A Personal New Year, a Brazilian Winter, and the Unexpected Creativity We Bring Home

A Personal New Year, a Brazilian Winter, and the Unexpected Creativity We Bring Home

If you have followed me for any length of time, you know that it’s now my “most wonderful time of the year.” Labor Day is my favorite holiday and my personal New Year.

There’s no pressure for an elaborate family meal or to buy presents or to decorate. Just taking time to enjoy the break in the heat, changing gears, and being filled with optimism and anticipation for the remainder of the calendar year.

So as it’s my NEW YEAR Iet’s look back on some recent highlights. 

July was spent in Brasil. It was a combination of business, pleasure, and most importantly an escape from the summer heat and humidity of the American South to winter in a different hemisphere. Sunny, cool, low to no humidity. In other words, heaven. An atmosphere that I’m built for.

Most of my time was spent in São Paulo, a city described to me repeatedly (and accurately) as “a bigger, cleaner, friendlier NYC.” And like New York, meals were delicious, no matter how simple. Close-to-the-table fresh, and can we just talk about the tangerines? The first bite is vanilla and the next is jasmine, drenched in a sweet citrus with a touch of honey. This flavor of Brasil haunts me even now… And will require a return trip dedicated to tasting all the varietals.

My most unique dining experience in Brasil was at D.O.M. in the Jardins neighborhood. Alex Atala’s legendary culinary temple to Brasilian ingredients, gastronomy and culture holds two Michelin stars and is the epitome of creative excellence. The open kitchen allows you to watch the quietude of the artistic execution of each plate. The waiters are attentive, yet discreet. Never obsequious and extraordinarily knowledgeable of the ingredients and capable of storytelling in English. Like a play, the meal’s “title” was “When the Jaguar Drinks Water” which is a “mythical moment in the Brazilian popular imagination. An animal that symbolizes strength, mystery, and beauty connects with the biodiversity around it. The largest feline in the Americas quenching its thirst takes on the contours of cultural identity.”*

Directly across the dining room was a huge B & W photographic print of just that… only he was staring at me a little too intently. 

The meal was an extraordinary eleven course tasting menu, with surprising juxtapositions of flavors and textures. By the way, Atala’s signature ants from the upper region of the Amazon Basin taste like crunchy lemongrass. However, the unexpected rabbit hole this restaurant led me to was the use of Brazilian honey from “stingless bees.”

“Stingless bees?!” I’ve lived a life relatively sheltered from bee culture, but during an excursion in the South of Brasil I was fortunate enough for Pedro, a local friend who shared my fascination with these bees to take me to the countryside near Joinville. We kept asking about “stingless bee honey” and eventually found a farm with just that. Several bees even landed on my arm. Being winter, I think they may have been more languid than usual, but notably they were as structurally delicate as the honey they produced. Honeys were selected, tasting parties ensued upon my return, and it is truly the gift that keeps on giving. 

Atala’s philosophy resonated deeply with me: 

“Creativity isn’t about doing what nobody else does.

Creativity is about doing what everyone else does in a way nobody expects.”

~AA

True for the culinary arts and true for jewelry: KATURA will continue to delight and intrigue because we deliver creativity in unexpected ways. The quiet decisions of every detail… the mounting, the choice of finishing, the mix of gemstones. This is precisely where Katura’s individuality lives. 

I’ve always contended that if you like my jewelry, you’ll like my cooking. And vice versa. 

And because breaking bread with friends is one of my favorite things to do, I like to make meals creative and personal… a memorable experience. There will not be any 11 course tasting menus, nor ants, but thankfully there will be my Brasilian honeys to sweeten the conversation. 

There are more stories to tell of Brasil and I’m not nearly finished talking about my darling bees. So please come back soon. And have a happy new year.

xo~lwM 

*taken from a beautiful book/menu that you are gifted after your meal at D.O.M. / author is not noted.