SLO LIFE FebMar2021

SLOmagazine 

UPCOMING 

EVENTS 

LOCAL 

TASTE 

HEALTH 

TRENDS 

NOW 

HEAR 

THIS 

NEWS 

BRIEFS 

SEASO 

FEB/MAR 2021 

SLOLIFEMAGAZINE.COM 

FAVO 

ON THE 

LIFE 

TRAL COAST 

AL ESTATE 

TAKING IN 

HE VIEW 

BREW 

HOPS 

INE 

OTES 

STUDENT 

SPOTLIGHT 

IMELINE 

MEET 

ART DOMINGUEZ JR 

FEB/MAR 2021 | SLO LIFE MAGAZINE | 1

Proudly Serving Central Coast 

Communities Since 1947 

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2 | SLO LIFE MAGAZINE | FEB/MAR 2021

M O D E R N • C L A S S I C • J E W E L R Y 

1 1 2 8 G A R D E N S T R E E T S A N L U I S O B I S P O W W W . B A X T E R M O E R M A N . C O M 


THANK 

YOU. 

Thank you for wearing face coverings, maintaining physical 

distancing, washing hands thoroughly, staying home when 

feeling ill and using SLO Transit for essential travel only. 

Thank you SLO for preserving the health and wellness of our 

community. We appreciate you. 


IT’S TIME TO THINK DIFFERENTLY 

LIVE BETTER. LEAVE A LEGACY. 

William Henry Crew III, CA Insurance License #0B17626 is a Registered Representative with and securities and advisory services offered 

through LPL Financial, member FINRA/SIPC. Financial Planning offered through Crew Wealth Management, 

a registered investment advisor and separate entity of LPL Financial. 


CONTENTS 

Volume 

20 

22 

24 

12 

Number 1 

Feb/Mar 2021 

28 

Briefs 

View 

Q&A 

MEET YOUR 

NEIGHBOR 

10 

PUBLISHER’S 

MESSAGE 

12 

14 

16 

18 

Info 

Sneak Peek 

In Box 

Timeline 

6 | SLO LIFE MAGAZINE | FEB/MAR 2021 

26 

NOW HEAR THIS

Destination 

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Downtown 

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cult status, Open Air Flowers 

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With a stunning array of fresh 

flowers, their friendly curbside 

service has been a fixture 

in SLO for over 30 years. 

#sanluisobispocollection 

Lauren Boudreau is a floral designer 

who grew up in San Luis Obispo. 

She loves working and hanging out dowtown 

and her favorite flower is the blue thistle. 

Court Street • Monterey Street • Downtown Centre 

WORLD-CLASS AND LOCALLY OWNED BRANDS IN THE HEART OF SAN LUIS OBISPO 


| CONTENTS 

58 

62 

Real Estate 

Health 

68 

TASTE 

74 

WINE NOTES 

38 

ARTIST 

40 Explore 

42 

On the Rise 

78 

Brew 

44 

Dwelling 

82 Happenings 


Make the New Normal 

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| PUBLISHER’S MESSAGE 

After a long walk home from school, I would drop my backpack and Dukes of Hazzard lunch pail at the end of 

our driveway and scoop up the sun-bleached red, white, and blue basketball hidden in the flower bed. 

The concrete was cracked and uneven, bent in the shape of a crescent moon. Shots taken from the right side of 

the key were from the lawn. Shots from the left were not possible unless you scaled the juniper bush, which was 

sometimes required during a heated game of HORSE. 

Shooting jumpers was the equivalent of Transcendental Meditation for me. With each snap of the net, I fell 

deeper into cosmic consciousness, forgetting more and more of whatever my sixth-grade teacher, Mrs. Rudig, 

said about grammar that day—subjects and predicates. 

Invariably, my neighbor across the street, the one who was always working on his truck, Donny Dilbeck, would walk up as he polished off the last of his 

drink—a yellow can marked with only four capital letters: “BEER.” Wiping his mouth with the back of his band-aided hand, he’d ask the same question 

he always asked. “Hey, Tommy, how ‘bout some one-on-one?” 

He was quicker than me, and stronger too, but he was short with stubby limbs. And, while his cowboy boots gave him an extra inch or two, they were 

also his Achilles heel. It didn’t take me long to figure out how to steer him toward grease spots left behind by our oil-hemorrhaging Volkswagen 

Vanagon. Every time, he would slip, which gave me an opening for an easy steal. That’s when he’d cry out with indignation: “Foul!” 

It’s an unspoken basketball norm: you don’t call fouls on kids who are twenty years younger than you, no matter how hard they hack. But, in this case, 

I didn’t so much as graze his paper-thin tank top as he drove to the hoop, barreling down the lane for a layup, wild-eyed and out-of-control, slamming 

into our aluminum garage door. “Foul!” he’d shout in feigned agony as I watched the solo melodrama unfold from ten feet away. Luckily, he couldn’t 

make a free throw if the camshaft in his Ford F150 depended on it. 

We always played “loser’s-outs,” so after I scored, he’d get the ball back. That’s when he’d come charging in again, stammering and sputtering and cussing 

as his elbows flailed, filling my nostrils with some combination of generic Gemco beer, WD-40, Lucky Strikes, and rust-tinged antifreeze. Clank. 

Another miss. “Foul!” 

I’d shake my head in disagreement with the call as I watched him amble to the free throw line in his square-toed Laredos, going through his protracted 

routine. Three bounces. Spin the ball in his hands. Three more bounces. Mutter something about Larry Bird—“Larry Legend.” Bend his knees. Close his 

eyes. Spin the ball. Open his eyes. Stand straight. Bend again. Shoot. Clank. 

Once, we both scrambled for a loose ball, our hands hit it simultaneously causing it to rocket through the plate glass window over the kitchen sink. We 

kept going though. No use worrying about it. Mom would be at work for another few hours. And we couldn’t end on a tie. 

Over the years, I grew vertically while Donny expanded horizontally. Each time the game became more lopsided in my favor. Every once in a while, he’d 

get hot at the line and sneak out an upset win, which I would hear about for as long as he could come up with excuses as to why he couldn’t play. “Can’t 

today—threw out my back cranking the torque wrench.” 

But he could never stay away for long. A few days later, he’d be back calling fouls every time I breathed on him. Clank. 

With the whole family working from home these days, our basketball court gets a lot of use. Between editing, and Zoom meetings, and filling out 

whatever form has to be filled out, you can often find me out there meditating. Sometimes, my sixth-grade son, Harrison, will come outside between his 

online classes—joining me for something we used to call “recess”—to ask a question: “Hey, Dad, how ‘bout some one-on-one?” 

As he begins pulling ahead, running up the score, my mind drifts. And I remember how to win. At least every once in a while. “Foul!” 

Thank you to everyone who has had a hand in producing this issue of SLO LIFE Magazine and, most of all, to our advertisers and subscribers—we 

couldn’t do it without you. 

Live the SLO Life! 

One-on-One 

Tom Franciskovich 

tom@slolifemagazine.com 

p.s. If you’d like to read more visit me at tomfranciskovich.com 


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SLO LIFE 

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Elder Placements realizes the 

IMPORTANCE of listening to the 

client, in order to find the appropriate: 

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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS 

Charlotte Alexander 

Jeff Al-Mashat 

Brant Myers 

Lauren Harvey 

Paden Hughes 

Zara Khan 

Jaime Lewis 

Andria McGhee 

Joe Payne 

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS 

Javier Buenavista 

Scott Graham 

David Lalush 

Mark Nakamura 

David Pisnoy 

Vanessa Plakias 

Jeremy Thomas 

CONTRIBUTIONS 

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Nicole Pazdan, CSA, 

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 

info@slolifemagazine.com 

4251 S. Higuera Street, Suite 800 

San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 

Letters chosen for publication may be edited for clarity and space limitations.

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| SNEAK PEEK 

ON THE COVER 

behind the scenes 

WITH ART DOMIGUEZ JR. 

BY VANESSA PLAKIAS 

We decided to meet at one of Art’s favorite sunset spots 

close to Dinosaur Caves, which is near where he lives in 

Shell Beach. He walks there every night with his partner, 

Greg, and their dog, Clifford, to watch the sunset. 

During the shoot, 

Art received a call. 

It went from really 

jovial to serious, 

very quickly. Greg 

turned to me and 

said, “You’re seeing 

real life. He is always 

there for the hospital, 

always taking these 

calls. It’s his life.” 

While we were doing our beach shoot, we saw and met a 

local artist, Jeff Brown. He was building a rock structure 

in memory of a loved one who had just passed—this was 

happening simultaneously during the beginning of the shoot. 

Once we saw the fire lit, we were blown away. Gorgeous. 

The beach and the ocean fills him with hope and joy for the 

next day. And it’s essential Art let go of some of the more 

traumatic parts of his job. He needs to be on his A-game for 

all the people who need him daily. 



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| IN BOX 

Take us with you! 

Hey, SLO LIFE readers: Send us your photos the next time you’re relaxing in town or traveling 

far and away with your copy of the magazine. Email us at info@slolifemagazine.com 

LAKE TAHOE 

MESQUITE DUNES, DEATH VALLEY 

NATALIA WELLMAN 

CHRIS CALL with HEIDI and JUSTIN BORDERS 

ARCHES CANYON NATIONAL PARK 

CRATER LAKE, OREGON 

PARK FAMILY 

LAURA HEIDEN 


Please send your photos and comments to info@slolifemagazine.com 

Visit us online at slolifemagazine.com 

Letters may be edited for content and clarity. 

To be considered for publication your letter should include your name, address, phone number, or email address (for authentication purposes).

Emergency 

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| TIMELINE 

LOCAL 

december 2 

San Luis Obispo resident Dawn Ortiz-Legg is 

sworn in as the Third District’s representative 

to the SLO County Board of Supervisors. 

Appointed to the Planning Commission in 

2018 by then-Supervisor Adam Hill, she will 

serve two years of Hill’s four-year term, which 

opened up following Hill’s death in August. 

Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Ortiz- 

Legg to the position from a wide field of local 

applicants for the job. 

december 2 

A mysterious, metallic monolith standing ten 

feet tall and weighing in the neighborhood of 

200 pounds appears on top of Pine Mountain 

in the City of Atascadero’s Stadium Park. It 

is almost immediately torn down by a group 

who traveled from outside the county. Other 

similar monoliths captured public attention 

in November and December when they 

were discovered in Utah, Romania, England, 

and Pittsburg. The three-sided Atascadero 

structure was subsequently replaced by the four 

local artists who took credit for its original 

incarnation: Wade McKenzie, Jared Riddle, 

Travis Kenney, and Randall Kenney. 

december 16 

Two economic development groups on the 

Central Coast agree to join forces and unify 

the organizations in both vision and voice. 

