Episode #39 - Sam Dangremond, Town & Country

Michael (2:10): Hi, Sam, welcome to the show. So great to see you!

Sam (2:14): So great to see you both. Thank you for having me. 

Michael (2:14): Absolutely. And we're very happy to say that, uh, you're, you're one of the first guests on our show to be wearing two hats simultaneously. You're an accomplished journalist and you're now also a lawyer who recently passed the bar and can practice in New Jersey and Connecticut. So our congratulations to you. So what are some of those common threads that unite the two very different professions? 

Sam (2:44):I would say, um, both jobs involve a significant amount of research and editing and revising one's own work. I think depending on the type of lawyer that one is, there is also a lot of variety in the work. So I know as a journalist, one of the things that interested me the most and going into the profession was the opportunities that provided for exposure to all different topics and a subject. So I am a very curious person innately. I have a lot of varied interests and hobbies from one of my favorite pastimes making cocktails to learning about men's style.

And, uh, I'm a private pilot. So I fly single engine airplanes and I'm an emergency medical technician. I volunteer with my towns, ambulance service, and always in search of new and exciting opportunities. And I think that as  a great field to be in because I could write about so many different topics from real estate to cocktails, to men's style.

And as a lawyer, I'm hoping that I can have a similar variety in the types of law that I'm able to practice. 

Hanna (4:20):Does being a writer make you a better lawyer or vice versa? 

Sam (4:23):I would say so. Uh, my background as a writer definitely gave me a leg up and my legal writing classes when I was in law school at, at Fordham. And I was however surprised to learn how different legal writing is from journalistic writing. To give you an example, legal writing is all about short sentences, putting your main point right up at the top of your, uh, whatever document you're writing. Whereas journalistic writing has offers opportunity for a little bit more creativity. Being a lawyer has made me a better writer overall though, because I think I've learned to express my ideas more succinctly.

Hanna (5:10):You've been with Town and Country since 2010, I believe, and now a Contributing Digital Editor. So what does that entail? 

Sam (5:18):I write about a variety of topics, including cocktails, wine, restaurants, travel, men's style and the fun stuff. 

Hanna (5:33):So our hospitality and travel industries are coming back slowly but surely. So in the coming months is there any particular stories that you'd be looking to write or at specific topics? 

Sam (5:33):Yeah, I'm looking forward to covering more food and cocktail stories, especially as New York and other cities are starting to reopen after the pandemic. I'm also planning to write some more travel pieces. I was very fortunate to pass the February Bar exam and then, uh, have five months off to travel before starting my clerkship at the end of this past summer, between. Passing the bar exam, and then getting admitted as an attorney and took some pretty incredible trips. I started in Costa Rica. I took a solo trip to Costa Rica in March, and then visited the Galapagos. And I climbed Machu Picchu with my family in June. And I spent July visiting Italy, Greece, and Croatia with friends and in Greece visited an island where I went to a new hotel that opened earlier in the summer called The Rooster and, uh, wrote a piece about that for Town and Country. And I'm planning to write about some of the other places that I've visited on my trips as well. 

Michael (7:01):Well, let's circle back to some of your recent stories. You had a great article in Town and Country on the best sake to indulge in as soon as possible. And that's, that's the sentiment we all share. It's given us quite a shopping list and it was nice that even on the high end none of the sockeyes that you spotlighted were over 90 bucks, which is quite reasonable. So what made you choose to focus on sake and why now in particular.

Sam (7:26):Thank you. I'm glad you liked that story. It was an exciting store and an exciting opportunity for me to be able to learn more about a subject that was fairly new to me. I didn't know much about sake to go into that. My editor assigned me this story after, um, one of the SEO specialists at Town and Country noticed that interest in sake was increasing in Google searches. So people are clearly interested in the topic and searching for the best sake rank right now. So as Monica Samuels, one of the experts I interviewed said, I interviewed in the story, said premium sake is an industry that is relatively young and every year there are new frontiers that are being crossed. So it'll be interesting to see where things go from here with it. 

