New Moon, New Year, & A New Start

On February 12, 2021 the first New Moon of the year will have revealed itself, marking the beginning of the Lunar New Year. In the Vietnamese Zodiac, it will be the Year of the Ox, signaling a year of slow, steady, patient progress - industrious work that reaps reward and harvest.

For the first time in over 20 years, being a fashion designer, and the Fashion Industry, will not be such an important aspect of my life. I’ve settled into an Upstate life, doing things I truly love and going on an inward, cultural and culinary journey. And, I want you to join me.

My new site, Whiskey and Booch, is named after two of my favorite things: whiskey (and good drinks!), and my obsession with fermented foods that came to a full rolling boil as I became the brewmaster for Seek North Kombucha. I’ve always loved cooking and kitchen-crafting as long as I can remember, so there will be plenty of recipes and techniques to share, so we can go on this journey together.

Food has always been a tried and true way to bring people together, to bridge culture, to start conversation. Through Whiskey and Booch, I’ll be going on a fermented travel back to my childhood to learn how to make the traditional Vietnamese dishes I grew up with, and building a community over my kitchen table through sharing some of the wonderful, local culinary craftsmen and women that we’re fortunate enough to have in our own backyard, right here in Upstate New York.

The moon holds mythical status because it, just like us in life, waxes and wanes as different aspects of it shine, dim, and then illuminate again. I’ve been a magazine publisher, a fashion designer, a brewmaster, and a little kid running around the house with a tiny bowl of pho, made with love by my father.

And as the new moon of 2021 fully unearths its entire face, that was there all along anyway, it inspired me to do the same - with the steady, collected progress of the Buffalo doing the work he was meant to do.

So, come. Break bread, ferment your food, raise your glass, and welcome.