived during South Beach’s gentrification when local artists and kindred-spirit bohemians created an underground scene—a movement, really—which was the catalyst to Miami’s emergence as the global destination it is today. OK, so you’re sold. You’ve gone on Expedia and booked your Miami getaway. What’s the plan once you arrive? Consider skipping the hotel’s concierge printouts (unless you want to spend 13 hours driving to the Everglades and back to ride in a swamp-buggy vehicle over murky water that’ll leave your hair so frizzy you’ll be unrecognizable in your own selfies).

FAENA MIAMI BEACH HOTEL Theatrical and eccentric with a leopard-themed living room lounge and Damien Hirst’s 24K goldplated Wooley Mammoth sculpture on the beachfront inside a ginormous glass vitrine, Faena Miami Beach is one big, perfect photo op. Featuring artwork by Jeff Koons and interiors by filmmaker Baz Luhrmann and set designer wife Catherine Martin, the historic 1948 hotel boasts two superb superchef restaurants: Los Fuegos by Francis Mallmann and Paul Qui’s Pao. 3201 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach; Faena.com

CMX BRICKELL CITY CENTRE If you need a break from sightseeing and noisy nightlife, escape to Brickell City Centre for

We ARE Reform Judaism Located in Albany, we are the largest synagogue in upstate NY. We love our families! Tuition free Religious School

Find Your Place. Find Your People. BethEmethAlbany.org

baz razzmatazz Faena Miami Beach features artwork by Jeff Koons and interiors by Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin. some retail therapy (more than 100 stores!) and the CMX Theater—Miami’s best fancy cinema with reclining lounge chairs and a wait staff you can summon for cocktails and food via a call button at your seat. If you’d rather not eat nachos in the dark, directly next door to the theater is hotspot Pubbelly Sushi. 701 South Miami Avenue, 4th floor, Miami; CMXCinemas.com.

BILTMORE HOTEL CORAL GABLES Elegant, imposing and otherworldly, the vampiress in me is inexplicably drawn to the historic 1926 Biltmore Hotel, where actor Johnny Weissmuller of Tarzan fame trained in the hotel’s 500,000-gallon pool in the 1930s, and where I, in real life, met the famed Art Deco artist Erté in the late 1980s. Go for the afternoon tea, served Wednesday through Sunday, 1 to 3pm. 1200 Anastasia Avenue, Coral Gables; BiltmoreHotel.com

BAL HARBOUR SHOPS The OG of luxe designer malls, the lushly landscaped outdoor shopping destination has all the big brands—plus a Books & Books outpost and exceptional animalfriendly restaurants including Makoto, Carpaccio and Le Zoo. 9700 Collins Avenue, Bal Harbour; BalHarbourShops.com

FOUR SEASONS HOTEL AT THE SURF CLUB Now home to a tony Four Seasons Hotel and superchef Thomas Keller’s Michelin-starred restaurant, the storied Surf Club originally opened as a private club on New Year’s Eve, 1930. Soak up the glamor with a well-chilled libation at the chic Champagne Bar, which has the best lighting of any hotel bar, anywhere. 9011 Collins Avenue, Surfside; FourSeasons.com

VIZCAYA MUSEUM AND GARDENS An architectural grande dame with 50 acres of manicured grounds and Italianate statuary, Vizcaya Museum and Gardens is the ideal place to “accidentally” get lost from the rest of your group (especially on those last days of vacay when Cousin Benny’s ringtone of KC and the Sunshine Band is working your last nerve). The former private estate of industrialist James Deering holds its Vizcaya Village every Sunday in season, with a farmers market and $5 al fresco yoga class from 9:30 to 10:30am Your higher self will thank you. 3251 South Miami Avenue, Miami; Vizcaya.org

NEW EXHIBITION

BETWEEN WORLDS: The Art and Design of

Leo Lionni November 18, 2023 - May 27, 2024 Discover Leo Lionni’s visionary creativity from his beloved children’s books, including Frederick, Swimmy, Pezzettino, & more, to his bold mid-century graphic design.

mode | the fix

Holidays? Yes. Clichés? No. T H E

M O U N T A I N S

decorating That yields unexpected results. By Robin Baron

he holidays are a time for festive décor, so I’m here to offer pro tips on how to decorate your home this winter without being cliché— creatively. These tips will also get you through the winter season, with just a few tweaks from December to March.

Fruits + Veggies One thing I love is

using seasonally appropriate fresh fruits and vegetables mixed in with flowers in my holiday décor. For Christmas, I go all out decorating with apples, artichokes, pomegranates and a dash of cinnamon sticks. It’s visually appealing and it fills the room with an inviting fragrance. Now, as

Valentine’s Day approaches, I leave the pomegranates and swap those apples for vibrant red flowers. This natural approach adds an unexpected freshness to your home.

Elegant Whites White

White creates a neutral canvas that makes any seasonal accents really stand out while still maintaining an elegant and cohesive look.

is a color I can’t get enough of, and it’s a key player in my holiday décor playbook. I love to incorporate white elements with candles, tablecloths and ornaments. I even spray paint my design elements white to create interesting vignettes. White creates a neutral canvas that makes any seasonal accents really stand out while maintaining an elegant and cohesive look. Plus, white exudes a sense of tranquility and purity that’s perfect for the holiday season. Enhance the white by incorporating some natural elements such as branches and pinecones for Christmas. For other holidays, mix in other fun elements that are specific to the season.

