Newberg Oregon’s Vino Vasai Pours World-Class Pinot Noir, Super Tuscan with Unique Tasting Experience – Wine Review
Potter’s Vineyard and Vino Vasai Wines offers a small lot collection of high quality wines and a memorable visit.
When you go wine tasting, what kind of experience do you want? Rushed? Crowded? In, out and onto the next place?
In some of the most popular wine regions in California and in Oregon, a visit can feel more like you’re walking through a theme park than being invited to enjoy a living, breathing winery.
Vino Vasai is a little (or a lot) different in many ways. For one, they really want you to have a calm, romantic, delicious experience.
They go out of their way to make it happen. How? They stagger their appointments, deliberately plan out the timing, they want conversations. They foster an environment that encourages visitors to ask questions, lots of questions. Really sharing about their world, their team and their wine.
As a result, you end up with a memorable, world-class wine experience. And we haven’t even gotten to talking about the actual wine yet.
The winery intentionally limits production, producing less than 1,000 cases annually. Varietals include estate Pinot Noir, and sourced Chardonnay, Cabernet, Merlot, Sangiovese, and Syrah from single vineyard estates in Washington.
The winery goal is “to offer the very best tasting experience in Oregon”.
We’ll Always Remember Italy
Bill and Sandy Sanchez are the winemakers and owners. Bill is an example of the mix of art and science – leveraging 30 years as a PhD Nutritionist and 15 years as a professional Potter. – a common combination seen behind successful wineries.
Owners and winemakers Bill and Sandy Sanchez
Sandy brings her Italian heritage and a lifetime of passion for Italian cuisine.
Back in 2011, they were on a visit to Italy, falling deep in love with art, Michelangelo’s work and Italian cuisine.
With Italy on their mind, just a year later they met Vineyard Proprietor Laura Volkman and struck up a dynamic partnership. Bill wanted to learn everything there was to know about Pinot Noir – from farm to bottle. Laura was happy to mentor him and ended up selling her estate to him a year later.
The rest is bottled history.
Vino Vasai Family
Potters Vineyard, translated in Italian to Vinao Vasai, is a family (some biological, some not) passionate for good food, good wine, good art and who want to make an intimate product that actually makes a personal impact.
Assistant Winemaker Consultant Art Roberts joined the team exactly for that reason, to be part of a family-run winery that makes incredible, affordable small-lot wines.
Keeping with the family vibe, Sandy (tasting room and wine club manager), and Gretchen (customer service specialist). Daughter Melinda and son Eric help with harvest, tasting room, and digital support.
The family does tractor work, vineyard management, and grape sampling along with help from several friends. The family and wine club pick fruit for their Rose’ each year. Potter’s Vineyard is truly a “Grower-Producer”.
The Vino Vasai Region
The Sanchez’s purchased their 3.5-acre estate vineyard in 2012 from Laura Volkman. Laura planted the vineyard in 2001. She sold and partnered with Bill and Sandy on the 1,000 steps of growing and making premium Oregon Pinot Noir.
They were attracted to the artisan feel of the tasting room Laura created and have since transformed it into a Clay Art Gallery. Customers visit and taste wine in a fine art gallery and vineyard setting.
The wine is made in a cooperative studio of several winemakers. Bill & Sandy make all the wine themselves, sort fruit by hand, do all the punch downs and make all decisions from primary fermentation through barrel aging in French Oak. Wines are kept separated to create Reserve, Barrel Select and House labels and are bottled one to two years after harvest.
The vineyard is certified LIVE, Salmon Safe, and Bee Safe Farming with a focus on immune health.
This is a special bottle. Let’s start with the grapes. Pommard and Dijon 777 planted at 700 feet elevation in the newly established Laurelwood District, a sub-AVA of the Chehalem Mountains and Willamette Valley AVA’s. What does this tell us? Lots of cool, wetweather creating that well-known Willamette Valley elegance.
The grapes were picked at peak ripeness during a small window of perfect timing in an otherwise very fickle harvest season. As a result: lower alcohol, great acidity, complex flavors.
They chose lees aging in new French Oak to create a very classic Oregon Pinot Noir.
Deep ruby in the glass. Pronounced black cherry on the nose. Black plum, white pepper. Medium body, medium tannin, with a long finish.