The San Luis Obispo Economic Vitality 

Corporation (EVC) will merge with REACH 

in a combined effort to improve the economies 

of SLO County and northern Santa Barbara 

County. In order to consolidate, a few 

members of the EVC board will join the 

REACH board, which REACH President 

and CEO Melissa James estimates will have 

twenty to twenty five members. 

december 3 

The California Public Utilities 

Commission (CPUC) votes to extend 

its deadline to issue a decision on 

the Diablo Canyon 2018 Nuclear 

Decommissioning Cost Triennial 

Proceeding to March 13, 2021, 

in order to have sufficient time to 

publish a proposed decision, to 

review comments on the proposed 

decision, and to allow the commission 

sufficient time to deliberate and to 

issue its final decision. The next public 

Diablo Canyon Decommissioning 

Engagement Panel meeting will 

be held within two weeks after the 

CPUC issues its proposed decision. 

december 21 

The United States Conference of Mayors recognizes the City of San Luis Obispo for 

its community climate action accomplishments, presenting it a 2020 Climate Protection 

Award: Honorable Mention Small City. The award recognizes the city’s leadership and 

innovation in developing the Clean Energy Choice Program for New Buildings. The award 

comes as the city also reconfirms and advances its commitment to achieving climate action 

consistent with the Paris Climate Agreement. 


REVIEW 

january 9 

The San Luis Obispo Museum of Art unveils its first-ever 

outdoor mural, which covers all four sides of the building in 

downtown SLO. “Pacificaribbean,” designed and executed 

by internationally-renowned artist Juan Alberto Negroni, 

highlights the ability of the arts to bring together a global 

community. Negroni, known for his vibrant, ecological pieces, 

says he concentrated on the mural’s relationship with the natural 

environment visible above the museum, and was inspired by his 

upbringing in Puerto Rico. Cuesta and Cal Poly students assisted 

with the project, which was guest-curated by Emma Saperstein. 

Museum Executive Director Leann Standish says she is thrilled 

to share “Pacificaribbean” with the community in a way that 

allows passersby to experience art in a large-scale way. 

january 12 

The SLO City Council accepts five essential recommendations 

provided by its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Task Force 

with the goal of providing an inclusive and safe community 

for all. The recommendations include allocating appropriate 

resources in the city’s 2021-23 Financial Plan; establishing a DEI 

Office within the city’s organizational structure; developing a 

DEI strategic plan; providing ongoing, annual funding of at least 

$150,000 in high-impact DEI grants for organizations with a 

track record of improving the lives of members of marginalized 

communities; and charging the city’s Human Relations 

Commission to designate DEI as a standing priority. 

january 14 

The Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County 

announces the purchase of the historic 1,715-acre Santa Rita 

Ranch, located at the top of Highway 46 West between the 

Pacific Ocean and Templeton. Begun in 2018 and completed 

at the end of December, the $8 million purchase permanently 

protects the property’s towering valley oaks, dense bay laurel 

forests, a freshwater lake, and a variety of rare and endemic 

flowering plants and succulents. The Conservancy plans to 

maintain the property as a wildlife preserve, sustainable 

working cattle ranch, and a future nature education center 

with funding from the California Wildlife Conservation 

Board’s Streamflow Enhancement Program, private 

individuals, and its own internal reserves. 

january 17 

Virgin Orbit successfully launches Cal Poly’s twelfth CubeSat into 

orbit from the Mojave Air and Space Port in southern California. A 

Launcher One rocket, carried under the wing of a modified Boeing 

747 jet called Cosmic Girl, launched the small satellite, dubbed 

ExoCube 2, mid-flight at 35,000 feet. The purpose of the university’s 

CubeSat program is to provide students with low-cost opportunities 

to study and explore space, while ExoCube 2 was especially designed 

by Cal Poly students to gather data on the mass and density of ions in 

the uppermost region of the earth’s atmosphere. 



| BRIEFS 

“Homelessness is an 

ongoing and very 

complex challenge 

in California, on the 

Central Coast, and in 

our community.” 

With the effects of the COVID-19 

pandemic bringing new urgency to the 

city’s goal of addressing homelessness, 

recent SLO City Council actions will 

result in enhanced, regional efforts in 2021, 

according to City Manager Derek Johnson. 

$143,447 

As of mid-January, the total amount of 

money some 1,000 shoppers had spent at 

more than 130 local businesses as part of 

the City of SLO’s successful “Buy Local 

Bonus Program.” Launched in December to 

reward shoppers who spend at least $100 by 

giving them a $20 gift card, the campaign, 

running through March 12, is funded 

through the Measure G sales tax initiative. 

162,615 

The most ballots ever counted in SLO 

County history. They were cast during the 

2020 general election according to County 

Clerk-Recorder Tommy Gong. Several 

new voting records were set last year as 

well, including the fact that more than 

eighty-eight percent of registered voters 

submitted ballots, shattering the previous 

record of slightly more than eightythree 

percent set in 2008. And 152,741 

people—almost ninety-four percent of all 

voters—voted by mail. 

99 

The number of different species of fish 

(valued at approximately $6 million) 

landed by commercial fishing operations 

working from Morro Bay and Port San 

Luis, according to SLO County’s Annual 

Crop Report. 

Jujubes 

The San Luis Coastal Unified School 

District is buying this ancient and 

nutritious fruit from a local farmer for 

its COVID-19 grocery delivery boxes, 

broadening students’ cultural knowledge 

and taste buds at the same time. The 

district has designed a special curriculum 

around the fruit, which originated in the 

Middle East and Asia, in tandem with 

Chinese New Year lessons in February. 


UndocuSupport 

A collaboration of local organizations, 

community leaders, and concerned 

individuals with a common goal: to 

provide financial support for San Luis 

Obispo County immigrant families, 

including undocumented and mixed status 

immigrant families who were left out of 

federal pandemic relief programs. 

6.9% 

The increase in the SLO Fire Department’s 

number of training hours from last year 

to this, according to the department’s 

2020 annual report. Issued in January 

of 2021, the report shows the Training 

Division delivered 10,631 hours of training 

compared with 9,948 hours in 2019. 

Improved remote learning using CDC 

guidelines contributed to the increase as 

COVID-19 precautions were put in place 

last year. 

4,000 

The number of acres that the Land 

Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County 

has preserved since the middle of 2020, 

including the purchase of the Santa Rita 

Ranch as part of a larger 6,000-acre 

conservation effort along Highway 46 West. 

Conserving these working ranches is part of 

the group’s greater vision to help shape the 

future of the Adelaide region of the County. 

Every Day 

But Sunday 

You can find a Certified Farmers Market 

somewhere in San Luis Obispo County 

on six out of seven days of every week. 

From Arroyo Grande to Paso Robles it’s 

possible to find a market verified by the 

California Department of Agriculture 

that the fresh products sold are indeed 

produced by the grower. SLO LIFE

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| VIEW 

WILD 

BLOOM 

BY MARK NAKAMURA 

Carrizo Plain National Monument (CPNM), 

celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year, was created 

in January 2001. It’s a hidden gem, even among locals. 

Two years ago I had heard about a ‘super bloom’ coming 

to the Carrizo Plain after a good winter of rains. With 

Google Maps as my guide, I exited Highway 101 at Santa 

Margarita, headed through town, and followed Highway 58 

toward this “new” place. 

I decided to take Highway 58 to Soda Lake Road and from 

there, I took 7 Mile Road. I highly recommend this route as 

it offers a sensory overload with the miles of flowers along 

the way, especially where it intersects with Highway 58, 

also known as Carrisa Highway. I stumbled upon carloads 

of people taking selfies with the flowers in the background 

at this junction. Traveling a bit further on 7 Mile Road, I 

found more hillsides of flowers. 

I took this photograph with my Sony a7r III with a 70- 

200mm lens at around 100mm. I set the focus to manual 

(to infinity), shut the aperture to f16, which is a small 

pinhole size, and let the camera’s exposure meter suggest 

the shutter speed. Experimenting with different speeds, I 

found the ideal setting. 

If you embark on this journey, 

you may want to stop by Shell 

Creek Road on your way back, 

which is also abundant with 

flowers (Highway 58 and Shell 

Creek Road). Or you may want 

to make Shell Creek Road a 

destination on another day. 

Please note that there are few 

services in CPNM, so bring a 

picnic or food to snack on and 

fill up with gas before you begin. 

I cannot think of a better way to 

“stop and smell the wildflowers” 

than to take a journey to CPNM 

and Shell Creek Road. SLO LIFE 

MARK NAKAMURA, pursues 

his passion in landscape 

photography as well as 

capturing the joys of 

weddings, families, events, 

and sports around the 

Central Coast. Find him on 

Instagram @nakamuraphoto 



| Q&A 

New Era 

Recently, DAWN ORTIZ-LEGG was appointed by the governor to fill the 

empty seat left in District Three of the San Luis Obispo Board of Supervisors 

by Adam Hill. We had a wide-ranging get-to-know-you conversation with 

her the other day. Here are some of the highlights… 

Where did you start out, Dawn? I’m 

from a small town in Illinois called Morris. 

Half of my family, on my father’s side, were 

Mexican immigrants. My grandfather was 

an orphan and immigrated there by himself. 

And then my grandmother came with her 

mother and siblings. They met in a railroad 

camp, because at that time they had the 

Mexican migrant workers repairing the 

rails. And, so, my father was actually born in 

an abandoned railroad car. That’s what they 

gave the workers to live in, the old box cars. 

My mother’s side of the family were mostly 

Bohemians from the Czech Republic. They 

were from a town called Tábor, which is 

actually part of old Bohemia. 

How was it growing up? You know, 

in a small town everybody kind of knows 

your business. People care about each 

other a whole bunch. There were about 

10,000 people then, and my eighth grade 

graduating class was just thirteen people. 

Lots of us were related to one another 

and a big portion of the economy was 

agriculture-based. That was the big, driving 

force. We really did live the American 

Dream. Even though my father came up in 

a poor, Mexican family, he ended up getting 

a scholarship to go to the Catholic high 

school. From there, he got a great education 

and went on to become an optometrist. His 

education really changed the trajectory of 

our family; it changed our lives. 