Get Personal Now,

here’s where I like to get my creativity on. To keep the holiday spirit alive without going overboard, I selectively incorporate holiday-specific items. For Christmas, I scatter holly and berries throughout my décor. These natural elements add a touch of rustic charm. As New Year’s Eve rolls around, I like to add a little bit of glam, so I replace the holly and berries with gold and silver elements and accessories… and of course, for Valentine’s Day, I feather in some reds and pinks. Here’s the ultimate tip: Create your own vision for the holidays. By incorporating fresh seasonal elements, thinking out of the box in terms of colors, and adding personal touches, create a décor that transcends the holidays and lasts throughout the year. Listen, it’s always about making your space uniquely your own—fearlessly.

hundred bucks

How to Spend $100: Tractor Supply Co.

supplies and gifts for all ages (and several species). Bring your cider and a donut, and relish laid-back shopping in person to a downhome playlist. Have fun and git ’er done!

Supplies just right for the season and beyond. By Robyn Perry Coe

hifting into gear for the holidays? I stopped into Tractor Supply Co., where their motto is: “Everything you need for Life Out Here…everything except tractors.” Celebrating their 85th anniversary this year, TSC is a supersized country store stocked with holiday

No.3:

CHOCOLATE NECCO WAFERS One for a friend, one for you, plus nostalgic Charleston Chews, Tootsie Rolls, Pecan Logs & Soft Peppermints. $1.99

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

No.4: DIY BOOKS

No.1:

PLAID SHIRTS Wrap yourself or someone you love in a winter staple. $19.99 No.2:

CARHARTT BEANIE A country classic in ﬂash orange from hunting season to brunch in Hudson. $19.99

Enjoy winter by learning, planning and making. $24.99 No.5:

GINGERBREAD HOUSE KIT Save it for a rainy (or snowy) day. $9.99 No.6: TOYS Someone on your

list begging for a horse? Also ﬁnd monster trucks, kids’ tools,

whistles, stuﬀed animals and (surprise) role-playing game guides for teens. $21.99

Experience Catskills Restoration

An all-inclusive hotel and spa experience. Discover more at hemlockneversink.com.

mode | DRIVE

Cheers! redmannequin.com 1 Main Street, Chatham, NY 12037 (518)-392-7148

The (Luxe) Air Up There HeliFlite’s helicopter service—made famous by Succession— means commuting will never be the same. | By Simon Murray

he beauty of living in the tri-state region is also its curse. Ask the lifers, or the middle management warriors shaken violently by a grating alarm who commute bleary eyed by rail or auto into a Midtown Manhattan office building every morning. Caffeine and cholesterol, acetaminophen and stress, we kill ourselves by degrees for access to the greatest city on the planet. No one’s impervious to the feeling. Even city dwellers can speak to the pain, packing the family into a car to escape dripping New York City summers for East Hampton or a bustling beach along the Jersey Shore. At one point or another, we’ve all been in bumper-to-bumper traffic, tilting our head back abject and defeated to gaze at the sky and think there must be a better way. Sometimes, if you look to the sky for supplication, the clouds will roll back to reveal an answer. And sometimes that answer is a 14,000-pound blacked-out chopper made famous by the worst family in TV history. Sometimes.

Every time the media titan Logan Roy and his squabbling brood of nepo-babies on the epically great show Succession needed to be somewhere fast, they piled into a twin engine, dual-piloted, executive cabin helicopter operated by HeliFlite. Which means you’re looking at one of the most expensive extras money can rent. As you might expect, a who’s who of celebrities, A-listers, C-suite executives and royalty also use these blisteringly fast helicopters, but I’m not at liberty to reveal their names thanks to the company’s airtight discretionary services. HeliFlite operates the largest selection of twin engine, dual pilot helicopters on the East Coast that fly exclusively within a 250-mile radius of NYC, which includes private luxury service to the Hudson Valley, Nantucket, the Jersey Shore and the Hamptons. And airstrips litter the area, so even if you don’t have one on your estate, you won’t have to look far for your traffic cheat code. “In the Hudson Valley, with its rugged terrain and diverse destinations, our helicopters, pilots and team hold the key to

m a i s o n fo n d é e e n 1 992 nyc

OUVERT TOUS LES JOURS 9AM - 8PM wine & cocktails Sharon Shopping Center

taking flight Anytime Logan Roy and his brood of nepo-babies on Succession needed to be somewhere fast, they piled into a helicopter operated by HeliFlite—the most expensive extras money can rent.

unlocking the region’s beauty and opportunities to travel seamlessly,” Kurt Carlson, CEO of HeliFlite tells me. “Whether you use our service for business or pleasure, we aim to provide an unforgettable and safe and secure experience.” If you’re like me, the thought of commuting via helicopter isn’t even in the stratosphere of possibilities. In fact, I always imagined that taking a private helicopter was reserved exclusively for actors like Brian Cox or a lucky tow-headed husband-seeker spouting romantic clichés on The Bachelor. But whether it’s an extra special date for a significant other or fun-packed family outing, HeliFlite might just be in the realm of the possible. That’s all thanks to models such as the AW139 that can accommodate at least nine people, and the company adding services to New York City’s unofficial sixth borough, Miami, with easy trips to the Bahamas. Those thoughts were echoed by an anonymous HeliFlite client who regularly uses the service to travel from his home near Hillsdale to Gotham. “The ease of traveling from the city for work and avoiding traffic has afforded me so much more family time. We’ve also flown with the kids and been able to explore the area and enjoy the amazing views—especially in autumn.” Brian Cox doesn’t get to have all the fun.