With only 98 cases produced, good luck getting your hands on this bottle. But if you can, do it.
Vino Vasai Super Tuscan 2020 Columbia
Vino Vasai Super Tuscan 2020 Columbia
When a trip to Italy inspires a bottle, everyone wants to have a taste. Their goal was to share “a taste of Italy.”
The blend is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Sangiovese and 12% Merlot
This Super Tuscan is grown in high elevation vineyard sites in the Rattlesnake Hills AVA ofWashington State.
Warm days, cool nights help the grapes ripen with complex flavorsand great acidity. Aged in neutral barrelsfor 18 months.
Deep ruby in the glass. Fresh red cherry and red currant on the nose. Medium body, velvety tannins, black cherry and blueberry notes. Silky mouthfeel and a medium finish that holds on just long enough, playfully inviting you for the next sip.
Pairs well with any traditional Italian dishes – think lasagna, sausage, spicy meats, meat pizza. Very Tuscan, indeed
Vino Vasai Wine Club
The Wine Club has 2 tiers: B Club and M Club
Both offer discounts, specials, members only access, invitations and more.
Visitors are encouraged to stroll through the vines and enjoy the hilltop view of Parrett Mountain to the East, The Oregon Coast Range to the West, and Dundee Hills to the South.
The wines are available direct from the tasting room, online at www.pottersvineyard.com or in a few local wine shops near the vineyard.
Tastings are By Appointment Only at 11am, 12:30pm, 2pm and 3:30pm.
This Thanksgiving in NYC, the perfect stuffing bread DOES exist – and it’s brioche. As in St Pierre Brioche Thanksgiving Stuffing
No Thanksgiving spread is complete without a hearty stuffing. While add-ins are a matter of preference, choosing the right bread is crucial. One underrated choice is eggy, rich brioche – and with St Pierre Bakery, you don’t need to go to France to get it.
Thanks to its butter and egg content, St Pierre’s Brioche Loaf provides the perfect balance of crisp toastiness while remaining soft and creamy inside, while its lightly sweet flavor adds a decadent quality that can still lean savory. Attached below is an approachable recipe for stuffing allowing for all the craveable crunch for the whole family with minimal effort required.
St Pierre Brioche Thanksgiving Stuffing
By @BrandiMilloy
Ingredients
1 loaf St. Pierre Brioche Bread
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 medium onion, diced
3/4 cup celery, diced
3/4 cup carrots, diced
1 cup mushrooms, diced
2 large eggs
1 tbsp. fresh rosemary, chopped
3 sprigs fresh thyme, just the leaves
1 tbsp. fresh sage, chopped
1 small apple (granny smith works well), peeled and diced
Salt and pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 F. Cut brioche bread into 1” cubes and bake for about 10-15 minutes until toasted.
Meanwhile, into a pot over medium high heat add butter until melted. Add onion, celery and carrots and cook until everything starts to soften, about 7 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook for 2 minutes longer. Remove from heat and set aside.
Into a bowl whisk together the eggs, herbs, apples, mushrooms, and salt and pepper. Add your cooked vegetables and mix to combine.
Pour mixture on top of toasted bread and stir to combine. Bake stuffing for about 45 minutes. If your stuffing starts to get too brown, cover until finished baking. Enjoy!
As America’s favorite brioche brand, St Pierre’s products are widely available via grocery stores nationwide as well as Walmart.
In today’s health-focused culture, where wellness transcends mere goals to become a lifestyle, mushroom coffee is emerging as a leading trend. This innovative beverage combines the classic energizing effects of coffee with components often linked to the reputed benefits of medicinal mushrooms. Such a blend makes mushroom coffee a more mindful, health-oriented option for daily consumption, resonating especially with those who weave wellness into their daily routines.
Image courtesy of Freepik
The uniqueness of mushroom coffee lies in its ability to enhance the usual coffee experience by potentially offering additional benefits. For those who find regular coffee too acidic, mushroom coffee presents a more stomach-friendly option. Additionally, it incorporates adaptogenic mushrooms, which are believed to help the body better manage stress. This attribute makes mushroom coffee especially enticing to wellness enthusiasts and those seeking a natural way to support their body’s stress response.
