THE FITNESS ISSUE
When they started dating, in the 2010s, Aaron Trotman and his now wife, Miranda, spent every free minute traveling the world together on epicurean adventures. “We were Anthony Bourdain–ing across the beaten track,” says Trotman, a serial entrepreneur from Melbourne, Australia, with a background in cosmetics. They signed up for food tours in Paris and chased down the best ramen in Tokyo. In New York and London, they booked the most talked-about Michelin-star restaurants. While he often ordered wine pairings with his lengthy tasting menus, Miranda—who gets flushed from drinking alcohol—opted for intoxicant-free wine substitutes. Much to their surprise, these house-made libations, which skewed savory rather than sweet, were often more interesting than his aged cuvées. “Miranda's drinks were very creative, with unusual ingredients,” he recalls.
Back home in Melbourne in 2018, one particularly eye-opening meal, a 14-course tasting menu at Lûmé, left Trotman inspired—not just gastronomically but entrepreneurially. He was particularly taken with the clarified apple