Michael (8:16):Yeah. I think it's a real opportunity because sake is still largely undiscovered so now's the time to, uh, to get in there and really experience these things at a very accessible level, because who knows, you know, two years from now, it might be a very different situation.

Sam (8:41):Right. I remember just a few years ago, my brother and I bought a case of Weller 12 whiskey. We now feel like we were, uh, we got in at a very good time on it because, uh, I think we paid about $23 or $24 a bottle for that. And if you can Weller 12 it's $300. So I wonder if stock is going that route and now is the time to buy these bottles. Already collectible and they become even more. 

Hanna (9:16):I know. I love sake. So anything related I will read and I'll buy and I will drink. So all around the globe, we have our audience in 60 different countries. And these are all very professional people in our industry. Like, you know, the chefs and bartenders and baristas and sommeliers and designers and they have a really great story to tell, but they don't necessarily like, know how to get to you, someone like you. For these experts, what are the top three things that you are looking for in searching for in your stories.

Sam (10:05):Um, first I would say anyone should feel free to get in touch with me by email. Um, if you go on my Instagram, which is just my name right now at Sam Dangremond, there's a button that I think says email me or email, and you can feel free to click that and send me a message directly. I think what is interesting to me is in the food and drink and hospitality space. People who are on the one hand, very established, like I went to Eleven Madison Park earlier this summer and had a great meal there. I was very interested to see the changes that the restaurant has made. Um, I'm interested in chefs like Daniel Humm pivoting and, uh, changing, uh, the concept of their restaurants. But I'm also interested in younger sort of upstarts who are changing the game in some way or have some approach to restaurants, food, and drinks. And as I said earlier, I'm just a very curious person. So I'm always trying new places and learning about new things. And I always like to see what else is out there.

Michael (11:15):I share that passion. So what's the best way to get your attention when pitching you a story, especially if you don't know the person that's emailing you, what, what advice would you give? 

Sam (11:23):It's always interesting. If you're pitching something that's a new restaurant or new bar, Town and Country, and I think a lot of other publications are interested design along with whatever the actual food and cocktail menu is. So if you could include photos of the space, that's certainly, um, a big help to, to the pitch. Um, I'm also curious about who was involved. So, um, where has the chef, or whereas the bartender or beverage director been before. Uh, how did he or she get to this project and what drew them to this location?

Michael (12:28):Let's talk about social media. I know you love Instagram and you've been posting so many great places and cocktails and food that you enjoy. So, um, how often do you find stories via social media? And if you do, which platforms you use to find the stories or people, or just to get inspired? 

Sam (12:47):I would say Instagram and Facebook to some extent. My Editor-in-Chief  Town and Country, Stellene, has a wonderful Instagram, uh, that you should all check out and she's on the cutting edge of everything happening in New York, whether it's Broadway coming back or restaurants opening, um, in the city or reopening in the city. And Instagram is definitely my main source social media source for the story ideas, but, uh, Facebook as well too. 

Hanna (12:47):Yeah. I mean, I think a lot of people think that Facebookis not-so relevant. Uh, but I think there's a huge community using Facebook as sort of like, um, you know, a place to network and place to share their insights. And I love Facebook groups because that's where you get to meet people who share the same interests. So I'm a huge fan of Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. I love LinkedIn. Do you like LinkedIn? 

Sam (13:58):I've been using it a little bit more since I've had some more things to add. So I have not used it that much in the past, but I should. Yeah.

Hanna (14:18):I mean, I always say LinkedIn is such a powerful business. We have a lot of prospects coming through LinkedIn. We have an employee team member coming through LinkedIn. Everybody think Instagram is my favorite thing, but I have to say my true love on social channels is LinkedIn, LinkedIn. So it's very, it's very content and substance driven, very powerful. And you're able to share articles on it. Most progressive. I also think they have LinkedIn video. They have a LinkedIn live. They have a LinkedIn, everything.

Michael (15:00):So, Sam, what, what advice would you give to our listeners when it comes to using social media to get on the media's radar?