The Rise of Mushroom Coffee, Image Courtesy of Freepik
Finding a coffee that delivers on both taste and health promises can be a daunting task. Leading the initiative is More.Longevity & Wellbeing with its Coffee Superfood Blends. These products are meticulously developed, selecting each ingredient for its quality and scientific backing, ensuring they contribute effectively to the blend. Flavors such as Salted Caramel Vanilla and Mocha are designed to mask the natural earthiness of mushroom, making the beverage more enjoyable while enhancing its appeal. The addition of adaptogens and essential vitamins in the blends aims to support overall health by boosting immunity, enhancing energy, and improving mental clarity.
The Rise of Mushroom Coffee, Image Courtesy of More.Longevity & Wellbeing
The company’s commitment to radical transparency ensures that consumers receive a product free from unnecessary fillers and additives, affirming a respect for consumer health and environmental sustainability. This level of honesty and ecological consideration is becoming increasingly important to consumers who prefer products that are both healthy and environmentally conscious.
As the trend continues to carve a niche within the beverage market, consumers are presented with expanding choices. It’s no longer just about picking a brand; it involves selecting a philosophy and a level of quality that resonates with personal health values and taste preferences. The coffee not only invites coffee lovers to rethink their daily mug but also serves as a gateway to a more mindful and intentional morning routine.
Are NYers falling in love with New Wine? Dancing Wines from Cynthia Russell, Lauren Russell in Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County.
The team at Dancing Wines is developing a collection of sensory brands that celebrate life through taste, touch and aroma – inspiring you to find your inner dance and show the world what truly moves you.
Dancing Wines’ red wine trio includes Old Vine, Duo and Estate — three limited-release wines made from hand-picked grapes that showcase the full breadth of the Dancing estate.
Lauren Russell (L) and Cynthia Russell (R) from Dancing Wines Credit: https://instagram.com/DancingSonoma
Today’s conversation with the dynamic Mother / Daughter team Cynthia and Lauren Russell from Dancing Wines ha been edited for length and clarity.
Joe Winger: What is the most important message you’d like to share today?
Lauren Russell: I think one of them is dancing is art and art is life.
Another is love needs no explanation. I think really the thread between those is we’re trying to create a product and an experience that brings people together and invites them to find their inner dance, which is something we say a lot.
So we want to encourage people to find their unique rhythms. And wine is also really lovely because it is a vehicle that brings people together to enjoy a moment and diverse people together.
I think my Mom [Cynthia] can speak to this as well, but one of the things we thought about when first exploring wine was just how daunting the whole atmosphere is around the consumption of it and the buying and using all the right adjectives.
Especially for my generation I feel like there’s a bit of a learning curve. So I think one thing we really want people to take away from the brand is just like, just enjoy it. Love needs no explanation and you can’t drink wine when your mouth is full of adjectives. We’ve created a great wine just for you to be able to enjoy and to describe however you want and enjoy whenever you want.
Source: WeAreDancing.com
Cynthia: Yeah, I think the measures we created we have a beautiful heritage property that the soil and the climate create this great wine. And me being of an older generation where wine was very intimidating, even though I know a lot about it.
And drinking it for a very long time. I’ve lived in France. I’ve lived in California. It’s still when you order in a restaurant, you’re scared. Do I know enough? I’m going to be embarrassed. Is this the right pairing? And what the good news is that wine making in the world has become so sophisticated that if you are buying wine from a place that is special, including all.
Sonoma or France or Italy, the wines are good, they’re really good and all you have to do is be comfortable with yourself and enjoying it. And so that’s what we’re trying to do is take a product that has thousands of years of history as being a part of our culture and make you comfortable with just having fun, enjoying it and celebrating what wine can do to bring people together.
Source: WeAreDancing.com
Joe Winger: You have a really unique story that you restored a vineyard up in Dry Creek. Can you talk about experience and what you learned from the restoration?
Cynthia: We lucked out. It was a Covid purchase. We spent a lot of time as a family together in very small confined spaces drinking a lot of wine.
We [thought we] might end up needing a place where we have more outdoor space and can be together. So we bought this property more as a farm and then discovered that it was a unique part of the world.
Zinfandel grapes have been growing in this small region for over 150 years.
It was called America’s grape back in the time I think [the] 1850s. Okay, we have these vineyards. They’re really old.
