That one time Jess Graves and I were hosted by the Van Winkle clan in Louisville…
This is throwback to one of my favorite adventures and stories that I photographed for The Love List. For some silly reason, I never shared the images here. This was a glorious day, and these are a few of my favorite photos from it. Make sure to read the full story if this is your first time seeing it.
On August 26, 2011, I hit publish on my first “post” here. I air quote, if you will, because it was just a copy/paste bio about Brother of Pearl with a stream to “Dangerous Games.” At the time, I wasn’t lucky enough to call their banjo player my friend and had no idea that he and his wife’s move to Atlanta from Texas would lead to him becoming one of our best friends. Since the friendship formed, you’ve seen Matt on every Glamp post, one of which included him serenading us with said banjo around a fire in North Georgia.
Six years have passed, and guess what? Brother of Pearl is back! They recently released their new E.P. A Long Ways Off. It’s the same ‘ol BOP in the best way and at the same time, matured – just like the three men who make ’em up. On Friday they hit their World Tour with Thomas Csorba. And by World Tour, they mean Texas…
I caught up with Matt about the band and tour. I love this dude and the music he helps create and I hope y’all do, too!
BROTHER OF PEARL IS BACK! Tell us about how that happened:
Back in 2012, we were making great music (in our opinion) and playing shows, and then all of the sudden “life happened” and it took us as far across the country as you can get. Josh moved to Boston, Tyler to San Francisco and I moved to Atlanta. Proximity hurt us, but the vision never died: make good music and play it as much as we can. Well, here we are, 5 years later. Tyler and I moved back to Texas (and Josh said he’d fly if he had to) so I dusted off the banjo and here we go!
Since y’all are all in different locations, how did the rehearsing and recording process go down:
When we moved away, we still had unfinished business. We had some songs that we loved and wanted people to hear. We didn’t know what our future would look like but knew we wanted to at least put these songs in print. We hired our good friend and producer, Brian Douglas Phillips from Rattletrap Studios (who will be playing guitar on our tour) and we all flew in to Austin for a week to record. We couldn’t be more pleased with the outcome. Welp…that was 3 years ago. We’ve been sitting on these songs and this is a perfect time to release them. We think it’s the best stuff we’ve made yet.
What can everyone expect from your World Tour:
We are just happy to be back. We haven’t played a live show in 5 years! But we are coming in hot. We are so excited and like everything in our career, just love playing music together. We don’t know the next time… so we are leaving it all out on the stage.
Favorite track on the new E.P.:
“Lonely Nights, Restless Hearts” – I think this is the best song we ever wrote. A heartbreaking song about a couple in love but feels the angst of life happening, moving away, moving on; struggling with the balance between moving on, and holding on. It’s a ballad that we as a band can relate to.
What you’re most proud of when it comes to the band:
Over the last 5 years, living across the country, we would find any time we could to get together and play. Two things never changed: the chemistry and the heart behind playing music together, and the hope to never let it die.
What you’re most excited about moving forward:
Early on, we stuck with a phrase “one fan.” If one person likes our music, why stop playing? Why not keep making it and playing it until we can’t anymore? So, I guess that’s what we’re gonna keep doing.
When the weather gets crisp, I crave tea. Here in Houston, the cooler weather is coming and going every few days, and when it dips below 60 I officially declare it Hot Toddy weather. Last year I shared my Go To Hot Toddy. It’s still my ultimate favorite, but it’s a lot of work. When Alabama based Piper & Leaf reached out about partnering up for a post, the first thing that came to my mind was if I could use their tea to whip up a hot cocktail much quicker. Every one of their loose leaf artisan teas sounded delicious, and I chose a handful that I thought may pair well with liquor for a super fast and tasty Toddy. Get a look behind the company with founder and owner Caleb Christopher, photographed by White Rabbit Studios. And of course, don’t miss the two incredibly easy recipes for winter sippin’ to warm your bones.
A bit about yourself:
I always loved starting business even as a kid, and I did everything from lawn-care to web-design before Piper and Leaf. I was born and raised in Huntsville, AL and still live here with my wife who is also a co-founder of Piper and Leaf. We have 4 small children and one more expected any day. When we get the chance we enjoy hiking, camping, traveling, and cooking as a family.
Tell everyone about how Piper & Leaf got started:
We got started as a collaboration between my wife, some of her siblings, and myself. We started by selling compost and compost tea at a farmers market in Huntsville, Alabama with our teas as a side product to hopefully attract attention to the booth. It did attract attention, so much so that we ended up ditching the compost and moving our focus to tea. We quickly expanded to several farmers markets in the area, and then opened up our first shop less than a year after our first farmers market.