860.397.5382

10 gay st. Sharon, CT

@legaminstudioagraire

legamin.com

INSURANCE | REAL ESTATE

Peace of mind since 1871 (800) 422-8553 | wheelerandtaylor.com

Win te r 2024 | The Hol i d ay s & B eyond

Shakespeare & Co., Lenox, MA Ever wonder what became of Darcy’s and Bennet’s younger siblings? Playwrights Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon extrapolate with a “lively costumed reading.” Shakespeare.org

Georgiana And Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley

Athens, NY Carolers, horse-drawn trolleys, a riverside skating rink—all the fixings for a family-friendly outing. GreatNorthernCatskills.com

Annual Victorian Stroll

Berkshire Botanical Garden West Stockbridge, MA Fueled by campfire s’mores, stock up on designer wreaths, winter-blooming bulbs, terraria and curated crafts. BerkshireBotanical.org

Holiday Marketplace

8-10

MassMoCA North Adams, MA Expect to spot some rising talent at this workshop presentation of Maxine Lyle’s tribute to the percussive, full-body tradition of Black step dance.MassMoCA.org

Step Show: The Musical

The Egremont Barn South Egremont, MA The James Taylor protégé offers a blend of folk and contemporary blues—with a dash of activist messaging. TheEgremontBarn.com

Billy Keane And The Waking Dream

Hudson Valley Writers Center Sleepy Hollow, NY Acclaimed poet D. Nurske studies variegated approaches—from 18th-century Buddhist poet Issa to Joy Harjo—before setting participants loose on their own explorations. WritersCenter.org

Kripalu Institute, Stockbridge, MA Could your relationship use a touch-up before all the holiday stress? Harville Hendrix and Helen LaKelly Hunt promise to elicit “new levels of safety, empathy and appreciation.” Kripalu.org

Getting The Love You Want: A Couples Retreat

8-10

“Who Is ‘Nature’?”: A Generative Master Class

Kaatsbaan Cultural Park, Tivoli, NY Percussionist Everett Bradley, a selfprofessed “Christmas geek,” gathers a diverse, ultra-talented cast for his glorious “grooveangelicyulegasmicfunknsoulicious PAR-TAY.” Kaatsbaan.org

Levon Helm Studio, Woodstock, NY Catch the singer-songwriter’s regretful/resolute “This Year”—it may get you rethinking your New Year’s resolutions. LevonHelm.com

Emily King Solo Tour

Everett Bradley’s Holidelic

Norman Rockwell Museum, Lenox, MA The vaults have yielded a trove of rarely exhibited paintings and drawings by the Rembrandt of homey holiday scenes. NRM.org

Winter Wonderland

TO FEBRUARY 25

Sandy MacDonald

Reported by

SAVE THE DATE CULTURE VULTURES

FOR MORE GO TO themountainsmedia.com

Calendar

december

rsvp

Fisher Center Annandale-on-Hudson, NY Backed by Bard College’s graduate program orchestra and chorale, the celebrated mezzosoprano plumbs the emotional depths of Goethe’s poetry. FisherCenter.bard.edu

Stephanie Blythe Sings Brahms

february

Mohonk Mountain House New Paltz, NY While exploring the 1,325-acre resort’s panoply of facilities and activities, enjoy live music (the food of love!), wine tasting and a noncompulsory session of love-letter writing. Mohonk.com

Couples’ Romantic Getaway

Salisbury Winter Sports Association, Salisbury, CT Daredevils—including some future Olympians—have been tackling this precipitous ever-white chute since 1927. For comic relief, catch the Human Dog Sled Race. Jumpfest.org

Dance In Albany Series

The Egg, Albany The Egg is on a modern dance kick, hosting, successively, the Mark Morris Dance Group; the Ellen Sinopoli Dance Company; and Monica Bill Barnes and Company. TheEgg.org

Jumpfest 2024

Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center Great Barrington Not everyone’s keen to partake in a raucous bacchanal. The Berkshire Bach Society has been ushering in the New Year tastefully—and joyously—going on three decades. Mahaiwe.org

Bach At New Year’s–A Very Baroque Celebration

2-4

The resort marks its diamond anniversary with a free Après-ski party featuring a 60-torch procession led by the Berkshire Bateria and Bossa Triba, plus fireworks. SkiButternut.com

Ski Butternut: 60th Anniversary Celebration

The Clark Art Institute Williamstown, MA If your school-age children (five to ten) get a bit hyper— or perhaps bored?—between holidays, let them channel that energy into a culinary adventure. ClarkArt.edu

Can 29Kids Cook!

PS21, Chatham, NY Perhaps you’ve tried dining in the dark? Enjoy the auditory equivalent when this virtuosic ensemble takes on Georg Friedrich Haas’s “Solstices” sans the distraction of light. PS21Chatham.org

Talea Ensemble Solstice Concert

JANUARY 25, 27 ANd FEBRUARY 3

2024

january

PS21, Chatham, NY The antic Tokyo theatre company Kaimaku Pennant Race (KPR) pits the Danish prince against Japan’s “idiosyncratic restroom culture.” PS21Chatham.org

Hamlet / Toilet.