There was one owner at this property for 60 years, an older Italian gentleman. And a lot of the area is multi generation, fourth generation Italian families who came over and cultivated this grape.
We never intended to make wine and yet we were scared to let this history and heritage die.
So we took classes and tried to figure out, can we make wine?
It’d be such a shame to let this history go in this special place.
We made a great discovery, which was that you don’t have to be an expert on wine. You just have to have great soil and a great climate.
Then we launched from there.
Source: WeAreDancing.com
Lauren: We’re always towing the line between the respective tradition and traditional winemaking and the land and all of the old vines and creating something new.
She [Mom, Cynthia] always brings a lens of respect for the older generation and ways of life and what wine has meant to her throughout her life.
I’m always pushing the other direction. We always land somewhere in the middle.
You’ll see that in the brands, it has really playful branding and packaging. But, our winemaking is a bit more traditional. We’re a sustainable vineyard but we have old vines and we respect what the land has to offer and what it’s been offering in that region for a long time.
It creates a better product and brand for us because we get to cater to both audiences.
Credit: https://instagram.com/DancingSonoma
Joe Winger: You have a collection of sensory brands. Can you talk about what that collection is, what inspired the idea, and what we should be looking for?
Lauren: All of the products have been and will be inspired by the backdrop of the vineyard.
When we talk about wine, we talk about this kind of multi sensory experience, whether that’s aroma or where you’re having it, who you’re enjoying it with.
We came into wine knowing that it was going to be not just about taste or smell, but about the holistic experience of what wine could do for someone.
Sort of the thread between all of our products are taste, touch and smell. Again, like finding your inner dance and allowing you to express your personality.
We’re launching a trio of fragrances, which are loosely inspired by the terroir and the vineyard.
Cynthia: We have a fresh perspective on Sonoma. Every time we arrive, we have this nose full of these incredible senses:, the smell of moss, crushed grapes, barrel, fire and oak.
Yeah. So we’re like, wow. Every time we arrive, we’re like, wow, this is really cool.
This is so distinct and unique and just elevates your experience of being there.
We are going to bring more experiences to the brand when we can, like having an artist in residence, creating visually beautiful contributions.
We have an art collection there that inspired us to bring art to the brand. It’s largely from a diverse group of artists from the West Coast who are very colorful and young and also push boundaries. So our idea with the senses is like we’re trying to This is a brand that you enter into our world and you get to experience people and life in a way that’s very unique and bold and
Credit: https://instagram.com/DancingSonoma
Joe Winger: What are both of your backgrounds outside of wine?
Lauren: I was raised in Connecticut and went to Dartmouth for undergrad, was a creative non-fiction writer, so always had that storytelling bent.
After school, I worked at a lot of businesses in marketing. Uber Eats, Refinery29, right before the pandemic, I worked for AB and Bev that was my first kind of foray into alcohol.
Then during COVID, I got my MBA at Columbia. We all got this massive reset of our priorities. I come from an entrepreneurial family. This opportunity arose
Cynthia: We’re a family who really believes in experiences. I have dabbled in many different areas. I went to Scripps college. I actually was a dance major until I was not. I became an international relations major. I lived in France for a while. Then moved to New York City and worked for JP Morgan trading stock, money market securities.
I didn’t find that was my passion, so I went to Harvard Business School and I got a master’s in business. Then I worked for American Express where I started a weekend travel program. It was a little startup within the travel segment of American Express. I got my “sea legs” of starting a business.
I quit that business because I had kids, then I started my own mail order company then I decided again, that maybe I needed a little more education.
I went back and got a doctorate at Columbia in organizational leadership.
I have a consulting firm on the side where I consult leaders and organizations about how to handle complex challenges in a complex world.
So my daughter [Lauren] gets through business school and we decide to marry all these wonderful experiences together and create something really new and unique.
Credit: https://instagram.com/DancingSonoma
Joe Winger: Let’s talk about your wines.
Lauren: We launched with our rosé which is really beautiful. It’s an intentional rosé. From our Primitivo grapes and we harvested them early and intentionally for rosé.
It has this really beautiful distinct, watermelon, almost Jolly Rancher aroma, and it’s really playful and full, but also dry. And it’s been a really big hit so that was a fun debut for us.
We just launched our trio of reds, and what makes them unique goes into the story about the restoration of the vineyard.