What sets your tea apart:
Our unique process, which starts with farmers in our area. We source delicious fruits and herbs at the peak of ripeness and pair their flavors with various premium teas from around the globe. This results in a fantastic combination of flavors that you just can’t beat.
Current favorite flavor offering:
Summertime Chai is my all time favorite blend. To me, it is the perfect compilation of natural sweetness and spice. Refreshing in the summer and soothing in the winter.
With Christmas quickly approaching, what would you recommend to compliment seasonal eatings:
Mistletoe Grove is the perfect addition to any holiday meal. Hot, cold, or used as a mulling spice to create the ultimate cider.
In an 8 oz mug, steep 1 tsp of tea for 7 minutes in tea ball with boiling water.
Add rum and honey to taste, stir, sip.
The fruity flavors of strawberry paired with lemongrass make this black tea pair perfectly with rum. It has an element of a hot tiki drink to it!
In an 8 oz mug, steep 1 tsp of tea for 7 minutes in tea ball with boiling water.
Add brandy, stir, sip.
This tea is a combination of honeysuckle blossoms, echinacea, oranges, jasmine, lemon verbena, lemongrass, and mint. There is a small amount of black tea in this otherwise herbal brew, contributing to its unique body and slightly caffeinating it.
Chubbies has landed…in Atlanta! I’m personally so bummed to not be in the area to visit their epic holiday pop-up in Ponce City Market. Thankfully, I’ve been in touch with Jon-Mark Craddock, Chubbies’ Retail Operations Manager, about the build out and am thrilled to share about it for all you Georgia friends. “Atlanta is one of our top markets, so it felt completely natural to select the city for our 2016 holiday pop-up”, says Jon-Mark. “Not to mention, Ponce City Market is one of the coolest storefront set-ups we’ve ever seen with such an incredible selection, making it a one-stop destination for all holiday shoppers. We’re thrilled to be here!”
The San Francisco based brand will be offering their festive, fun and distinctive offerings through the end of January. It’s absolutely amazing to see how they’ve has grown since I came across it years ago, when all they offered were a few colors. Fast forward and their rapid success is now available in everything from khaki to holiday-themed Santa shorts, Chubbies’ has expanded to offer swim trunks, Hawaiian shirts, half-zip sweatshirts and so much more. They’re clearly no stranger here, but it’s always fun to brag about what they’re making happen.
The Weekend Revolution’s pop-up shop is on the second floor of Ponce City Market. In addition to a vast collection of their signature clothing pieces, the showroom will feature arcade games, a tiki bar and lounge area, exclusive accessories and free koozies. Make sure to visit and stock up for your Holly Jolly Christmas!
Thanks to Jon-Mark for sending these photos over!
Photographed in Roswell, GA
Raised in:
I trace my roots to Louisville. That is where most of my cooking style comes from. Most of my family is from some part of Kentucky. I was raised in Upstate New York in Syracuse most of my life.
Lives in:
Roswell, Georgia. My wife and I love the small town feel but able to make it to the city whenever we want.
Favorite dish on the current Table & Main menu:
When people ask me what my favorite dishes are on the menu its hard for me to give an answer. In some way shape or form they are all my babies and have some kind of story behind them in my life. The one that is closest to my heart are my pinto beans. It was something my grandmother always made for me when I went to their house. It is my comfort food with fresh green onions and crumbled cornbread.
What would your three course, final dream meal be:
My dream three course meal would start with a fresh pasta made cacio e pepe with white truffles, then a second course of a large tomahawk ribeye reverse seared in a cast iron skillet with foie butter over Liz Porter’s big fat grits with a heavy oatmeal stout. I’d probably finish it off with a good cheese course and an old port.
Favorite spot in Roswell (besides Table & Main, of course):
Osteria Mattone for their fresh pasta and Foundation Social Eatery for Chef Mel’s California take on Georgia food.
Now would ya look at that:
Table & Main‘s Executive Chef, Woolery “Woody” Back.
Photographed in Roswell, GA
Raised in:
Roswell, Georgia
Lives in:
Roswell, Georgia
Tell everyone about the start of Table & Main:
Table & Main was a restaurant concept I’d refined for years, beginning with long weekend drives in upstate NY while I was in college. I’d grown really into a band called “The Band,” five guys who used to be Bob Dylan’s backup group. When Dylan hurt himself in a motorcycle accident, The Band decided to release their own material, with Music From Big Pink being their debut album. On that record, there’s a song called The Weight, and nearly everyone has heard of it. It’s got that chorus we all know: “Take a load off, Annie. Take a load for free. Take a load off, Annie, and put the load right on me.” The song is about a person traveling throughout upstate NY visiting small towns named in the song that really do exist. Stopping at each, he just wants to say hello and hang out with his friends, but everyone he meets gives him another task to do at the next town, another “weight” (get it?!) to carry. Taking care of someone’s dog; keeping someone’s sister, Anna Lee, company. All these burdens. And driving around upstate NY through the very towns mentioned in the song and knowing that one day I wanted to open a restaurant, I thought I’d like to have a place where this guy could have simply enjoyed himself without anyone asking anything of him. So now we say at the restaurant that we’re there to take you away from your troubles for the short time you’re dining with us. All the stresses of the world will certainly still be there when you leave. But like the song says, when you’re at Table & Main, you can “take a load off.”