5-6

Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, Great Barrington Acclaimed Cape Breton fiddlers Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy enjoy touring with their whole brood—seven kids!— as backup. Mahaiwe.org

A Celtic Family Christmas

mode | live music

It’s Beginning To Sound A Lot Like...

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

By Sean McAlindin

love story Darlene Love; (opposite page clockwise, from top) Henhouse Prowlers; Caitlin Canty; Dylan LeBlanc; Billy Keane; Squirrel Flower; (inset) Magic City Hippies

very night of live music is a holiday in my book. There’s nothing that fills my soul quite like sharing sonic vibrations in a room full of beautiful people. Looking ahead, here are best nights to warm your winter season with the gift of pure aural bliss.

OPENS

DEC 15 Spend an unexpected magical evening during

RADIANT NIGHTS

at HANCOCK SHAKER VILLAGE Tickets & Schedule at HancockShakerVillage.org

MIKE RUIZ

Red-hot performances abound just in time for the most festive of seasons.

(Squirrel) ALEXA VISCIUS; (Canty) DAVID MCCLISTER; (LeBlanc) ABRAHAM ROWE; (Magic City) BRENT GOLDMAN

Down in Woodstock, ’60s doo-wop legend Darlene Love performs “Love For The Holidays” at The Bearsville Theater on December 9. Catskill Mountains neofolk darlings The Felice Brothers ring in the New Year at Colony December 30-31, followed by Southern songwriter Dylan LeBlanc on January 27 and atmospheric powerhouse Squirrel Flower on February 16. Levon Helm Studios hosts Lower East Side R&B artist Emily King on December 17, Miami alt-pop party boys Magic City Hippies on January 17, Big Head Todd and the Monsters on February 12, and singer-songwriters Glen Phillips and Shawn Mullins on February 25. The Falcon in Marlboro invites acid “funkstars” Eldorado Slim on December 16, Jeremy Baum Trio’s tribute to “A Charlie Brown Christmas” on December 22, rock originalists Toombs Dixon on December 29, pop-folkie Dylan Doyle on December 30 and Nels Cline’s Consentrik Quartet on February 7.

T H E

In Pawling, a packed lineup at Daryl’s House features Marky Ramone’s “Holiday Blitzkrieg” on December 10, Blue Öyster Cult drummer Albert Bouchard’s “Imaginos” on December 28, bluesman Popa Chubby on December 29, mighty Fort Greene vocalist Ms. Lisa Fischer on December 30, Young Dubliners on January 14, classic rockers Steve Forbert and The

New Renditions on February 2 and True North Jazz Project on February 18. Towne Crier in Beacon hosts “A Musical Holiday Evening” with Sloan Wainwright and Friends on December 9, The Costellos Annual Christmas Concert on December 17, Adam Ezra Group with Albany duo SIRSY on December 29, Berkshire barnburners The Whiskey Treaty Roadshow on January

50 YEARS AND FORWARD In celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Manton Research Center building, two exhibitions explore the remarkable additions made to the Clark’s works on paper collection over the last half-century. BRITISH PRINTS AND DRAWINGS ACQUISITIONS November 18, 2023–February 11, 2024 WORKS ON PAPER ACQUISITIONS December 16, 2023–March 10, 2024

WILLIAMSTOWN MASSACHUSETTS CLARKART.EDU Evelyn de Morgan, Head of a Woman (detail), c. 1875, charcoal on paper. The Clark, 2022.9

M O U N T A I N S

out of africa Gballoi West African Drum & Dance Company; The Costellos; Sloan Wainwright

12, harmonica virtuoso Chris O’Leary on January 13 and rock poet Willie Nile on February 10. Bardavon brings “A Celtic Christmas” by A Taste Of Ireland to Poughkeepsie on December 16-17 and Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue to Ulster Performing Arts Center in Kingston on February 23. At Hudson Hall, Gballoi West African Drum & Dance Company joins the Kwanzaa Celebration on December 16.

Up in the Berkshires, The Egremont Barn features UMass-born bluegrassers Mamma’s Marmalade on December 8, Connecticut soul crooner Glori Wilder on December 9, folksingers Jenna Nicholls and Katie Herbst on December 14, Zoot Allures and the Zydeco Playboys on December 15, Billy Keane & The Waking Dream on December 16, and the “Holiday Spectravaganza” featuring Wanda Houston and The BTUs on December 17.

Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center in Great Barrington welcomes jazz guitarist John Pizzarelli on December 16, Nova Scotian fiddlers Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy present “A Celtic Family Christmas” on December 17, and The Berkshire Bach Society plays “Bach at New Year’s” on December 31. In the Capital Region, Empire Live showcases New York City all-girl punk trio Hello Mary with Bruiser & Bicycle on

(Kwanzaa) DAVID MCINTYRE; (Costellos) TOM MOORE

T H E

MAKE THIS HOLIDAY UNFORGETTABLE Storewide Sale

LENNOX JEWELERS D i a m o n d s The Berkshires Largest Selection 165 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA 01230

December 9, EDM producer Mersiv with Sippy Tel. 413.717.4239 | Fax: 413.717.4251 | mail@lennoxjeweler and HEYZ on December 10, Arab-American el. 413.717.4239 | Fax: 413.717.4251 | mail@lennoxjewelers.com | www.lennoxjewelers.com rapper anees on January 29, and Brighton postpunks The Kooks with The Vaccines and Daisy the Great on March 6. The Egg in Albany hatches “In the Christmas Mood” with Glenn Miller Orchestra on December 11, The McKrells’ Celticgrass “Christmas Show” on December 16, jazz singer Veronica Swift on February 29 and wild Irish sisters Screaming Orphans on March 1. Have a blast at experimental arts hub No Fun in “BEST Designer Showroom in the Hudson Valley” Troy with Hudson rocker Dmitry Wild supported by Upstate metalheads Blasé DeBris and The Dionysus Effect on December 21, and rappers Big Lettuce plus Yung Alfredo on December 29. Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) shares the spirit with string trio Time For Three’s “Home For The Holidays” on December 9 and jazz vocalist Kat Edmondson’s “Holiday Swingin’!” on December 17. Nearby, cozy Caffè Lena in Saratoga Springs delivers a homegrown lineup featuring Chicago’s Henhouse Prowlers on December 14, country songwriter Caitlin Canty on December 16, the “30th Anniversary Folk Holiday Show” on Book a FREE December 17, local indie band New American Design Consultation Cuisine on December 21, Lost Radio Rounders’ 845-805-5565 “Holiday Sampler” on December 22, progressive Jewish string band Nefesh Mountain on December 23, Northampton songwriter Stephen Kellogg on December 28 and Americana icon SHOP WHERE THE EXPERTS ARE Peter Yarrow December 29-30. Elise Gramaglia Kathy Prusack Herzogs.com Kitchen & Bath Kitchen & Bath

BRIAN MCCLOSKEY

designer solutions

Design Consultant

151 Plaza Rd, Kingston, NY 12401

Design Consultant

mode | then. now. next.

The Chosen Selecting one’s family is the true spirit of the season. By Abbe Aronson

uite young I learned that blood isn’t thicker than water. I found lots of loving role models as a kid when my own parents fell very short. When I moved here as the parent of a second grader, I surrounded my son (and myself) with so much love that we practically vibrated with it, most coming from what we like to refer to as “Chosen Family.” Just in time for this holiday season, let me share a little bit about my Chosen Family here in Woodstock, a place that’s home base for many of us, a second home for a few of us and a gathering spot of such epic proportions that, if I were the hippy-dippy type, I’d tell you this is surely a magical vortex, sucking us all in and intertwining our collective bloodstreams.

My Chosen Family includes the people I’ve called Mom and Dad for more than a decade: artist and muse Sweetbryar Ludwig and musician and metalsmith Robin LeMartel. After running into Bryar and Robin on the streets of Woodstock again and again, all three of us nodding at each other in a sort of wackadoo acknowledgement of “like sees like,” I invited them to lunch at my house. They stayed all day. As they were leaving, I said, “Wow, you’re the parents I always dreamed of having,” to which Bryar responded, “Then, you should call us Mom and Dad!” In a sentence: they changed my life. Never have I felt so seen, so heard, so inspired to be the best human I can be. A story for the ages, they’ve made Woodstock their home for decades; Bryar arrived here prior to Woodstock ’69 and on her first day in town met Bob Dylan! That’s very Sweetbryar. Honey to the bees every time. When Bryar died in November 2020, the outpouring of grief flowed in from around the globe. Robin—Daddy-O—carries on in her legacy while he continues to make music (he has a new blues record out now)

Photo: Betsy Franco Feen ey

by Hyatt. Nyack, JdV Photo: Hotel

l u f r e d n o W s i r e t n i W y t n u o C d n a l k c o R in

Explore our village shops and restaurants. Experience the Winter splendor of the Hudson Valley. Enjoy hiking, sleighrides, skating, and more!

For a Great Getaway that’s not far away, make your next...

explorerocklandny.com

and jewelry (among his many achievements is designing some of Billy Idol’s iconic bling). Their daughter Acacia Ludwig is a Jedi Master and my imaginary sister. Her husband Jason Bowman runs Rock Academy and is the only person on the planet with whom I’d ever open my mouth and sing out loud with (I didn’t even sing lullabies to my son—that’s how tone-deaf I am). To our mix, add in a cast of loveables that include singer-songwriter Pearl Aday, a true daughter of Woodstock. Her mom met her dad (the singer/icon Meat Loaf) here at Bearsville Studios back in the day, and Pearl’s husband, Scott Ian of heavy metal royalty Anthrax has become a de facto Upstater (Scott’s a nice Queens boy but definitely has drank the Kool-Aid that flows from the cool mountain streams around our town)—Scott has plenty of outer borough camaraderie in our other darling friend/ Chosen Family member, Brooklyn paisan Steve Casa, who’s partnered with Suzanne “My Emergency Contact” Wind. The other people to whom I’d give a kidney? My perma-reality-check besties

You’ve heard of Build-A-Bear? This is my Build-A-Family • Having never enjoyed a self-help book before, but acutely aware that everyone has some childhood trauma that could be addressed, I was curious to read The Origins Of You after stumbling onto Vienna Pharaon’s Instagram account with all of its perfectly wonderful advice about “family stuff.” Take a read if this appeals. I loved every page and learned so much, and hey, she’s even a local from the Rhinebeck/Red Hook tribe.

pro choice My Chosen Family are people I’ve called Mom and Dad for decades, Sweetbryar Ludwig and (opposite) Robin “The Hammer” LeMartel.