We’re still learning our land and learning from it.
We chose to harvest from different blocks and treat the wines in a similar fashion and bottle them separately to see what personalities they expressed.
One is the Old Vine Zinfandel, which is from our oldest head trained vines which is the deepest, moodiest, richest wine. It’s really lovely.
Credit: https://instagram.com/DancingSonoma
Then we have an estate wine, which is actually from Primitivo, a different word for Zinfandel. That one is a bit lighter.
Then we have a third, a duo which is a blend of both. And so it’s really helped us to understand. And they are quite different.
They’re obviously all Zinfandels in their expressions, but they’re all quite different.
People say Zinfandel is like a map of the land and I think that’s really true here. Which is super cool.
But we have two forthcoming sparkling wines because I think it really speaks to our ethos about being playful and to my generation.
Cynthia: It’s really fun for us because being on the East coast, Zinfandel is a really unknown varietal and we think it’s underrated. Californians know it’s been around for a long time. It has a lot of possibilities with food. And so what we’re trying to do is bring to light this really good wine and do it in a slightly different way.
We pick ours earlier, trying to have it be less jammy, juicy, heavy; lighter, less alcoholic than some of the more traditional Zinfandels that are on our street.
That’s really trying to address the changes consumer changes.
Our wines are chillable, super easy to eat with most any food, especially ethnic food, spicy food.
2022 was our first vintage. 2023 is already in barrels and we’ll be bottling that in probably in March. But it’s going to be a little different because the climate was different that year.
The rosé was just a fluke. Our winemaker wanted to try a Zinfandel rosé. Most people love it. It’s so distinct and unique.
Our 24 Rosé will come out in March. The reds will come out in the early summer. We’re going to bottle the sparkling in January, but that will be at least a year until you’ll see that. The pétillant naturel will probably be launching at about the same time as the rosé
Credit: https://instagram.com/DancingSonoma
Lauren: What’s fun about having both an early release sparkling and a [second, additional] later release [sparkling wine] one is going to be lighter, more effervescent, maybe geared towards the younger generation and the other will have that toastier champagne flavor.
Joe Winger: Do you have a favorite wine and food pairing?
Lauren: This one’s so hard. Rosé and oysters or any seafood is just awesome. Sparkling wine and a burger is one of my favorites.
In terms of red, when I think of Zinfandel, it’s Thanksgiving foods. It speaks to the hominess in our story. Bringing everyone around the table. Kind of experiential pairing.
Cynthia: Yeah, that resonates with me.
We have a lot of ethnic food, so it holds up really well to spice, to sweet and sour, salty and sweet. So it’s great with Indian food, Mexican food. Apples in your pork chops.
A burgundy is usually killed instantly by those kinds of flavors. It’s too fragile.
[Ours] is not fragile, but it still has so many nice aromas and flavors to enhance whatever you’re eating.
Lauren: It’s great with pizza. Pizza and a nice glass of Zinfandel
Source: WeAreDancing.com
Joe Winger: What’s something magical about Sonoma that you learned through this journey?
Lauren: True of both Zinfandel and Sonoma it always has this underdog energy to Napa. One of the hidden gems, we wake up really early and drive to the Redwood forest to watch the sun rise through the trees.
We eat a burrito because we have terrible burritos in New York.
There’s an amazing food community, 3 Michelin star restaurant, chefs, farm to table.
Cynthia: The distinct part of Sonoma is how important nature is to everyone there. It’s not just about wine. It’s incredible nature.
We both traveled a lot, lived in a lot of places. I’ve never seen such natural beauty in such a small area.
Lauren: That’s what the idea of our products is too. We have to bring people here in some way, differently than just having them taste the wine.
So as many dimensions as we can bring people into that realm to experience [00:29:00] that it’s like definitely the dream.
Joe Winger: Whether it’s social media, website, or other ways, what are the best ways for our audience to find and follow Dancing Wine?