Sam (15:19):I love seeing content about new restaurants, cocktails. Town and Country recently posted a great Instagram live with a cocktail at, um, Joe Allens, I think in theatre district. And I did an Instagram live tasting of tequilas of, of aged tequilas in December of last year. So I think the more that you can share cocktail coverage and cocktail recipes on Instagram, the better. It's always interesting to see a new bar or restaurant or just a new recipe that I've never seen before. And I like to bookmark those recipes and then save them and try to recreate them at home.

So I would say, don’t worry too much about making the content perfect, but just get it out there because people want to see it on Instagram, especially. 

Hanna (16:15):Do you prefer bartenders making cocktails and doing things on reel or video or Instastory, or do you like to see a beautiful cocktail photo with the recipes? Like which one grabs your attention?

Sam (16:30):Right. The latter for me, because of the visual appeal and the way a beautiful picture of a cocktail would grab my attention compared, uh, watching a reel or an Instagram live of the bartender, which is not to say that I don't like to do that. Especially if I'm interested in the bartender or the venue from. But if I'm just looking for new recipes, which I am basically all the time, I'd prefer to just see the photo and the recipe of the cocktail and have that sort of quick hit makes sense. 

Hanna (17:13):So, um, I mean, I think that during the pandemic, so many people in organizations, uh, show their creativity and innovation. In your opinion, which organization or person have you seen really innovating and moving the hospitality and travel industry forward.

Sam (17:33):That's a good question. I'm a very loyal Delta fan and I didn't fly much during the pandemic, but I did go to, um, Wyoming once at the end of last summer. And then I was fortunate to get vaccinated earlier this year, before my trips to Costa Rica. I flew Delta on those trips and also. Also when I went to South America and I know Delta, the way that they handled limiting seats, seat assignments, and ensuring that passengers were wearing masks during the entire flights was impressive to me and made me feel very safe as a, as a traveler. I've also been impressed over the years with Delta's cocktails on board. I know right now there's 10 top tills from purveyor out of Atlanta. So I've had the Old Fashioned and the Margarita that I serve on board. And I liked those.

Michael (18:40):Speaking of cocktails, if you had to share one cocktail with your best buddy, what, what would it be and why?

Sam (18:44): Being almost I've got whiskey and Bourbon cocktails on my mind, and I love whiskey of all types. Japanese whiskey, Bourbon, Tennessee whiskey. But I recently received a WhistlePig maple Old Fashioned kit from a friend of mine, and it came with WhistlePig rye barrel aged, maple syrup and maple bitters and WhistlePig, as you probably know, is based on a farm in Vermont that I visited, and Vermont is the state where I was born. So I have a special affinity for it. If I had to choose one to share with a friend, that would be an Old Fashioned.

Hanna (19:38):So you've been traveling overseas for almost months and months. But when you get to travel next time, what is your dream destination and why?

Sam (19:46): I would love to go back to Japan. I went in 2018 to tour and write about whiskey distilleries, and I've been dying to go back ever since and explore more of the country. I'd love to just see as much of the country as I can. 

Hanna (20:06):Uh, Japan is one of our favorite countries as well, but that's why we wrote a book about the Japanese Art of the Cocktail.

Sam (20:19): And the best cocktail bars I've been to in my life have been in Japan. They're so amazing because they’re unassuming, and they're sort of hidden away, but once you find them…I remember going to one that was on the fourth or fifth story of this nondescript office building. And then once you get there and get to the door, it's like this incredible dream world that you enter. I had, I was celebrating a birthday during that trip and I think whatever age I was turning that night because I was there at midnight I'll never forget that.

Hanna (21:05):  The Japanese bartending is…the level of precision, the level of commitment, the level of dedication, it's inspiring. Very inspiring. So great to catch up with you and great to see you, even though it's a zoom and hopefully we see you in person sometime soon. 

Sam (21:16):Yes. Looking forward to it. Um, thank you for the opportunity. I really appreciate it.