Family of Friends Newsletter
From Violin to Vin Jaune: How Eleven Madison Park’s Wine Director Rethinks Luxury in the Glass
At three-Michelin-star Eleven Madison Park in Manhattan, the wine list is as storied as the dining room. For Wine Director Adam Waddell, the job isn’t just about curating bottles; it’s about orchestrating emotion, memory and discovery — often in fewer glasses than before.
Waddell, who took over the program in 2025 after joining the restaurant as associate wine director in 2023, did not set out to become a sommelier. He arrived in New York City in 2010 to study classical violin performance,…
Best Wine for Thanksgiving: How to Choose
Justin Herbinet of New York’s National Arts Club shares his philosophy for pairing wines with Thanksgiving dinner — and reminds us that gratitude pairs best with the bottles you already love.
The dining room at the National Arts Club glows with the amber light of late afternoon. Stemware catches the sun from Gramercy Park as Justin Herbinet circles a table, pouring a ruby-red Gamay into half-filled glasses. The air smells faintly of roasted beets and wood polish.…
Ross Halleck on the Mystical Power of Sonoma Wines
Exploring the spirit of wine from Sebastopol’s fog-kissed coastal hills
If you’ve ever cruised down Burnside Road just west of downtown Sebastopol, passing sheep-dotted pastures and groves of redwood and eucalyptus, you’ve already begun to experience the quiet mystique of Halleck Vineyard. In a recent episode of Wine Talks with Paul K, Ross Halleck—founder of Halleck Vineyard Estate Winery & Wine Tasting Room at 3785 Burnside Rd—joined host Paul K. for a conversation that ranged from his Silicon Valley past to his spiritual present among the vines of West Sonoma.…
Russian River to East River: Sharing West Sonoma County Wines with Gramercy Park’s Cultural Elite
Last week, I ventured from Halleck Vineyard Winery and Wine Tasting Room in Sonoma to the Sculptor Garden Room of the historic National Arts Club in Manhattan’s Gramercy Park to pour our California wines for a room full of artists, philanthropists, and musicians. It was my second Sonoma Wine Education Seminar at the club, and it was completely full—oversold, in fact.
I designed this event with intention: shorter than a traditional vintner dinner, more welcoming to people with all levels of wine knowledge,…
A Toast to Hospitality: Pouring My Russian River Pinot at Gramercy Tavern
Last night, I had the honor of pouring my wines for the team at Gramercy Tavern, a Michelin Star Restaurant in New York City that has been serving our wines for over a decade.
For a winemaker, there are few experiences more gratifying than sharing varietals and vintages with professionals who understand the nuances of food, service, and hospitality at the highest level. And Gramercy Tavern — one of the most celebrated restaurants in America — sets the gold standard.…
The Forgotten Entheogen: A New Way of Experiencing Wine
For most of my career, I’ve talked about wine through the lens of flavor, food, and family. But over the last few years, something shifted for me. I began to ask a deeper question: What if wine could be more than a drink? What if it could be a spiritual tool?
That question led me down a path I didn’t expect.
I’ve spent decades exploring sacred plant medicine traditions — in Peru, with ayahuasca and shamanic ceremonies,…
Wine Tasting FAQ with Sonoma Vintner Ross Halleck
For anyone planning a trip to Sonoma or simply curious about the wine tasting experience, award-winning winemaker Ross Halleck of Halleck Vineyard in Sebastopol, answers your most pressing wine tasting questions.
Drawing on years of expertise in Sonoma’s celebrated Russian River Valley, Ross offers practical tips and insider knowledge for a memorable tasting experience.
Ross Halleck on the deck of our Wine Lodge surrounded by our estate Pinot Noir Vineyard in West Sonoma County.…
Sonoma Wine Tasting Review 2024: Exploring Halleck Vineyard’s Current Releases
In this Sonoma wine tasting video with Ross Halleck, vintner at Halleck Vineyard, and Harris Miner, the winery’s director of wine education, share tasting notes on their latest releases, offering viewers an informative look at the distinctive varietals produced from Sonoma County’s acclaimed American Viticultural Areas (AVAs).
The pair guide us through the wines with careful attention to the nuances of each, providing an educational perspective on how the region’s terroir influences flavor profiles.…
Wine as Plant Medicine
Wine is dynamic.
Euphemisms include elixir of the gods, social lubricant, poetry in a bottle, and (penned by Ernest Hemingway) the most civilized thing in the world. Less romantic monikers describe it as glogg, plonk, Jesus juice, and porch-pounder.
Wine is rife with evocative metaphor. It can be dry, flabby, cloying, chewy, racy, or a fruit bomb. It can have great legs, impressive structure, a round mouthfeel, even a clean finish. Its aroma can suggest bright red berries,…