Favorite dish on the current menu:
I’ve always loved our smoked pork chop. We cold smoke it, so it’s got this deliciously deep, smoky flavor. The current fall menu, just released last week, serves it with a Ritz cracker crust, pinot beans, collards, and red pepper sauce. Our fall menu is full of hearty, warm, delicious food that people love in the colder weather.
Your whiskey program is stellar. What’s typically in your glass?
Bourbon and nothing else but ice! My “every day” bourbon, if I had to drink only one bourbon and buy it myself, is probably Four Roses Small Batch. Not too expensive, readily available, and classic.
Favorite Table & Main dish and whiskey pairing:
I’d have to say it’s our fan-favorite Fried Chicken with Rowan’s Creek. Rowan’s is a little more high-octane than your typical bourbon, but it’s not so alcoholic that it’s too “hot.” Pairs really well with our Fried Chicken!
Now would ya look at that:
Meet Ryan Pernice, Owner and Operator of Table & Main in Roswell. He and his brother Dan are behind our two favorite spots in the ‘burbs of Georgia. Born and raised in Roswell, Ryan spent a stint in NYC before moving back and opening Table & Main in 2011. His love for “simple, seasonal and southern” cuisine radiates from this spot.
Photographed in Roswell, GA
Raised in:
Roswell, Georgia
Lives in:
Atlanta, Geogia
Tell everyone about the vision behind Osteria Mattone:
Osteria Mattone is the product of years working in the restaurant industry combined with my brother Ryan’s and my passion for Italian food and wine. We use a lot of strange-sounding Italian words and names for things, but the idea of the restaurant is very straightforward: to provide people with a dining experience similar to what they would find in Rome, Italy.
As their Sommelier, I’ve got to ask what your favorite dish and wine pairing is at the moment:
My favorite dish right now would have to be the Maiale all’Arrabbiata. The Calabrian chili in the tomato-based sauce brings out a little heat that combines well with the savory, brined pork loin and roasted Brussels sprouts. For any dish with some heat I don’t want a wine with too much tannin or alcohol, so I would recommend the Poderi Foglia Concarosso 2014, an Aglianico wine from Campania that’s medium-bodied and peppery with pronounced minerality.
Your favorite under $50 bottle that someone can try there:
Concilio Conoidi Lagrein 2010, $49. Lagrein is a unique varietal from the Alto Adige region of Northern Italy. Inky black in color, this wine is medium-bodied with aromas of black pepper spice and wet earth.
And why not? What about your favorite for under $100:
Mauro Franchino Gattinara 2009 $96. Truly a special wine from a special place. Made from Nebbiolo (which they call Chiavennasca in this part of Northern Piedmont), Mauro Franchino’s Gattinara exhibits a unique blend of soil and herbs on the nose. A deeply heady and complex wine.
Now would ya look at that:
Meet Dan Pernice, Sommelier and Co-Owner of our favorite Italian spot outside the perimeter in Roswell, GA – Osteria Mattone. We spent countless hours on that porch enjoying real Italian cuisine and introducing a ton of our friends to this perfect spot. Brother of Ryan Pernice (Table & Main), the two are responsible for bringing fantastic cuisine to the ‘burbs. I can’t recommend enough asking for Dan to visit your table for some wine talk! Atlanta folks – make a visit.
Founders Stefan Lewinger and Futhum Tewolde
Atlanta, GA
This is not the first time we’ve talked about our love for socks here. Mark and are I have always been huge fans of fun socks. A few months ago we had the pleasure of swinging by Sock Fancy in East Atlanta to chat with founders Stefan Lewinger and Futhum Tewolde and snag a few pairs of socks to photograph and rep in Houston. We’re excited to team up for y’all to get to know a bit of their story and give their subscription a whirl. It’s a blast!
When the idea for Sock Fancy came to y’all:
We launched Sock Fancy in 2013 as a simple solution to a growing frustration. Finding the perfect pair of comfortable, durable, and awesomely-designed socks was often too difficult, too expensive, and too inconvenient. My co-founder Futhum Tewolde and I met when we were seven. We were lifelong friends, and later became roommates when we both wound up in Atlanta around 2011. Futhum always showed off his socks around the house, but lamented the fact that he often had to settle for poorly made socks from big box stores or pay an arm and a leg for a decent pair from the small selections at specialty shops (if you could find one). With my background in e-commerce and digital marketing we saw a big opportunity to team up and create something really exciting. I built the first website within a few weeks, we placed our initial sock order, and started shipping off of our Ping Pong table from our house in the Virginia Highlands. Today, we’ve grown into a 5,000 sq ft warehouse/office in Cabbagetown, shipped over 200,000 pairs of socks, and most importantly, helped fellow socks addicts in 80+ countries around the world to step up their ‘sock games.’