Michael Mills and Mark McGrath up the road in Shandaken; Glo 212 Spa Boss Lady Debbie Dougan; Michelle Silver, the Thelma to my Louise; Marc Nagelberg, a.k.a. “The Berg,” who’s The Straight Man in this delightful insanity, providing more comic relief than he’ll ever know. Newest to the fold? Violent Femmes drummer John Sparrow, who, btw, also calls Robin “Dad” and sends me texts from the road that read, “I can’t wait to come home” and by that, he doesn’t mean Milwaukee, from where the band hails. Happy holidays, Mountaineers!

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

• Want to try some of Robin LeMartel’s jewelry for yourself? His new Goddess line is available at Three Turtle Doves in Woodstock, in bronze and silver, sold under his moniker, Robin The Hammer, and of course, just like with Billy Idol, he also accepts commissions. • My actual blood family is centered on my incredible 24-year-old son, a musician, rapper and producer who performs under the name Wendigo and told me recently that his childhood in Woodstock, among all of us freaks, was so special that he plans to raise his kids here one day, too. How’s that for a whopper of a holiday gift?

Rycor Super Heroes are here to rescue you and your old, ineﬃcient air conditioning and heating system!

HEATING + COOLING L ge s

e & fede l eb es v il ble

COOLER CHEAPER CLEANER (845) 668-6071 rycorhvac.com P

i ip i g

Em il Team@RycorHVAC.com s hedule es im e d y!

ultimate seasonal guide

bakeries

Nine Cakes

748 Warren Street Hudson, NY 12534 518.660.1106 NineCakes.com

Hudson Valley Dessert Company 264 Main Street Saugerties, NY 12477 845.246.1545

HudsonValleyDessertCompany.com T H E

M O U N T A I N S

The Pastry Garden

2600 South Road #5 Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 845.473.5220

christmas tree farms

craft stores

Fabulous Firs Christmas Tree Farm

JOANN Fabric and Cra s

Kiwanis Ice Arena

VanScottFarms.com

Stores.JOANN.com/ny/hudson

KiwanisIceArena.com

683 Van Wagner Road Poughkeepsie, NY 12601

160 Fairview Avenue Hudson, NY 12534 518.828.2621

Wonderland Farm

Michaels

WonderlandFarm.com

Locations.Michaels.com/ny/kingston

191 White Schoolhouse Road Rhinebeck, NY 12527 845.876.6760 For over 30 years, Wonderland Farm has celebrated the holidays with families from throughout the Hudson Valley. Find the perfect Christmas tree from their beautifully sculpted evergreens—available in Blue Spruce, Balsam, Frasier and Canaan Firs—in a variety of shapes and sizes.

1167 Ulster Avenue Kingston, NY 12401 845.943.4295

Hart GB

16 Railroad Street Great Barrington, MA 01230 413.274.8148 HartGB.com

49 Seekonk Road Great Barrington, MA 01230 413.528.6002

Hart GB is now open every day and offering classes in weaving, sewing, knitting, crocheting, basketmaking and more. Want crafting supplies from local vendors under the tree this year? Fill out an in-store wish list and get a gift.

31 Main Street Stockbridge, MA 01262 413.298.7156

West Wind Tree Farm

TheLostLambPatisserie.com

543 Bruyn Turnpike Wallkill, NY 12589 845.895.3807

An American Cra sman Gallery

Peace, Love & Cupcakes

Bell’s Christmas Trees

ThePastryGarden.com

Pixie Boulangerie

198 Main Street Great Barrington, MA 01230 413.717.3117 PixieBoulangerie.com

The Lost Lamb Patisserie

54 Tinker Street Woodstock, NY 12498 845.247.3687

WoodstockCupcakes.com

Le Perche

230 Warren Street Hudson, NY 12534 518.822.1850

LePercheHudson.com

This wood-burning brick oven bakery features their own unique interpretations of French classics and seasonally inspired cuisine, utilizing local farm goods. They specialize in naturally fermented breads, classic viennoiseries, pastries and contemporary plated desserts.

The BakeHouse

7 North Street Litchfield, CT 06759 860.361.6423

ice skating

Seekonk Tree Farm

SeekonkTreeFarm.com

647 Mettacahonts Road Accord, NY 12404 845.626.7849 BellsChristmasTrees.com

Windy Hill Farm

686 Stockbridge Road Great Barrington, MA 01230 413.298.3217

WindyHillFarmInc.com/holiday-shop

Pine Farm

121 Eagin Road Youngsville, NY 12791 607.591.5507

PineFarmChristmasTrees.com

Solvang Farm

80 Bedell Road Poughkeepsie, NY 12603 845.473.0224 SolvangFarm.com

TheBakeHouseCT.com

Win te r 2024 | The Hol i d ay s & B eyond

6 Small World Avenue Saugerties, NY 12477 845.247.2590 Whether you’re fine tuning your triple axel or hockey stick handling, or maybe just lacing up your skates for the first time, this Olympic size, fully enclosed, refrigerated ice rink has your needs covered. Includes kids skating classes, hockey leagues (youth, men and women) and cosmic skating nights with music and colored lights.