Let’s talk about those small town 

roots. Community is very important to 

me. It runs deep in my DNA because I 

understand what a good, healthy community 

can do. Once you experience it, you want 

to be part of it because there is so much 

richness. I grew up with a lot of Swedish 

and Norwegian people—the Johnsons, the 

Swansons, the Hansens, the Ericksons. 

They were people who looked different than 

me. I realized it one day at the grocery store. 

There were a couple of trucks with Mexican 

migrant workers in the back. They had been 

picking tomatoes in the field. And that’s the 

only people I ever saw with dark skin that 

looked like me. So, I said to my dad, “Aren’t 

we going to go see them? Aren’t they our 

family?” Because, who else would they be? 

What sparked your interest in 

politics? It was 1968 and I was in fourth 

grade, and there were a number of things 

that happened in the United States, not so 

different from what’s going on right now. 

There was the assassination of Martin 

Luther King, the Vietnam War, and I read 

the diary of Anne Frank—those things 

together kind of shook me up. And I always 

had a love of history. Political science and 

current events really took hold early on for 

me as a child. It was always my very favorite 

subject matter. I watched every Watergate 

hearing. I watched every convention from 

the time I was in fourth grade on. In 1977, 

I was graduating high school and we were 

just coming out of the Vietnam War, and 

I went to my career counselor and said, “I 

want to study political science.” He said, 

“Why would you want to do that? What 

are you going to do with that?” I just sort 

of shrugged and said, “I don’t know.” What 

can I say? Career counseling was not very 

advanced in those days. 

But, you went on to get an master’s 

degree, correct? Yes, in 2007, I decided 

to do a master’s degree in international 

public policy. And I wanted to do it 

abroad. So, through the Johns Hopkins 

School, I moved to Bologna, Italy with my 

daughter, Georgia, in tow. She was a sixth 

grader. While I was there, I was trying to 

figure a way I could put myself to use and 

find a direction for the passion I felt for 

contributing somehow. So, I befriended a 

classmate who was an Iraq vet, twenty-three 

years in the Marine Corps. We couldn’t have 

been more different. We’d go round and 

round in debates. But we learned a lot from 

each other. And I think the main thing is 

realizing that it’s so easy to be a critic from 

the outside. But once you get inside and you 

start rolling up your sleeves, you see that 

there’s a lot of thought and effort that goes 

into making good policy, good governance. 

It’s just so important to listen to all sides of 

every argument. SLO LIFE 


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| NOW HEAR THIS 


REWIND + 

REMIX 

BY JOE PAYNE 

IMAGE COURTESY OF DULCIE TAYLOR 

After twenty years of performing and releasing her original 

music, Dulcie Taylor found herself in a strange place last 

year—unable to perform or visit the recording studio. 

Originally from South Carolina, and with the honey-tinged 

accent to boot, Taylor has called SLO County home for years. 

Though she’s lived in some of the country’s biggest cities—from 

Washington, D.C. to Los Angeles with their 24/7 music scenes— 

this area was a natural fit, she said. 

“When people go out on the Central Coast, they go out to have 

a good time,” Taylor said. “They go out to dance. And when 

they’re doing anything, even changing the tires, they’re pouring a 

glass of wine.” 

It’s an audience she’s always been able to connect with, that is until 

lockdowns became the norm. 

look at everything again through different lenses—from a different 

viewpoint.” 

To provide that fresh insight into each track, Taylor spent several 

phone calls worth of time with Nauful and Castillo over what she 

wanted done differently with her songs. Going back and listening to 

them together “is like time travel,” she said, that “takes you back to 

where you were and the people you were playing with,” and “it’s like 

you’re right there in that room.” 

Ever since 2012, that room has been Nauful’s Mesa Blue Moon. 

Nauful also sings and performs multiple instruments on her tracks, 

Taylor explained. Their collaborative relationship can be heard 

clearly on the first track of Reimagined, “Easy for You,” which they 

co-wrote. The song exemplifies Taylor’s clear folk/rock sound. Her 

crisp acoustic guitar is met by an understated electric lead, putting 

her voice forward. 

“There’s something you get from playing live that you don’t get 

in any other way,” she said. “I do some of the streaming stuff, and 

that’s great fun, but there’s something you get from a live crowd… 

and I miss it.” 

Always playing it safe throughout the pandemic, Taylor and her 

longtime record producer and collaborator George Nauful decided 

it was best to not record, but that didn’t stop them from releasing 

an EP last year, with another just released. 

Both projects feature songs from across Taylor’s decades of albums 

and EP’s, but they have been retouched and remastered by Nauful 

and released through his Mesa Bluemoon Recordings. Damon 

Castillo, local artist and owner of Laurel Lane Studios, also 

pitched in on the engineer work, Taylor explained. 

Reimagined (The Remixes) came out last year, breathing new life 

into some of Taylor’s favorite tunes. The current release, does just 

the same. 

“This is the perfect time,” she said. “We thought about this 

before for years, you know, wouldn’t it be fun to go back and 

“Oh my god, [Nauful] is a huge part of 

it,” she said. “He comes at it from so many 

different angles. I’ve known great producers 

who don’t play and don’t sing, but he comes 

at it from an artist’s level.” 

Taylor’s voice has always been the star 

of the show. Reminiscent of folk rockers 

like Emmylou Harris and Stevie Nicks, 

Taylor’s is sweet yet smokey, eliciting her 

country roots and a warm, familiar feeling. 

With the hopes that Reimagined and the 

newest EP will help tide her fans over 

until it’s safe to do so, Taylor is itching 

to return to the local live music scene 

and the audience she has cultivated over 

the years. 

“I just fell in love with the Central Coast; 

it’s just so gorgeous,” she said. “To me, it’s 

the only place to live.” SLO LIFE 

JOE PAYNE is a 

journalist, as well as a 

lifelong musician and 

music teacher, who 

writes about the arts on 

the Central Coast. 


| MEET YOUR NEIGHBOR 


PRO 

FILE 

PHOTOGRAPHY BY VANESSA PLAKIAS 

With a resume that spans seven pages—that’s single-spaced 

and without a cover letter—the Chief Nursing Officer at 

San Luis Obispo’s Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center, 

ART DOMINGUEZ JR., knows his way around a hospital. 

Three years ago, he and his partner landed on the Central 

Coast. A lot happened along the way, including enough love 

and loss for several lifetimes. Here is his story… 



kay, Art, let’s take it from the beginning. 

Where are you from? I was born on the 

605 Freeway on my way to Kaiser in LA. 

My mom says I wanted to come out fast, 

and I haven’t stopped since. So, we lived 

in LA County for a few years during my 

childhood before moving to the Inland 

Empire, Riverside County, which is where 

I mostly grew up. I’m the youngest of Oeight. We came from very humble beginnings. My mom was a nurse. It 

was the third career change for her. She went to nursing school during a 

time when my dad was in construction, it was the year there were really 

bad rains and it was flooding everywhere. The economy was tanking, and 

people were losing their jobs. In order to save our house from foreclosure, 

we rented it out and moved into a motorhome. 

Wow, a motorhome, huh? Yep, a Winnebago. My parents pulled the front 

passenger seat out and turned that area into the desk for me to do my 

homework. Then, after that, I’d sleep in the drop-down bunk above. We 

used to have to volunteer a certain amount of hours every month for us to 

be able to stay at the park for free, so we picked up trash and things like 

that. We did that for a few years when I was in junior high and Mom was 

in nursing school. That’s when I knew I was going to go into medicine 

because I liked helping her with her Anesthesiology class, especially 

memorizing all the different organs and bones, and whatnot. 

What came next? We moved to a little town called Nuevo. I was super 

athletic, played varsity volleyball, varsity baseball. I was in band. I was in 

jazz band. I played piano, and also did percussion, and the xylophone. But 

high school was really hard because I knew I was gay and here I am at this 

tiny, private Baptist school going to Bible classes where they say I’m going 

to hell. It was just really difficult. And I never really felt like I fit in even 

though I was very much part of the in crowd, but at the same time people 

would say, sort of in a joking way, I guess, “Oh, you fag. Oh, you’re gay.” 

When did your parents find out? It was after high school, I was 

probably eighteen or nineteen. I told my sister. I said, “I think I’m gay. 

I don’t know. Please don’t tell Mom.” And so, of course, she went and 

told my mom. [laughter] Then my mom came home and said, “You don’t 

know what you’re talking about. You’re confused. We’re going to get 

you some help and some treatment.” Probably about a year after that, I 

was dating a little bit, and I was talking to my sister about a guy I had 

met. My dad overheard the conversation and was completely disgusted. 

That’s when I wound up getting thrown out of the house. I don’t want 

to paint my dad as a bad person, because he’s not. He’s so tender. He’s 

super tender. But he was not having it, and my sister had to intervene. I 

packed my stuff and left. 

Oh, boy… Yeah, it was tough. I went through a strained relationship with 

my parents, who I’m super close with now. They come up here to visit my 

partner and I frequently, and I talk to them on the phone every day on my 

way home from work. But, back then, I had almost no communication 

for a few years. For them, it was tough because they felt like they did 

something wrong. And they got me tested to see if my hormones were 

off. They took me to Christian therapists to see if there was anything they 

could do to help. The therapists would say, “No, these are choices that Art’s 

just going to make. It’s just like alcohol. If he wants to 

drink, he can drink, knowing that the Bible says not 

to do that.” They said it was a choice. I would never 

wish that experience on somebody. It’s very hard to 

wrap your head around, especially as a kid, when 

all you want to do is be accepted and loved by your 

parents. And, the truth is, gay is just a piece of who I 

am; gay doesn’t make me, me. There are many other 

things that make me, me. 

Let’s talk about that. What else make you, you? 

Nursing. Definitely nursing. I’m a nurse when I wake 

up until the time I go to sleep. I actually wound up 

moving back home to finish nursing school. I was 

also working full-time as an assistant manager at 

American Eagle, which is a clothing store. I got my 

degree and started in ER Trauma at Desert Regional 

Palm Springs where I was for about eight years. 

It’s one of the busiest trauma centers in Southern 

California. The penetration rate there—that’s stab 

wounds and gunshots—I think was two or three 

times higher at that hospital than anywhere else in 

LA County. I couldn’t tell you how many people we 

saved, and I couldn’t tell you how many people we 

lost. One thing about me is, whenever I do postmortem 

care, before I put anybody into a body bag, I 

always make sure that I bathe them and clean them as 

best I can. I put a gown on them and put their head 

on a pillow, because I would want that for any one of 

my loved ones, to be treated with the utmost dignity, 

and compassion, and respect. That’s the last nice thing 

I’m able to do for that person who is someone’s mom, 

dad, sister, or brother. 