Joe Wehinger (nicknamed Joe Winger) has written for over 20 years about the business of lifestyle and entertainment. Joe is an entertainment producer, media entrepreneur, public speaker, and C-level consultant who owns businesses in entertainment, lifestyle, tourism and publishing. He is an award-winning filmmaker, published author, member of the Directors Guild of America, International Food Travel Wine Authors Association, WSET Level 2 Wine student, WSET Level 2 Cocktail student, member of the LA Wine Writers. Email to: Joe@FlavRReport.com
Oscar Nominee Laura Linney best known for her acclaimed film roles, multiple Tony and Emmy nonimations sets her Broadway return in the new Pplay By ‘Proof’ Playwright David Auburn
Laura Linney will return to Broadway Spring 2023 in a new play by Pulitzer Prize winner David Auburn (Proof).
The Manhattan Theatre Club production of Summer, 1976
will reteam the writer with his Proof director Daniel Sullivan.
Summer, 1976 will begin previews on Tuesday, April 4, 2023 at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre.
Additional casting, the opening night date and creative team for Summer, 1976 will be announced soon.
MTC describes Summer, 1976 as:
a “deeply moving, insightful piece…
is about connection, memories, and the small moments that can change the course of our lives. Over one fateful summer, an unlikely friendship develops between Diana, a fiercely iconoclastic artist and single mom, and Alice, a free-spirited yet naive young housewife. As the Bicentennial is celebrated across the country, these two young women in Ohio navigate motherhood, ambition, and intimacy, and help each other discover their own independence.”
Linney is a five-time Tony Award nominee, most recently for 2020’s My Name is Lucy Barton, and a four-time Emmy winner, most recently for her starring role in Showtime’s The Big C.
Sullivan and Linney have worked together on Broadway several times, including 2017’s The Little Foxes. In addition to Proof, Sullivan directed Auburn’s 2012 play The Columnist.
Bernstein, West Side Story Suite (Arr. Brohn/czarnecki)
Soprano Larisa Martinez
“Our concept for the Voice and the Violin program began during the pandemic, while we were quarantined and finding new ways to collaborate and enjoy music together.
Although finding repertoire written specifically for violin and voice can be a challenge, we discovered and fell in love with these gems featured in tonight’s performance.
An example of this comes from one of Mendelssohn’s lesser-known works, “Ah, ritorna, età dell’oro” from Infelice.
It was wonderful to explore a work by one of our favorite composers that was originally written for this unique instrumentation.
Another happy discovery was Hérold’s “Jours de mon enfance” from the opera Le pré aux clercs. This piece features exciting dialogue moments between the voice and the violin, making it especially fun for us to perform this piece together.
Larisa is especially proud to showcase the song ‘Mi Rancho’ by Puerto Rican composer Narciso Figueroa, and lyrics by Luis Lloréns Torres, as a little gem from her homeland. Closing the performance is a medley based on Bernstein’s beloved West Side Story suite, arranged by our friend Charles Czarnecki. Based on an earlier violin and orchestra arrangement of the suite, this piece now sparkles in a new light.
We are so happy to see this project come to fruition and are thrilled to be performing it with our friend Peter Dugan.” – Joshua Bell and Larisa Martínez
President Bill Clinton and Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton in Conversation with David Rubenstein at NYC’s 92Y May 4
Join President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton — two of the most consequential world leaders of our time — in a major conversation on their pathbreaking lives in politics and the power of transformative leadership with David Rubenstein.
During his time as president, Bill Clinton led longest economic expansion in US history, including the creation of 22 million jobs. In her decades of public service, Hillary Clinton has broken barrier after barrier, working tirelessly to improve the lives of all Americans through health care legislation, economic policy, and diplomacy — and in so doing became an icon for women and girls the world over.
In celebration of our 150th anniversary, the Clintons come together on our stage for the first time ever in a candid discussion on their remarkable lives — what they’ve learned from one another, how they have influenced each other’s leadership styles and politics, their hopes for the future of America, and much more.
People Who Inspire Us: A 150th Anniversary Series
This series is made possible through the support of David Rubenstein
For 150 years, The 92nd Street Y, New York has been a vital center for culture, connection, and enrichment. And for the last 40 of these years, the 92NY Recanati-Kaplan Talks series – the premier forum for conversation in the nation – is where thought leaders and culture shapers have come to engage in the kind of unparalleled talks that leave the rest of us talking, and that open hearts and minds.
To mark our 150th anniversary, 92NY Recanati-Kaplan Talks presents a series of select events, People Who Inspire Us. This special series is conceived to feature exceptionally distinguished figures in American cultural life who have used their prominence in a meaningful way to better the world.