McCann Ice Arena

14 Civic Center Plaza Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 845.454.5800 McCannIceArena.org

Mohonk Ice Rink

New Paltz, NY 12561 855.883.3798

Mohonk.com/recreation/winteractivities

22 Walker Street Lenox, MA 413.637.4495

Bontecou Rink

Tibetan Arts and Cra s

Boys & Girls Club of the Berkshires

AnAmericanCraftsman.com

7 Rock City Road Woodstock, NY 12498 845.679.2097

TibetanArtsnCrafts.com

Beads Jewelry Cra s 3559 NY-32 Saugerties, NY 12477 845.633.3334

FamilyBeadsJewelryCrafts.com

Bantam Tileworks 816 Bantam Road Bantam, CT 06750 860.361.9306

BantamTileworks.com

Beetle and Fred

171 Main Street Beacon, NY 12508 845.440.8867

BeetleAndFred.com

Millbrook School 131 Millbrook School Road Millbrook, NY 12545

16 Melville Street Pittsfield, MA 01201 413.448.8258 BGCBerkshires.org

Litchﬁeld Town Hall

74 West Street Litchfield, CT 860.567.7569 *weather dependent

Ice Time Sports Complex 21 Lakeside Road Newburgh, NY 12550 845.567.0005 IceTimeSports.com

Canterbury Farm

1986 Fred Snow Road Becket, MA 01223 413.623.0100

Canterbury-Farms.com

*weather dependent

liquor stores

Litchﬁeld Hills Wine Market 8 Village Green Drive Litchfield, CT 06759 860.361.6700

LitchfieldHillsWine.com

Hudson Wine Merchants 341 Warren Street Hudson, NY 12534 518.828.6411

HudsonWineMerchants.com

Fairview Wines & Spirits 160 Fairview Avenue #114 Hudson, NY 12534 518.828.0934

Poughkeepsie Wine & Liquor 701 Main Street Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 845.471.0093

Beacon Wine & Liquors 335 Main Street Beacon, NY 12508 845.831.1020 BeaconWine.com

Catskill Liquors

344 West Bridge Street Catskill, NY 12414 518.943.4325

Domaney’s Liquors and Fine Wines

66 Main Street Great Barrington, MA 01230 413.528.0024 Domaneys.com

prepared foods

Olde Hudson

449 Warren Street Hudson, NY 12534 518.828.6923 OldeHudson.com

22 East Market Street Rhinebeck, NY 12572 845.876.1918 LandOfOzToys.com

SunfrostFarms.com

Berkshire Food Co-op

Play Toys & Gi s

217 Tinker Street Woodstock, NY 12498 845.679.6690

34 Bridge Street Great Barrington, MA 01230 413.528.9697 Berkshire.coop

The Marketplace Specialty Foods 265 Stockbridge Road Great Barrington, MA 01230 413.528.5775 MarketplaceKitchen.com

Beacon Natural Market 348 Main Street Beacon, NY 12508 845.838.1288

BeaconNaturalMarket.com

Delforno’s Market Place & Catering 250 Hooker Avenue Poughkeepsie, NY 12603 845.473.4199

DelfornosMarketPlaceAnd Catering.com

Monticello Green Market

The Kinderhook Bo le Shop

DutchEpicure.com

kinderhookbottleshop.com

Land of Oz Toys

You don’t have to follow the yellow brick road to find this charming, high-quality toys and games shop, which places a special emphasis on helping kids grow, learn and begin to experience the world through play.

Sunfrost Farms

Nestled in the heart of the Berkshires, Domaney’s has been family owned and operated since 1973. Choose from an outstanding selection of liquors, wines, beers, cigars, gourmet foods—and don’t forget to visit their temperature-controlled wine room for the finest and rarest wines. 8 Hudson St Suite 1D, Kinderhook, NY 12106 518.610.8443

toy stores

167 Main Street Beacon, NY 12508 845.838.2134

Tom’s Toys

297 Main Street Great Barrington, MA 01230 413.528.3330 TomsToys.com

The Gi ed Child 72 Church Street Lenox, MA 01240 413.637.1191

TheGiftedChild.net

mugentoys

2585 South Road Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 845.462.2535 mugentoys.com

Rare Bear

34 Tinker Street # 1 Woodstock, NY 12498 845.679.4201

39 Forestburgh Road Monticello, NY 12701 845.794.4943

The Silly Sprout

The Dutch Epicure Shop

TheSillySprout.com

491 Bantam Road Litchfield, CT 06759 860.567.5586

If you need a night off from the kitchen, you’ve hit the prepared foods jackpot: Choose from savory soups such as dutch pea, carrot ginger, chicken dumpling or full gourmet meals like chicken curry, Hungarian goulash, chicken pot pie, quiche and spaetzle. Bon Appétit!