And what about you and the trauma you 

experienced along the way? It all sort of 

compounded for me until one day when I started 

having this really bad ringing in my ears, and 

nosebleeds. I would feel these episodes of confusion 

and could not figure out what was going on. So, 

I finally walked myself to the ER and I was like, 

“Something’s not right. Can you guys just check my 

blood pressure?” So, they checked my blood pressure, 

and I think it was like 225/115. Super-high. So, they 

laid me down in the room and one of the ER doctors 

came in and said, “I think you’re having a panic 

attack.” So, I had this kind of mental break dealing 

with the pressures of work, and school, and a lot of 

deaths that happened in a short period of time. My 

mind just went “snap.” The panic got so bad that I 

had a period of time where, it was short stints, but 

I couldn’t even leave the house because I’d have an 

attack as soon as I left. 

How did you handle those episodes? It was to a 

point where I thought I was going to have to check >> 


myself in because I honestly felt like I was just going crazy, literally. But, 

thankfully, I was able to see a psychiatrist for the appropriate medications 

and therapy to be able to talk through things. It’s something that I still 

live with. I still do have panic attacks. Some days are better than others. I 

don’t use the word “suffer” from panic attacks, I used to say that. I just say 

I live with them, or I live with anxiety, because it’s a different mindset. I 

don’t suffer from them. They’re part of what I deal with, and what I live 

with. I just try to do my best to manage it, try to be mindful of what my 

body’s telling me. I do a lot of walking, which helps decrease the panic and 

the anxiety and the stress. I make sure I stay in constant communication 

with my therapist, if needed. I’m not ashamed that I’m on medications 

to be able to help me out. I think it’s important for people to understand 

that you can live with panic or anxiety disorder, as well as an assortment 

of behavioral health things, and still be a successful executive, and still be 

high-performing. It just takes work. 

How have others reacted to your openness on this subject? It’s been 

positive for the most part. And I’ve done it, really, talked about mental 

health, that is, in hopes that being open about it will enable people to 

continue to come up to me and say, “Oh my gosh, I’m glad to hear that 

you’re dealing with that because I’m dealing with it too.” Or “It’s nice 

to know I’m not the only one, I’m not by myself.” I think that’s really 

important, to know you’re not alone. Ultimately, in my case, I think the 

root of it is really the accumulative trauma, probably a lot of it unresolved 

over the years. But I don’t want to dwell on the difficulties of nursing, 

and medicine in general, because there is also so much joy, and love— >> 


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elationships where you’re part of a team that saves lives, keeps families 

together. There’s so much dignity and honor in the work we do. You’re 

seeing people at their best, and their worst. And there’s no judgment, only 

love and support. 

So, what came next? Next, I went into Cardiac ICU while I was also 

getting my master’s. And then, they had some newer positions at 

the hospital that had never been there, Nursing Supervisor, which is 

basically responsible for operations of the hospital, and a liaison between 

the hospital and administration. So, I did that for a while, and then 

I became an Interim Director of a couple of nursing units, and then 

applied for the Assistant CNO, which is the Chief Nursing Officer 

position. Got that and was there for a little over two and-a-half years. 

I had so many other jobs while I was at the hospital. I was working 

at an outpatient surgical center in La Quinta. And then, I started up 

the Critical Care Transport program for American Medical Response 

in Palm Springs. They didn’t have one out there, so I started that one 

from the ground up, all during that time, as well. And, when I’d visit 

my partner, who was living in San Francisco at the time, I was also 

doing per diem work at an ER there, Saint Mary’s which is across from 

Golden Gate Park. And then, a little more than three years ago, the 

Chief Nursing Officer position opened up here at Sierra Vista and that’s 

what brought us here. 

You’ve mentioned “us” a few times. Let’s talk about your partner. 

Yes, Greg, my partner—he’s my best friend. I love him with all my heart, 

and there’s nothing better than being in love with your best friend. And 

the thing I think I appreciate most is that we are each a whole person, not 

two halves trying to make a whole, if that makes sense. Together, we make 

each make the other a better person. I don’t have a super romantic story 

about how we met. It was at a bar down in Palm Springs. [laughter] He 

was actually in a relationship, and I was out of a relationship, and we were 

friends for many years before we actually started dating. It feels like just a 

minute ago. I can’t believe it’s been over eight years already. 

>> 


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And how have you both adjusted to the SLO Life? I remember when we 

first moved here, we went to the gas station, and somebody was like, “Hey,” 

and starting up a conversation. Coming up from Southern California, we’re 

like, “Oh, he’s going to wind up asking for money, or he needs something.” 

But it was just a gentleman who was like, “Hey, there’s a new restaurant 

that just opened. It’s not far from here. You guys should totally check it 

out. I had dinner there last night.” He didn’t want anything other than to 

just say, “Hi,” and give a recommendation. It was a very pure feeling. We 

love it here. Bought a little house in Shell Beach a year ago. We’ve lived in 

a few areas, but never where it feels like there’s just such a community. And 

there’s a true desire to make everything for everyone better. It’s not just one 

person, it’s not just one class, it’s not just one group. We love all the small 

businesses here. People are so nice here. Genuinely nice. Sometimes it takes 

a few minutes to get through a four-way stop because everyone just wants 

to let everyone else go first. [laughter] 

Okay, Art, we’ve covered a lot of ground, but is there anything we 

missed? Hmm… I guess I’d say that I love learning, love school. I 

finished up my doctorate a couple years ago. I enjoy meeting new 

people and learning about them. I like to stay busy. I serve on the 

YMCA Board here in SLO, and I’m constantly doing LGBTQ-plus 

advocacy. We’ve got our Healthcare Equality Index at the hospitals 

making sure it’s a place where people feel safe for their care, and 

there’s a lot that goes into that. I chair that for both hospitals here 

in town. I serve as the Incident Command for COVID-19. So, I’m 

literally on twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. And I also 

volunteer as the Chief Nursing Officer for the Cal Poly Alternate 

Care site. Let’s see… what else? Oh, I’ve got a new hobby. I’ve become 

this succulent person. I love succulents. I’ve got so many. And we just 

adopted a rescue dog. We’re having a blast with him. He’s a mix—part 

Terrier, part Chihuahua, part Dachshund. He’s ten pounds, long with 

short legs. Handsome. Tan-colored. His name’s Clifford. Beyond that, 

I guess the only other thing I’d say, and I know we already touched on 

it earlier, but I’m super family-oriented. I love, love, love my family. 

Despite going through all of the ups and downs, I wouldn’t trade 

them for the world. SLO LIFE 


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| ARTIST 

I 

PROFILE 

Ava 

Paterson Werner 

BY JEFF AL-MASHAT 

f, as the adage says, a picture is worth a thousand words, 

what does it mean when many pictures are collected over time, 

combined and collaged, and reworked with new imagery? Do 

those words turn into a story, or a social or political statement, 

or possibly a jumping-off point for a much larger narrative that 

is open to infinite interpretations about our place in this world? 

Morro Bay artist Ava Paterson Werner explores those very 

questions in her paintings that examine the world constructed 

by humans and its often contentious relationship with the 

natural world that pre-dated us. While Werner’s work is 

primarily on the canvas, it shares a deep connection with Earth 

Artists like Robert Smithson and Maya Lin. Her paintings 

evoke those same emotions of human manipulation of nature 

on a grand scale that one can’t help but feel when looking at 

famous Earth Art pieces like Spiral Jetty or Wave Field. The 

difference, though, is that Werner’s work centers on the idea 

that nature will ultimately prevail over time, as it outlasts 

humanity’s mark on it. 

“When I lived in Brooklyn, I was fascinated by the 

juxtaposition of the backyards against the concrete and 

fences. There were trees that grew through fences, and while 

there was a shift in the growth process, the tree still found 

a way to live,” says Werner. “There is a great comfort for 

me in knowing that as some things are built up, and others 

are destroyed, nature has a way of repairing itself, and that 

impermanence informs my work.” 

While the push-pull relationship between humans and nature 

is an evident theme, it is impossible to look at Werner’s 

paintings without forming some type of narrative as a result of 

the people, birds, and other living beings populating the corners 

and cubbyholes of her canvas. In many of the cases, the figures 

and lifeforms seem secondary to 

the overall infrastructure of the 

image, yet each has a sweetness 

and an intimacy that draws the 

viewer in on a personal level. 

There is a sense that we are all 

connected because we have all 

used that same banister going 

down a set of stairs, or there is a 

connection between people across 

vast areas because we have all seen 

the same bird fly over us in our 

own individual space. Werner’s art JEFF AL-MASHAT is a 

itself creates a connection between writer and visual artist with 

an MFA in painting from 

the stories of our daily lives and Georgia State University. He 

the greater impact we leave on 

lives in Grover Beach. 

this earth. SLO LIFE 


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| EXPLORE 

Taking 

the Plunge 

BY PADEN HUGHES 

D 

o you remember when you did something for the first 

time? I’m talking about the first time you blew a bubble 

from your chewing gum or skied downhill with your skis 

shaped like a slice of pizza. 

There is something magical about doing something for the first time. As 

we get older it gets harder to find new things to experience. 

But don’t fret. If we shift our perspective, we can discover that first-timeever 

feeling by taking what has become commonplace and elevating the 

experience to become something new. 

Welcome to how I’ve been spending 2021 so far. Doing the familiar but 

seeking out ways to bring new energy and new experiences to the things 

we love. 

When it comes to filling your calendar with incredible memories and 

keeping your travel plans within the county, breathing new life into a 

staycation becomes a valued skill. 

a second and shake up your predictable beach behavior. 

To experience something new (or something you haven’t 

experienced in a long while) somewhere you already love. 

If you want to do more than a quick dip in the ocean, try 

staying in at least to chest height for three minutes while 

doing intentional breath work. This method of embracing 

freezing temperatures has been made popular by the 

Dutch extreme athlete, Wim Hof, known as The Iceman. 

So, as we all plan to get outside more and enjoy our 

staycation weekends in this beautiful part of the world, 

let’s set down the lens that is local, and view the SLO Life 

like a tourist would. Do things just for the thrill of it. Just 

for the feeling of being on vacation and trying something 

out of the ordinary. 

FUN FACTS: 

Okay, so let’s talk about tourists. Have you ever taken the time to observe 

them while they vacation on the Central Coast? 