Why socks:
Socks are not only a great way to keep your wardrobe fresh, but the perfect instrument to express yourself. They provide an outlet to be playful, creative, and even a little funky with your style whether you’re in the boardroom or the bedroom. For many people, wearing crazy socks can even be subtle way to rebel against the uniformity and boredom of the workplace.
Tell everyone about how the subscription works:
At it’s core, Sock Fancy is a sock subscription that delivers awesomely random socks to your doorstep for as little as $11 per month. Simply hop on to sockfancy.com, customize your subscription options, and we take care of the rest. We create hundreds of small-batch designs each year in-house to ensure that you always get something new and exciting. If you are in a gift giving mood, you can even purchase 3, 6, 9, or 12 month subscriptions in advance. We never charge for shipping and you can even swap out any pair you’re not completely in love with.
Favorite design or partnership to date:
We design hundreds of styles each year, so it is getting really tough to pick a favorite! However, I will say that some of our favorite designs tend to come from the collaboration projects we like to do with other artists, startups, and companies big and small. We partnered with Shock Top (Anhieser-Busch) this year to design a special promotional sock for a Father’s Day box they were putting together. The socks had funky orange slices all over them. It was great working with them and we we’re always excited to partner with brands that we were big fans of. The socks turned out great and were a big hit for them as well!
Should customers be excited for anything new coming up:
As we continue to grow, we’re always looking for new ways to get our socks out there. Earlier this year, we launched our first sock vending machine concepts in a few locations to test the waters. We got a really great response from customers and we plan to start rolling these out in new locations in time for the holidays. We’re also expanding our product offering to include knee-high (just launched) and no-show socks (Spring 2017).
Most played tunes in the shop lately:
Lately, we’ve had Chance the Rapper’s Coloring Book playing on repeat. But, the hands down all-time most played song at Sock Fancy is “Throw It In The Bag” by Fabulous. We are a subscription company that does a lot of picking and packing, so this song has a special place in our hearts.
I’ve always loved Halloween. I was born an hour and a half before October 31st, making 1985’s Halloween the first full day of my life. I dressed up as a newborn baby, and totally killed it.
Growing up, the majority of my birthday parties were Halloween parties, and wearing costumes brings me just as much joy now as it did when I was ten.
Now that I’m a “grown up” – a fact that I often like to ignore – I’m quicker to reach for a cocktail than a piece of candy. As a lover of skull decor, Crystal Head Vodka had caught me eye on multiple occasions in bars and liquor shops. Founded in 2008 by actor Dan Aykroyd, Crystal Head is made from Canadian corn and pristine water from Newfoundland. It goes through four distillation processes and is filtered seven times, the last three though Herkimer diamonds. Long story short – it’s a really smooth vodka.
As someone who is not a huge vodka drinker, I typically only use the spirit when making a Bloody Mary. Since that’s not a great option for Halloween evening, I did a little searching around for a boozy concoction that could sipped slowly while passing out candy. Look no further than James Bond’s shaken, not stirred, Martini – the Vesper. Though it’s gin forward, the vodka is key, and like any cocktail, the quality of each ingredient is incredibly important. Crystal Head does the job this classic twist perfectly.
My adapted version (made with Lillet Rosé instead of Lillet Blanc) is named after a fellow martini loving friend, Jess Graves. We sat together Friday evening at The Mercury drinking gin martinis and she mentioned that she’s always wanted a cocktail named after her. This one’s for you, Jess.
THE GRAVEYARD:
Shake ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled glass.
Garnish with a grapefruit twist.
*Thank you to Crystal Head Vodka for sending us a bottle to sample and enjoy this Halloween!
Photographed in Atlanta, GA
Raised in:
Marietta, Georgia
Lives in:
Decatur, Georgia
Favorite Cobbler Union design:
Definitely our Miquel whole cut oxford in mustard patina. Miquel is a classic with a twist – as it’s finished, burnished and patina added all by hand.
Spot you most frequent in PCM:
Hop’s Chicken! The chicken sandwich, side of mac & cheese, then add the mac & cheese to the sandwich, a little hot sauce & a little gravy – it’s pretty epic.
Now would ya look at that:
Meet Eric Collins, man in charge of retail operations and in-store experience at Cobbler Union in Ponce City Market.