503 Bantam Road Litchfield, CT 06759 860.361.9500

Tinker Toys

5 Mill Hill Road Woodstock, NY 12498 845.679.8870

last minute gifts

Hope and Honey Gi & Bookshop 3 West Street Suite AA, South Street entrance Litchfield, CT 06759 860.485.4301

HopeAndHoneyBoutique.com

Valley Variety

705 Warren Street Hudson, NY 12534 518.828.0033 ValleyVariety.com

The Social Type

238 Warren Street Suite 2 Hudson, NY 12534 518.697.3459 TheSocialType.com

Timbuktu

2 Tannery Brook Road Woodstock, NY 12498 845.679.1169

TimbuktuWoodstock.com

Featuring items from around the globe and from local makers in Woodstock, this unique shop features handmade, repurposed and locally made goods for the home, body and spirit.

Periwinkles At Rhinebeck 24 East Market Street Rhinebeck, NY 12572 845.876.4014

PeriwinklesAtRhinebeck.com

Karen Keenan gi s & home 69 Main Street Lee, MA 01238 413.243.2689

KarenKeenanGifts.com

Mahalo Gi Shop 397 Main Street Catskill, NY 12414 518.943.7467

Mahalo-Gifts-Inc.shoplightspeed.com

Saugerties Small World Gi s

236 Main Street #14 Saugerties, NY 12477

SaugertiesSmallWorldGifts.com

Reported by MITCH RUSTAD | Art by JAN KALLWEJT exclusively for The Mountains THEMOUNTAINSMEDIA COM

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

Diary

how lucky am i to have such a loving, crafty partner? By Martha Frankel

T H E

M O U N T A I N S

ranch hand We bought our simple concrete ranch house near Woodstock in 1983. I’d never have understood its potential without my husband, Steve Heller. It was full of little rooms, dark paneling, bad natural light. “This is perfect!” he exclaimed the first time we came inside. Win te r 2024 | Th e Hol i d ay s & B eyond

MIKE KARPF

Honey Do, Honey Does

e all know the story about the shoemaker whose kids go to school with holes in their soles. I live with the other kind of shoemaker, the one so jacked with creativity that each kid can’t close the closet door because their shoes are spilling out. If I mention to my honey, Steve Heller, that I want a new light in the living room, he’ll head to his shop (Fabulous Furniture in Boiceville, NY) and confer with his creative-partner-in-crime, Mike Karpf. For days they’ll gather parts and within a few weeks they’ll present me six options to choose from. During COVID, I was stumped as to where to store all the food we were suddenly buying in bulk. “I wish I had a good pantry,” I said one night. The next day he and Mike constructed a perfect pantry in a closet we used to pile things we no longer wanted but hadn’t yet found other homes for. We bought our simple concrete ranch house in 1983. I’d never have understood its potential without Steve. It was full of little rooms, dark paneling, bad natural light. “This is perfect!” he exclaimed the first time we came inside. “There’s no bearing walls. I can knock them all down and make a huge living room/dining room/kitchen.” And he’s done just that, year by year, wall by wall, room by room. Our luck is that we like the same things. When I told him our bathroom lacked a way to see the back of my hair, he installed a mid-century medicine chest across from the sink, and then tricked it out with metal and lights. The kitchen was dark black cherry and Steve wanted to preserve the wood until Mike and I convinced him it’d look better painted. Once that was done, he added hood ornaments as door handles and a friend’s handmade tiles. The only thing we’ve fought about is the brick and slate fireplace and mantle. For years he told me you couldn’t paint brick. And I believed him. But then Mike told me he was lying, and we painted it the same green as the kitchen. Steve loved it. But what to do for a mantle? The slate was just a dust collector. I went to Los Angeles to do an interview and when I came back he’d already installed a new one. I can’t imagine how we ever lived without it.

savor.

Our award-winning food and craft beverages are so fresh they might talk back. Our charming, small towns are bursting with farm-to-table Catskill-icious cuisine in any season.

Mini vacays… longer stays, or anything in between — we’re just a short trip away. Seminary Hill — Named in the MICHELIN Guide to Hotels and Dining in the Catskills for extraordinary style, service, and personality. The DeBruce— Named on of the Best U.S. Hotels for Foodies by Time Out Group.

Book your stay

SullivanCatskills.com 1.800.882.CATS This institution is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

PLAN AHEAD: CATSKILL CUISINE FOOD FESTIVAL: MAY 10-12, 2024

Download our app

INTRODUCING THE REGION’S NEWEST AUTOMOBILE DEALERSHIP

ntroducing the Hudson Valley’s Newest Dealership

COME PICK ONE

(518) 660-8500 • 819 NY 66, HUDSON NY 12534 • ORCHARDCDJR.COM

The Mountains 2023- Holiday & Beyond Issue

Articles inside

Honey Do, Honey Does

The Chosen

RADIANT

The (Luxe) Air Up There

hundred bucks How to Spend $100: Tractor Supply Co.

Holidays? Yes. Clichés? No.

Doesn’t A Trip To Miami Sound Great Right Now?

Squeals On Wheels

Champagne: Can we Talk?

The Elm

What’s Not On The Menu

Your First Stop for Holiday Memories

The War hero I Never KNeW

gorgeous Pretty Tough In The CaTskills

The Boathouse

POUGHKEEPSiE, AGAIN

A Color Refresh for You and Your Home

makers|23

ALAN CUMMING FEARLESS AT LAST

Traditions Get A Twist

get Iconic Elegance

The Real State Of Real Estate

New Paltz, Old Ways

POughkeepsie

THE team