The excitement they show over San Luis Obispo County beaches is 

particularly notable. And their trips to the seaside aren’t complete without 

getting into the water, usually without a wetsuit—part of the thrill they 

experience is, no doubt, in from the cold-water shock. The extreme shift 

between warm sunshine and icy ocean waves brings a freshness and 

exhilaration to the experience. And my question to you, dear reader, is: 

When was the last time you dove headfirst into a freezing wave on one of 

our beaches? 

If it’s been a while, I encourage you to experience something renewed the 

next time you head out to the sandy shores—in the name of novelty, in 

the name of spicing up a day on the beach, just to feel wild and free for 

Cold water therapy is a 

popular trend among the 

health and fitness world. 

Benefits of cold exposure 

include: 

• increased plasma levels of a 

number of different immune 

cells 

•increased mood, attention 

and focus 

•increased fat burning 

• activated “brown fat” which 

helps absorb excess glucose 

in the blood SLO LIFE 

PADEN HUGHES is 

co-owner of Gymnazo 

and enjoys exploring 

the Central Coast. 



| ON THE RISE 

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT 

Liz Lua 

With a Golden Tiger, first place at the regional Creed speaking 

contest, as well as several Vet Science Team awards—including 

the National Vet Science Champion—to her name, this San Luis 

Obispo High School senior is destined for success. 

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JAVIER BUENAVISTA 

What extra-curricular activities are you involved in? I am a highly involved 

member of SLO High School’s FFA (Future Farmers of America) chapter where I 

have participated in multiple individual public speaking events, team competitions, 

community service events, drive-thru barbecues, and chapter meetings. I have also 

raised pigs to show at the California Mid-State Fair for four years now. 

What do you like to do for fun? In my free time, I enjoy baking. I also like to go 

on hikes with my parents and dog. 

What is important to you outside of high school? My family is definitely the most 

important thing to me. 

What is one of your favorite memories? One of my favorite memories is when my 

vet science team and I traveled to Indianapolis, Indiana to compete at the 2019 

National FFA Convention. After two days of testing our knowledge on animal 

breeds and parasites, surgical tools, handling and restraining procedures, and the 

differences between corporate and privately owned veterinary clinics, we became 

national champions, and brought the first place trophy back to California. This was 

such a remarkable accomplishment for my team and I, because we had practiced 

endless hours and attended numerous practices and competitions in order to 

perfect our skills and knowledge on this subject. It brings so much pride and relief 

to know that we finally achieved our goal. 

Who has influenced you the most? My parents have influenced me to always 

try my hardest in everything I do. They have sacrificed so much to give my 

siblings and I a great life, and I hope to repay them by being a great student and 

expanding my education. 

If you won $1 million, what would you do with it? The first thing I would do is 

buy my parents a house. I most definitely would like to repay them for everything 

they have done for my siblings and me. I would also use the money to buy a food 

truck for my family so we can expand our catering business, and give people from 

all around the state the opportunity to try our food. 

Do you have a career path in mind? For a long time, my mind was set on 

becoming a registered nurse, but recently I have been interested in studying 

forensic science. It all really comes down to which universities I am accepted to, 

and which one I choose to attend. 

What schools are you considering for college? I have applied to a few 

Universities of California, including LA, Santa Barbara, and Irvine. I also applied 

to some California State Universities like San Diego, Fresno, Chico, Long Beach, 

and a few others. SLO LIFE 

Know a student On the Rise? 

Introduce us at slolifemagazine.com/share 


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| DWELLING 

STYLE BY 


DESIGN 

BY ZARA KHAN 

PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAVID LALUSH 


W 

hen Renee and Jon Franke found their home in Pismo 

Beach, it had already entered the construction phase and 

framing was underway. Since they liked the overall layout 

and views of the home, they realized this was actually the 

perfect time to come into the project. It was early enough 

that with a few alterations it would fit their vision and 

they could still pick all the interior finishes to match their 

preferences, but far along enough 

that they wouldn’t have to wait 

too long until they were able to 

move into their new haven. 

The Frankes are not amateurs 

when it comes to remodeling 

homes. Before relocating to the 

Central Coast for Jon’s job, they 

had completed several remodels 

and new construction residential 

and commercial projects on the 

East Coast. Jon works in the 

Power Generation industry and 

was brought to the Central Coast 

>> 

In addition to being an 

interior designer, ZARA KHAN 

is also a shoe aficionado and 

horror movie enthusiast. 



to help with the Diablo Canyon Power Plant. The region 

was an easy sell to Renee, a personal, professional, and 

business development consultant—she was able to relocate 

her business to the West Coast, work remotely, and travel as 

necessary to meet with clients. 

Their main goal for this home was to not distract from the 

views. They opted for more modern, clean lines and paired 

it with more traditional (classic) finishes to fit the style 

of the home. For example, they were able to find a taupe 

quartz at Pacific Shore Stones that features soft neutrals 

and complements the travertine tile that spans floor to 

ceiling surrounding the modern horizontal fireplace. They 

were also intentional about replicating interior details 

on the exterior. For instance, the dark walnut flooring 

throughout their home, which they sourced locally with 

Cal Coast Flooring, was translated into a dark stained 

front door on the exterior. The natural stone textures on 

the counters and tile throughout the interior were brought 

together with the stone cladding on the front of the home 

and neutral tile flooring found on both terraces. >> 



Renee knew that the one thing that was worth 

changing in order to fit her vision was reframing the 

front door. She could see that the scale of the entry 

demanded something larger and felt like it needed 

double doors instead of a single door. After talking it 

over with their contractors, BDC Development, they 

agreed and made the modifications. It is still Renee’s 

favorite detail of the home. 

My favorite is the window placement. Not only are they 

large, inviting natural lighting along with stunning views, 

but their locations do not interfere with the placement 

of furniture, creating a seamless layout. I also am a big 

fan of the “rule of three”—many designers believe an odd 

number of items look more natural and less forced than 

an even-numbered grouping. The rule offers a balance 

between symmetry and asymmetry. With that in mind, 

I appreciate the window selection; when a span was too 

large for a single, they opted for a set of three. >> 



Home automation was key when it came to their 

window treatments. Large windows can be challenging 

to operate due to weight. To retain the modern touches, 

they chose automatic window coverings so that with a 

touch of a button they could lower and raise the shades, 

which they designed in collaboration with One Source 

Home Solutions. 

Habitat Home & Garden was instrumental in adding 

character to their home. The Franke’s collaborated selecting 

special pieces. Their dining table is truly a one-of-a-kind 

statement. They weren’t able to find exactly what they were 

looking for, so they had it custom designed and built in 

India. The scale of the table needed a substantial light above 

it and they were able to locate the perfect brass drum light 

fixture to complete the look. 

The Frankes knew that friends and family would be lining 

up to come visit now that they moved to the Central 

Coast and kept that in mind while working on the 

landscape. They decided to add large modern self-watering 

pots on both the ocean and mountain view terraces, and >> 


R A M S E YA S P H A LT. C O M 


indigenous plants outside of the windows so their guests 

could enjoy the views and have a true Central Coast getaway 

experience. 

Renee understands the relationship and experience 

between individuals and living spaces and curated this 

home with consideration for how its details inspire the 

space. Her advice for anyone considering a remodel or 

new construction project: “Lead with your inspiration, 

enjoy design research, and inquire about your ideas.” With 

the sheer number of options 

available it’s a good idea to 

hone in on your preferences. 

Whether it’s determining layouts 

that would suit your lifestyle or 

narrowing down what design 

style would fit the space and your 

preferences best, making these 

decisions can help dramatically. 

Above all, she reminds us to go 

with our instinct and to not be 

DAVID LALUSH is an 

afraid to shift and reconsider a 

architectural photographer 

decision if you realize something here in San Luis Obispo. 

can be improved. It is always 

worth it in the end. SLO LIFE 


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| SLO CITY 

REAL ESTATE 

BY THE NUMBERS 

laguna 

lake 

tank 

farm 

cal poly 

area 

country 

club 

down 

town 

foothill 

blvd 

johnson 

ave 

Total Homes Sold 

Average Asking Price 

Average Selling Price 

Sales Price as a % of Asking Price 

Average # of Days on the Market 


























2019 

64 

$776,593 

$764,410 

98.43% 

31 

2019 

33 

$792,968 

$784,012 

98.87% 

36 

2019 

21 

$1,057,843 

$1,021,185 

96.53% 

34 

2019 

26 

$1,431,577 

$1,387,519 

96.92% 

81 

2019 

72 

$827,254 

$809,768 

97.89% 

42 

2019 

45 

$949,887 

$903,709 

95.14% 

49 

2019 


59 


$817,036 


$796,918 

Sales Price as a % of Asking Price 97.54% 

Average # of Days on the Market 36 

2020 

68 

$750,353 

$754,050 

100.49% 

36 

2020 

48 

$867,988 

$864,078 

99.55% 

46 

2020 

26 

$1,039,261 

$1,026,885 

98.81% 

20 

2020 

24 

$1,217,417 

$1,186,813 

97.49% 

32 

2020 

68 

$908,254 

$888,581 

97.83% 

43 

2020 

39 

$869,901 

$868,965 

99.89% 

27 

2020 

66 

$1,033,274 

$1,061,588 

102.74% 

44 

+/- 

6.25% 

-3.38% 

-1.36% 

2.06% 

16.13% 

+/- 

45.45% 

9.46% 

10.21% 

99.10% 

27.78% 

+/- 

23.81% 

-1.76% 

0.56% 

2.28% 

-41.18% 

+/- 

-7.69% 

-14.96% 

-14.47% 

0.57% 

-60.49% 

+/- 

-5.56% 

9.79% 

9.73% 

-0.06% 

2.38% 

+/- 

-13.33% 

-8.42% 

-3.84% 

4.75% 

-44.90% 

+/- 

11.86% 

26.47% 

33.21% 

5.20% 

22.22% 

*Comparing 01/01/19 - 12/31/19 to 01/01/20 - 12/31/20 

SOURCE: San Luis Obispo Association of REALTORS ® 



Get growing on your home purchase 

Let’s keep the conversation going. Contact us today. 

