Summer 2026

Introduction » Manifesto for a New Season

A new season has a way of arriving with quiet insistence. One morning the light is different, the air carries something new, and without much announcement, the season has turned.

These transitional moments have a way of reminding me that the quality of our lives is largely determined not by what the world delivers to us, but by the standard we set for ourselves. It is easy —at work, at home, in the vineyard—to slip into a quiet argument with circumstances. Traffic, timing, outcomes, and other people's decisions. That resistance costs us more than we realize.

When you stop negotiating with what you cannot control, your attention sharpens, and you begin to see the beauty in what was always there: Light on the water, a child's laugh at the dinner table, the first pour of a new vintage.

That is the spirit I want to bring to everything we share within these pages. Consider this issue an invitation to slow down and find the extraordinary in what surrounds you every day.

Taste » Nordstrom 125th Anniversary Méthode Champenoise Brut

Since 1901, Nordstrom has embodied the belief that doing things exceptionally well is the only way worth doing them. That conviction is in Browne Family’s DNA: why we source locally, why we sweat every detail, and why the wines and spirits we share with you all feel like a true expression of Washington.

To mark Nordstrom's 125th anniversary, we turned to méthode champenoise, the same labor-intensive process perfected in Champagne over centuries, to craft their anniversary brut. The result is a crisp and vibrant sparkler, with notes of bright citrus and green apple on the nose and a clean, elegant bone-dry finish. It is the kind of wine that makes the everyday feel like an occasion.

Raise a glass at most Nordstrom Café locations through April 2027.

Read » The Nordstrom Way

I first came across The Nordstrom Way during a stretch when I was thinking hard about what separates a good customer experience from a truly unforgettable one. As someone who has spent his career building brands around hospitality, generosity, and personal connection, I found myself nodding along on nearly every page.

McCarthy and Spector pull back the curtain on one of America's most celebrated retail institutions to remind us to treat people exceptionally well, every single time, no matter what. The authors trace the Nordstrom philosophy from its humble origins as a small Seattle shoe store to its place as the gold standard of customer service in American retail, unpacking the values, culture, and individual empowerment that make it all work.

Whether you work in hospitality, retail, wine, or any business where relationships are your currency, the lessons here are universal and immediately applicable. I encourage you to pick it up. It just might change how you show up for the people around you every day.

Gifts & Goods » Our Pickleball Collection

If you've spent any time with me over the years, you know pickleball has been a huge part of my life, long before the rest of the world caught on. On sunny days, my home court gets just about as much traffic as our tasting rooms during peak hours, and I've been known to challenge Courtney or the kids to a match before the burgers even come off the grill.

Naturally, pickleball had to become part of the family brand. We designed a lineup of gear for players who take their paddles as seriously as their wine game. Our Gigi’s Garden and Do Epic Sh*t paddles anchor the collection, and for cooler mornings on the court (and there are plenty of those in the PNW), the Browne Pickleball Club crewneck is the move. Pair it with the matching hat, which works just as well on the court as it does on an afternoon in wine country.

Available in our rooms and online, these make exceptional gifts for the player in your life, or just a treat for yourself. After all, what better way to celebrate a hard-fought win than with a paddle in one hand and a glass of something exceptional in the other?

Meet » The Women of Browne Family

The spirit, expertise, and passion that define Browne Family run far deeper than any family tree. The women of Browne are brand ambassadors, sales leaders, hospitality hosts, and operational anchors, each of whom shape the identity of this brand in ways both seen and unseen.

To know Browne Family Vineyards is to know these women: Their talent, their drive, and their unwavering commitment to something truly special. Thank you for all you do!

Michelle Burke, Marketing Brand Manager: The connective thread across every team, channel, and conversation at Browne

Lisa Luchau: Foundational to our retail success and the anchor of our tasting room experience

Caryn Houchin: Nurturing the inner circle of the Browne community, deepening relationships with our most loyal members

Alex Evans: The strategic force behind our marketing and how Browne's story reaches the world

Amanda Rockwell: The creative mind behind every visual detail that makes Browne unmistakably and beautifully itself

Emily Anderson and Elizabeth Tornabene: Two of our room leads that turn every visit into a memory, cultivating a warm and welcoming environment

Do » Gardening

My grandmother kept a garden in Spokane, where I grew up. She worked most mornings before the day got away from her. At our home on Fox Island, we also keep a garden we call Gigi's Garden. Different soil, different light, a different fence to keep the deer out, but it helps me feel connected to my grandmother.

This spring, we planted squash, cucumbers, and tomatoes, among other vegetables, herbs, and flowers. Courtney and the kids tend to it the way my grandmother tended hers: without performance or announcement, just showing up and paying attention.

Gardening may be the slowest of hobbies, but that's entirely the point. You cannot optimize a garden. You cannot will it into readiness before its time. The seed goes in the ground, time passes, and if the soil, light, and water are right, and nothing eats it first, something comes up.

The loop, from soil to table, is as old as human life. If you haven't tried it yet, start small. A pot on a porch counts. The point is just to show up for it.

Visit » New York City

There's no city on earth quite like New York. It does not ease you in, but arrives all at once: a full sensory experience of sound, energy, and ambition that is as thrilling on the hundredth visit as it is on the first.

New York's dining scene is as extraordinary as the city itself, and the city rewards those who come hungry and curious. There are a few I keep coming back to.

Nightly's has quickly become the quintessential Upper East Side neighborhood spot. Equal parts European bistro and New York classic, it strikes that rare balance of casual and stylish. Excellent martinis, pan-seared gnocchi, roast chicken, and if you look closely at the wine list, a few familiar Washington labels worth ordering.

Vinyl Steakhouse in the Flatiron District is not your grandfather's steakhouse. The room pulses with music spun live from a collection of over 3,000 vinyl records, alongside award-winning prime cuts and a world-class wine list curated by seven in-house sommeliers. Browne Family made the cut and I could not be more proud.

For all its intensity, New York also rewards those who know where to look for stillness. The West Side Highway running path is one of the great urban walks in the world and one of my favorites to take on an early morning during my visits to the city. It's sweeping water views and fresh air bring a rare sense of openness that the canyon streets of Midtown cannot.

Central Park needs no introduction, but it deserves one anyway. 843 acres of designed landscape sitting improbably at the center of the world's most vertical city, the work of Frederick Law Olmsted, whose sons would go on to design much of Seattle's own park system. I recommend you walk the Reservoir loop, find a bench near Bethesda Fountain, or simply disappear into the Ramble.

Drink » Gigi’s Giggle Juice

1 shot of Gigi's Gin

A splash of pea flower syrup

Equal parts pink lemonade

Top with our Brut Bubblesor soda water

Garnish with a lemontwist or wheel

Browne Family's small batch gin embodies the spirit of my grandmother, Elizabeth 'Gigi' Pierce, with the floral character and effervescent charm she was known for. Chamomile, rose petal, and soft lavender on the nose, light juniper and citrus mid-palate, and a bright, balanced finish. Inspired by Pacific Northwest botanicals and distilled with glacier water from the Spokane Valley Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer.

A recipe popular in my kitchen and at our Bellevue tasting room this past spring was Gigi's Giggle Juice. It is as pretty as it is delicious, and dead simple to make. Try it out yourself as the days begin to lengthen and warm.