Donna Lewis 

Branch Manager & 

VP of Mortgage Lending 

O: (805) 335-8743 

C: (805) 235-0463 

donna.lewis@rate.com 

Ken Neate 


O: (805) 706-8074 

C: (925) 963-1015 

ken.neate@rate.com 

Maggie Koepsell 


O: (805) 335-8742 

C: (805) 674-6653 

maggie.koepsell@rate.com 

Ermina Karim 

Licensed Sales Assistant 

Dylan Morrow 


Elieen Mackenzie 


O: (805) 329-4095 

ermina.karim@rate.com 

O: (805) 335-8738 

C: (805) 550-9742 

dylan.morrow@rate.com 

O: (805) 212-5204 

C: (831) 566-9908 

eileen.mackenzie@rate.com 

Zoe Thompson 

Licensed Sales Assistant 

Luana Geradis 


Matthew Janetski 


O: (805) 335-8737 

zoe.thompson@rate.com 

O: (805) 329-4087 

C: (707) 227-9582 

luana.gerardis@rate.com 

O: (805) 329-4092 

matt.janetski@rate.com 

Joe Hutson 


O: (831) 205-1582 

C: (831) 212-4138 

joe.hutson@rate.com 

Rate.com/SanLuisObispo 

1065 Higuera St., Suite 100, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 

Applicant subject to credit and underwriting approval. Not all applicants will be approved for financing. Receipt of application does not represent an approval for financing or interest rate guarantee. Restrictions may apply, 

contact Guaranteed Rate for current rates and for more information. 

Donna Lewis NMLS #245945; CA - CA-DOC245945 | Dylan Morrow NMLS #1461481; CA - CA-DBO1461481 | Eileen Mackenzie NMLS #282909 | Joe Hutson NMLS #447536; CA - CA- 

DOC447536| Ken Neate NMLS ID #373607; CA - CA-DBO373607 | Luana Gerardis NMLS #1324563; CA - CA-DBO1324563 | Maggie Koepsell NMLS #704130; CA - CA-DBO704130 | Matthew Kanetski NMLS #1002317; CA 

- CA-DBO1002317 

Guaranteed Rate, Inc.; NMLS #2611; For licensing information visit nmlsconsumeraccess.org. • CA: Licensed by the Department of Business Oversight under the California Residential Mortgage Lending Act 


Now 

is a great time 

to take advantage 

of low rates to 

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(805) 441-9486 

| SLO COUNTY 

REAL ESTATE 

REGION 

Arroyo Grande 

Atascadero 

Avila Beach 

Cambria/San Simeon 

Cayucos 

Creston 

BY THE NUMBERS 

NUMBER OF 

HOMES SOLD 

2019 

320 

379 

28 

149 

55 

8 

2020 

307 

404 

27 

162 

62 

10 

AVERAGE DAYS 

ON MARKET 

2019 

56 

42 

105 

70 

126 

83 

2020 

54 

35 

49 

71 

121 

210 

MEDIAN SELLING 

PRICE 

2019 

$803,608 

$580,860 

$1,402,390 $1,438,424 

$900,046 

$1,198,035 

$868,250 

2020 

$839,826 

$614,137 

$846,997 

$1,199,272 

$898,000 

Grover Beach 

122 

149 

53 

38 

$556,961 

$603,444 

Los Osos 

167 

159 

41 

31 

$670,263 

$782,040 

Morro Bay 

136 

145 

62 

58 

$760,166 

$766,352 

Nipomo 

307 

287 

57 

49 

$669,700 

$755,591 

** 

Oceano 

57 

62 

65 

74 

$517,032 

$598,146 

Pismo Beach 

137 

148 

86 

49 

$1,151,387 

$1,088,581 

Senior Loan Advisor 

NMLS 395723 

ben.lerner@flagstar.com 

1212 Marsh St., Suite 1 

San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 

Paso (Inside City Limits) 

Paso (North 46 - East 101) 

Paso (North 46 - West 101) 

388 

58 

111 

384 

59 

116 

45 

63 

76 

33 

47 

80 

$522,694 

$572,100 

$696,103 

$561,710 

$656,797 

$646,398 

Paso (South 46 - East 101) 

62 

67 

60 

63 

$627,972 

$716,204 

San Luis Obispo 

382 

398 

49 

45 

$905,909 

$956,194 

Santa Margarita 

31 

21 

89 

109 

$513,967 

$612,043 

Equal Housing Lender | Member FDIC 

** Top 200 Mortgage Originator | Mortgage Executive Magazine 

Not a commitment to lend. Programs available only 

to qualifi ed borrowers. Subject to credit approval and 

underwriting terms and conditions. Programs subject 


to change without notice. Some restrictions may apply. 

Templeton 

Countywide 

116 

2,887 

151 

2,995 

*Comparing 01/01/19 - 12/31/19 to 01/01/20 - 12/31/20 

76 67 $797,717 $877,151 

58 50 $721,051 $764,878 

SOURCE: San Luis Obispo Association of REALTORS ® 

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| HEALTH 

Ferment 

for Health 

The biological benefits of consuming fermented foods 

and an easy recipe to start fermenting at home. 

BY LAUREN HARVEY 

H 

ere on the Central Coast, we are no strangers to 

fermentation. With a plethora of wineries, vineyards, and 

brewhouses, the process of fermentation is happening 

all around us. Certainly, we know the products of 

fermentation can be some of the most delicious. 

But are fermented foods as beneficial to our health as 

they claim? And if so, how can we start incorporating 

them into our diet more efficiently? Today, we aim 

to answer some of these questions. At the end of the 

article, you’ll find easy instructions to start fermenting 

at home with a simple sauerkraut recipe from a San Luis 

Obispo native. >> 

LAUREN HARVEY is a 

creative writer fueled by a 

love of cooking, adventure, 

and naps in the sun. 



In turn, the good bacteria can help fight infection, synthesize 

vitamins and breakdown complex carbohydrates like those 

found in whole grains. 

Now, more than ever, we may need all the gut health help we can 

get. “Recent research suggest that the type of gut bacteria in the 

bodies of Americans is changing,” says a Harvard Health article. 

“One possible reason is that the microbiomes in our bodies are 

not regularly replenished the way they were in past generations.” 

This could be due in part to the rise of processed foods, which 

are stripped of naturally occurring microorganisms that promote 

healthy gut flora. 

According to David S. Ludwig, MD, PhD, a professor of 

nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 

“Changes to the population of gut microbes may create an 

imbalance between beneficial and harmful gut bacteria.” 

Probiotics, research suggests, enhance and even replenish the 

beneficial microbes in our system. 

Without these helpful bacteria assisting our body in breaking 

down foods, nutrients, and processing essential vitamins, we may 

face health risks. “Research shows that less diverse gut microbiota 

is associated with many chronic diseases such as obesity, asthma, 

and chronic inflammatory conditions such as inflammatory bowel 

disease,” an article published by the Cleveland Medical Clinic 

states. The probiotics in naturally fermented foods don’t have the 

ability to cure chronic disease, or guarantee immunity; however, 

consuming more may help alleviate symptoms and better support 

your immune system. 

BIOLOGICAL BENEFITS 

THE SCIENCE OF FERMENTATION 

So really, what is fermentation? According to the Encyclopedia of Analytical 

Science, “Fermentation is defined as a chemical change brought about 

using microorganisms.” Andy Tay, PhD, describes fermentation as “the 

process of sugars being broken down by enzymes of microorganisms in the 

absence of oxygen.” In both definitions, we see the motivating factor behind 

fermentation—microorganisms. 

As Tay goes on to describe, “During fermentation, a variety of 

microorganisms are present in different proportions. The process is akin 

to a concert where different musicians (i.e., microorganisms) have their 

respective roles. Their cooperation produces beautiful music—our favorite 

fermented food.” This poetic analogy paints a vivid picture of the complex 

mechanics of fermentation. During the process, we may only see bubbles, 

or the changing color of the fermenting food. Truly, there is an orchestra 

of bacteria and fungi metabolizing those enzymes, creating a symphony of 

flavors to delight our palate. 

The hard work of countless microorganisms is one major aspect of fermentation. 

The other aspect is something more simple: the passing of time. As much as 

we’d like to artificially speed up time to enjoy the fruits of our ferments sooner, 

this one element cannot be changed. No matter what kind of fermenting you 

choose—be it alcohol, lactic acid, or acetic acid—you simply can’t rush it. 

BIOLOGICAL BENEFITS 

Perhaps the most lauded benefit of fermented foods is the presence 

of probiotics. Naturally fermented foods may contain probiotic 

microorganisms that help your body replenish its supply of good bacteria. 

Shopping for naturally fermented foods necessitates some 

careful label reading. For example, some pickles on the shelves of 

supermarkets are made using vinegar, not over the course of time 

as in a naturally fermented product. “To ensure the fermented 

foods you choose do contain probiotics, look for the words 

‘naturally fermented’ on the label, and when you open the jar 

look for the telltale bubbles in the liquid, which signal that live 

organisms are inside the jar,” says Dr. Ludwig. Consumers may 

find it easier to locate naturally fermented products at a health 

food store or local co-op. 

Alternatively, to ensure you are consuming naturally fermented 

products full of beneficial microorganisms, try making your own 

fermented foods at home. Fermenting vegetables is a great place 

to start. Once prepared, they require little maintenance. Be sure 

to alleviate pressure built up in your fermenting jars by allowing 

the air to escape every day or two, called “burping” the jars. There 

are also specialty lids available that release built-up carbonation 

as the product ferments. On the next page, you’ll find a beginner 

friendly recipe for sauerkraut. >> 

FINAL WORD 

Fermentation is a natural process used to preserve 

food. Health benefits occur thanks to the presence 

of microorganisms found in naturally fermented 

foods. Make your own at home for the most healthful 

fermented treats. 


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outdoor spin 

German-Style 

Sauerkraut 

Start your at-home fermentation journey with this two-ingredient 

sauerkraut recipe by pastry chef and Central Coast native Regen Williams. 

LOSE WEIGHT . BURN FAT 

GET IN SHAPE 

BOOST YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM 

FOR MORE INFORMATION EMAIL U S 

AT INFO@REVSLO.COM 

INGREDIENTS 

1 pound of green cabbage 

2 teaspoons salt 

INSTRUCTIONS 

1. Chop the cabbage in half and slice thinly towards the root. 

2. Add cabbage to a large bowl and cover with salt. 

3. Massage cabbage and salt for 10 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes, then massage for 

another 10 minutes. 

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4. Once the cabbage has shrunk to about half the size, add to a clean glass jar. Pack all of 

the cabbage along with the liquid into the jar and secure the lid. 

5. Burp your sauerkraut by opening the lid every one or two days to release the built up 

carbonation (this will appear as bubbles along the top of the jar). After burping, press 

cabbage down to ensure it is all submerged in the liquid. 

6. Sauerkraut will be ready to enjoy after two weeks, but can ferment for up to one month. 

7. After patiently allowing your sauerkraut to ferment, it’s time to eat! 

RECIPE NOTES 

• For extra flavorful sauerkraut, try adding a teaspoon of carraway seeds or two 

cloves of chopped garlic to the fermenting liquid. 

• Make larger batches by doubling or tripling the original recipe. 

• During fermentation you may see a white cloudiness at the bottom of the jar, 

which is normal. SLO LIFE


| TASTE 

Steamed Buns 

TAKE A BAO AT ONE OF THESE CHINESE OR JAPANESE EATERIES 

THAT SPECIALIZE IN DUMPLINGS. 

BY JAIME LEWIS 

In 2018, the short Pixar film “Bao” told the story of a 

Chinese woman who discovers that one of the steamed 

buns in her lunch—a bao—is a sentient being. A little baby, 

in fact. The woman cradles it, feeds it, and walks with it in a 

baby carrier on her chest. 

The choice of imagery is not accidental. In the Chinese 

language, the word “bao” (pronounced “bow”) translates 

roughly to “dumpling,” but it can have multiple meanings, 

including “treasured,”“package,” and “baby.” In fact, 

Chinese songwriters wield the term “bao bao” the same way their English 

counterparts use the word “baby” in love songs. However you define it, a 

bao is a precious and beloved thing, worth protecting. 

Culinarily speaking, dumplings come in all shapes, sizes, and manifestations. 

But around San Luis Obispo County lately, I’ve noticed several chefs’ interest 

in puffy, yeasted steamed dumplings with filling inside. These can take the 

form of baozi, the traditional white fluffy balls with a darling kewpie twist on 

top, or gua bao, in which the dough is rolled 

to resemble a lotus leaf and wrapped around 

filling like a sandwich. 

Precious though they may be, yeasted buns 

are casual fare in China. On the eve of 

Chinese New Year, families come together 

to make bao much like Mexican families 

come together during the holidays to make 

tamales. Purchased from street vendors, 

they’re more snack than meal. 

With Chinese New Year on the horizon 

(the Year of the Ox: stability!), I decided to 

follow my nose to three restaurants where 

bao reign. You might call them a snack, a 

meal, a bun or a baby—but you’ll definitely 

call them delicious. >> 

JAIME LEWIS writes about 

food, drink, and the good 

life from her home in San 

Luis Obispo. Find her on 

Instagram/Twitter @jaimeclewis. 


Mee Heng Low 

I’ve been nabbing bao for years from downtown SLO’s 

Mee Heng Low; much of the time, they’re stuffed with 

barbecue pork shoulder. But on this particular day, 

Chef Paul Kwong’s son Russel introduces me to the 

restaurant’s Peanut Chili Chicken buns. Soft and spongy, 

they hold a savory-sweet and crunchy filling inside. On 

the walk home, I eat three. 

“Paul slow-cooked and shredded the chicken yesterday,” 

Russel says. “Then he made the dough and formed all the 

buns this morning.” He goes on to explain that the buns 

are steamed once to cook, and then steamed again to 

heat them when people put in their order. 

Paul and Russell have been playing with flavor profiles 

lately, which might explain why Mee Heng Low bao 

have suddenly seen a huge uptick in sales. (Russell says 

their bao sell out four times as fast in recent months.) 

From time to time, you might see chicken curry, veggietofu, 

chicken black bean, or beef and black mushroom 

bao on the menu. >> 


Momotaro Ramen 

Parked inside the Paso Market Walk, Momotaro Ramen 

serves up hirata buns from their pint-sized kitchen which 

is best known for flavorful ramen. Chefs Mateo Rogers 

and Brittney Yracheta didn’t even intend to sell the buns 

originally; they were part of a chef ’s snack series that grew 

a following through Instagram and word of mouth. 

“People hear the words ‘Japanese food’ and they think 

sushi,” says Rogers. “But there’s so much more.” 

At Momotaro, hirata buns are the Japanese version of 

the Chinese gua bao, a lotus leaf-shaped curl of dough 

around savory fillings, like a taco. (In Chinese, gua means 

suspended or hanging.) Rogers and Yracheta serve me 

their Chachu Pork Hirata Bun with tangy slaw and sweet 

pickle. The flavors are extremely concentrated already, but 

taken together, they are really something special: perfectly 

composed, one against the next. But the bun that really 

gets my attention is the Karaage Shiitake Hirata Bun, 

made with rich shiitake mushrooms that have been coated 

in potato starch and fried. Served on an impossibly pillowy 

bun with aioli, greens, spices, and cucumber, this is a 

standout dish that will only put you back $7.50. >> 


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Bing’s Bao Buns 

It’s a little unfair to include Bing’s in the bao bunch since they 

haven’t even opened yet at the Bonetti Ranch SLO Public Market. 

But I bought buns from Bing’s many times while it was still a 

cottage kitchen, pumping out bao from an apartment in downtown 

SLO. After a visit to that apartment recently, I’m happy to report 

that Mike and Sam Whittaker have still got the touch. 

“We moved from New Jersey, and we couldn’t find the kind of bao 

we wanted to eat here,” says Sam. 

“So I just started winging it,” says Mike. “We couldn’t eat them 

all, so we shared them, started doing private parties, and then we 

started selling them out of here.” This was all a side gig for the 

Whittakers, who both have day jobs. Sometimes they would make 

up to twenty dozen buns a day, steaming them on one burner of 

their tiny stove and staggering pickups. 

Bing’s buns start with wheat flour, rice flour, and yeast for a spongy 

dough that absorbs Sam’s sauces. While their original pork belly 

bao is beautiful, with warm spices and tangy sauce, Bing’s also plays 

with flavors like vegan mushroom, cubano, and even a breakfast 

bun with chorizo, a soft scrambled egg, and a Thai chili-vanilla 

maple syrup. SLO LIFE 

BRING HOME THE BUNS 

A couple of new joints are selling bao in SLO, too. Look for the buns from Hawker Eatz (one of the 

handful of restaurants rotating through Benny’s Kitchen on Foothill) as well as a char siu pork bao and 

sweet taro bao at Oki Kohi Espresso Bar on Broad Street. I’ve even seen house-made pork bao in the cold 

case at California Fresh Market (in Pismo Beach and SLO); check there for an after-shopping snack. 


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| WINE NOTES 

up 

and 

com 

ing 

BY ANDRIA MCGHEE 

o say that these 

winemakers are 

protégés in the 

winemaking world 

would not be enough. TI might add: sparkling, intelligent, and 

hardworking. They have found their 

mentors and glean insight from winemakers 

around them. They have been given a great 

opportunity to make their own wine—get 

their hands dirty, make decisions about when 

to pick grapes, when to stop fermentation, 

and when to bottle. 

They may have 

tripped up here 

and there along 

the way but it’s 

impossible to grow 

in any profession 

if you don’t take 

the risk of making 

mistakes. They are 

listening, observing, 

and doing. These 

artisans are part of 

the very fabric that 

makes the Central 

Coast an amazing 

place to work and 

live. >> 

ANDRIA MCGHEE received 

her advanced degree in 

wines and spirits from 

WSET in London and enjoys 

travel, food, wine, and 

exercise as a means to enjoy 

those around her. 


PEACE. COMFORT. HEALING. 

Join our On-line Church Services at 

ChristianScience.com 

Sunday Services 

Listen live on Sundays at 10 am or join audio 

replay available within 30–60 minutes after the 

service ends until Friday. 

Wednesday Testimony 

Participate in a weekly testimony meeting with 

people around the world on Wednesday at 2 pm. 

Hear others share insights, experiences, and 

healings they’ve had through their prayer and 

practice of Christian Science. 

For inspiration in the form of audio casts or links, 

talks and personal testimonials go to 

Prayerthatheals.org 

FIRST 

TO IMPRESS, 

BUILT TO 

LAST. 

First Church of Christ, Scientist 

1326 Garden Street, San Luis Obispo 

805-543-5853 

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Lic 946175 


White Wine Trailblazer 

Nancy Ulloa (pronounced Ooh-yo-ah) lived in San Jose working hard 

at both a nonprofit and in fine dining. On her days off, she would 

seek out interesting wine that paired with ethnic foods—more than 

a hobby, it was a passion. The magic formula for Ulloa: people, food, 

wine. Her manager at the restaurant saw something special in Ulloa 

and told her about the Paso Robles wine region and helped her with 

her job search. In 2017, she moved to work as the wine director at 

Thomas Hill Organics and then into the tasting room at 7 Oxen in 

Paso Robles, steadily turning her dreams into reality. 

A natural workhorse, she spends her days running the tasting room, 

working the harvest, and helping where she can—with the books, 

the marketing, and the guests. She loves being the liaison between 

the winery and the guests, as well as keeping her finger on the pulse 

when it comes to the never-ending flow of information and activity 

in the winery. 

With her breadth of knowledge, she launched Ulloa Cellars and made 

her first wine in 2019. Her choice of grape was a stranger to most but 

quickly garnered a following. Grüner Veltliner, a white wine that she 

was passionate about, was a small but successful batch. In Fall 2020, 

she picked three whites: Verdejo, Albariño, and a premier picking 

of Grüner Veltliner, which should knock our socks off. I’m looking 

forward to her continued success in small batch creations. 

Secure your wine online or visit Ulloa at 7 Oxen Estate Wines, off the 

highway near Tin City. 

Full Circle Fermentor 

Janie Willheim started out as a Wine and Viticulture major at Cal 

Poly here in San Luis Obispo. Her passion was sparked with her 

first harvest at Daou Winery during her college years. A smart 

cookie, Willheim learned invaluable knowledge from each of her 

very different experiences. She scored a great internship with 

E.J. Gallo at Edna Valley Winery in marketing after graduation, 

gaining important business skills. Next, she worked in fine dining 

where she learned the importance of customer service. Following 

that she worked a harvest in Australia where she learned a 

different method of winemaking. After, she made her way back to 

Paso Robles where she worked for Kukkula winery. It was there 

that Willheim heard about winemaker Vailia From at Desparada, 

and knew working alongside her as the brand ambassador was the 

next step in her journey. 

Along the way, Willheim has learned side-by-side from many 

winemakers. She was enveloped in the processes every step of the way. 

She learned that white wine can be interesting and to be patient. 

That patience paid off in 2019 when wine tasting a Riesling 

from Oliver’s Vineyard in Edna Valley where she secured grapes 

to make her first wine. From encouraged Willheim to make her 

own wine using From’s cellar, a generous offer to be sure. With 

a production she was proud of under her belt, this upcoming 

year, she will take on two wines: a red 2020 Valdiguie from Shell 

Creek Vineyard, along with her original white 2020 Riesling from 

Oliver’s Vineyard. I can’t wait to try them both. 

To get your hands on these gems, follow Willheim on Instagram 

or visit Desparada Wines in Tin City. SLO LIFE 


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| BREW 

HOP 

UP 

BY BRANT MYERS 

here’s a relatively new style floating around 

and I can’t get enough of it. Having recently 

road tripped through the Pacific Northwest 

with my family, I kept coming across local 

craft beers with clever names and titles 

touting their use of Cryo hops. I’ve had 

these beers made here in SLO on a handful 

of occasions and had never given it much 

thought. They always tasted like really good 

IPAs and I gleaned from their name that Tthere was cryogenically frozen hops used somewhere in the brewing 

process, but then hit a dead end. I was ruminating about these beers, 

salivating thinking about the end of our ten-plus-hour day of driving 

ahead and calculating where we could stop for the night, so I could 

finally crack open the varieties we picked up along the way. These 

ruminations started leaking out of my head as I talked to my wife. 

She’s nice, I should do it more often. After taking wild stabs in the 

dark about what Cryo beers actually are, she suggested I learn more 

about them and write my next article on the subject. I started asking 

my pals around the industry what they could tell me about the hops 

themselves and how they’re used in a brewing operation. Yeah, I 

should definitely talk to her more often, she’s a smart cookie. 

Returning home, I reached out to Brendan Gough of Liquid Gravity 

in SLO and Lee Samways of Humdinger Brewing in Arroyo Grande. 

I learned a lot along the way, and it was illuminating to interview 

two brewers separately and get basically the same answers, so we’ll 

have some overlap of understanding, but it does go a long way to 

get a consensus on general knowledge and everyday usage of this uniquely 

processed hop ingredient. This isn’t a high-level political exposé (phew), so I’ve 

summarized our conversations below and interjected them with quotes that 

are about as accurate as I am a fast typer: 

Brendan Gough // Liquid Gravity 

Immediately, in the beginning of our conversation, Gough had to go back to 

his mental notes to determine what he actually used the first time he brewed 

with non-standard hop pellets. His first experience was using pellets that look 

exactly like the ones nearly every brewer uses on a daily basis, but alas, this 

was the first iteration called Hop Hash, as it was the spent and leftover resins 

from the hop flowers being processed into pellets. Basically, whatever fell into, 

through, and got stuck to the equipment was made into a hop pellet. Just a 

heads-up here that the hop flower is in the same family as marijuana, so you 

will see lots of familiarities in the names and processes for both flowers. That 

initial product was eventually replaced with a low temperature, cryogenically 

frozen extraction of the lupulin from the hop flower, naturally called Hop 

Kief. This was a far more refined product (as opposed to the former byproduct, 

hop hash) and the quality increases dramatically. 

Hop Kief, which we can now start calling Cryo Powder, started as whole hop 

cones, which are subjected to a freeze thirty degrees colder than their standard 

counterparts to preserve the essential oils and resins then processed through 

an auger in order to separate plant material from live resins and lupulin. It 

should be stated that lupulones are beta acids that give the aroma in beers 

with hop additions. Initially, companies did not know how to or have the 

equipment to pelletize powder, so they sold it in bags, which you can still 

get at local homebrew supply stores like Doc’s Cellar here locally. The hop >> 


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Samways described his first time using Cryo hops as “very, 

very intense” but lacking in standard beer characteristics. 

In other words, it was a Cryo beer but nothing else. 

There was no depth or balance of flavor. He went on to 

describe that the process removes polyphenols and that 

beer drinkers need that familiar flavor profile that, when 

overdone, creates off-flavors, but when used in moderation 

becomes the beer “flavor” that we’re used to. He started 

talking about tannins and polyphenols and then started 

droning on about chlorophyll. (More like borophyll!) I 

wanted to talk about Cryo, so I changed the subject to see 

how he thinks they should be used and if he’ll use them 

again. One thing everyone agreed on is that they work 

much better in combination with standard pellets, to bring 

both a bold aromatic character to the beer, but also to 

round it out so as to not have too much of one profile. He 

then got into the weeds again comparing T-90 pellets (the 

standard ones I’ve been referencing) and the T-45 pellets 

(Cryo) and that actually makes sense when you look at 

them as numbers. Two extremes that when combined make 

T-67.5, in theory. Balance. 

JUSTIN AMY 

Humdinger Brewing 

growers finally figured out how to pelletize hops, which is now the standard for most 

production breweries. According to Gough, there are pros and cons in using Cryo hops 

as their alpha acids are twice as high as pellets of the same variety, but they are also 

twice as expensive. A great benefit to the consumer is that the tannins/polyphenols in 

hops are lessened providing a smoother, less bitter, more aromatic beer. For brewers, 

there seems to be a consensus that there is a financial benefit to using them as the 

smaller volume allows more beer to be brewed in their systems and they generally 

absorb less beer in the tank, as well. Even on a smaller system, nano-brewers can 

translate that extra volume into gallons per batch. 

Gough hopped off the phone with me for a few minutes while he called his hop 

rep. She confirmed the progression of these hop processes and even gave us two new 

tidbits of information. The first is that I’m already late in the game because they’re 

creating a liquid version of the Cryo powder, and then we got jealous because the hop 

manufacturers created a new sub-category of hops, they dubbed “American Noble 

Hops” not to be confused with the traditional noble hops originating in Europe such 

as the commonly used Hallertau and Saaz. The American versions are just the spent 

hops left over from the Cryo process. Selling a manufacturing by product. Genius! 

Lee Samways // Humdinger Brewing 

It’s always a pleasure to talk to Samways and get his opinion on beers and life. He 

provided a great viewpoint being both a celebrated amateur homebrewer and now 

a professional commercial brewer. Homebrewers have much more flexibility on 

experimentation as their batches are small and they don’t need to make a marketable 

beer in order to pay the bills. Naturally, Samways has used them personally but has yet 

to try Cryo hops at his shiny new brewhouse. 

Aaron Smith // Doc’s Cellar 

As a bonus, I reached out to Aaron Smith of Doc’s Cellar, 

our local home brew supply store to see if he has any insight 

on the consumer side of things. He immediately looked 

in their fridge to see what was in stock and told me they 

have one-ounce packets of five popular varieties: Simcoe, 

Citra, Cascade, Mosaic, and Loral (a relatively newer hop 

variety that is fruity leaning towards floral). He mentioned 

a professional brewer in Arizona that he interacted with 

that also uses them in conjunction with T-90 pellets, but 

homebrewers are using them less. There was a large surge 

when they came out a couple years ago, but they have 

declined, with Smith postulating that they were exciting at 

first, but the higher cost is a barrier to experimentation and 

that the change is a little too drastic for some and, as we all 

know, change is scary. 

I learned a lot talking to these three industry professionals 

and now have a greater appreciation for this little sub-set 

of IPA styles and the processes which take the hops from 

the fields to the foam on my upper lip. My conclusion 

is that they make a tasty beer that has all the aroma of a 

hazy/juicy/New England-style IPA but with the clean 

clarity of a West Coast-style IPA. On the brewing side, 

the upfront cost is higher but at 

twice the lupulin impact they 

only have to use half as much. 

The extra beer that comes from 

the reduced volume is icing on 

the cake and may even further 

offset that higher price. Either 

way, I hope I planted a bug in 

the ears of local brewers, and 

they use this fascinating flower 

process in an upcoming batch. Oh 

yeah, and Samways invited me 

to come brew a Cryo beer with 

him, so maybe it’s back to school 

for me. If you have the means, I 

highly recommend picking up the 

style and having a toast with me. 

Cheers! SLO LIFE 

BRANT MYERS is a beer 

industry veteran and 

founder of SLO BIIIG, a 

hospitality consulting firm. 


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| HAPPENINGS 

Culture & Events 

SLOPE Paints to Preserve 

Stunning originals and prints by San Luis 

Outdoor Painters for the Environment are 

available at the Studios on the Park gallery in 

Paso Robles. The region’s top landscape artists, 

including Dennis Curry, Rosanne Seitz, 

Laurel Sherrie, and many more, use their 

art to raise awareness, educate, and provide 

funding for Central Coast treasured open 

spaces by donating a portion of sales to the 

Land Conservancy of SLO County. 

Through February 28 // slope-painters.com 

Buy Local Bonus Program 

The City of SLO is rewarding shoppers for 

spending dollars locally. Spend $100 or more 

at participating local retailers, restaurants, and 

other food and beverage businesses, and you’ll 

get a $20 gift card to support another local 

business. Qualify up to three separate times. 

Through March 12 // downtownslo.com 

Rosey ‘n’ Barb 

Robert “Rosey” Rosenthal and Barbara “Barb” 

Rosenthal, a dynamic artistic duo since 1980, are 

“Still At It After All These Years” in this unique 

exhibition at Art Central in San Luis Obispo. 

Well-known award-winning printmakers, Rosey 

‘n’ Barb take this opportunity to show their 

work in other media: he, his colorful, gouache 

paintings and she, her rich landscape paintings. 


Entrepreneurship in Music 

The Cal Poly Music Department hosts 

a special webinar featuring guests who 

share creative methods for beginning 

and sustaining a career in music. 

Panelists are David Cutler and Mark 

Tonelli, professors of entrepreneurship 

at the University of South Carolina 

and Millikin University, respectively. 

Arthur White, Cal Poly’s director of jazz 

studies, moderates the panel, which is 

free, open to the public, and designed to 

help musicians adapt to the decline in 

traditional career opportunities. 

February 11 // music.calpoly.edu 

Flower Power & Ikebana 

More than merely decorative, floral 

imagery has helped convey ideas from the 

refined to the revolutionary for thousands 

of years, conveying timely and timeless 

themes. This exhibit at the Art Center 

Morro Bay embraces the diversity of florals 

through two- and three-dimensional 

artworks in all media, photography, jewelry, 

Ikebana, and more. 

February 11 - April 5 // artcentermorrobay.org 

Vive L’Amour 

Reserve a ticket now, then on Valentine’s 

Day pick up a treasure trove of goodies 

“curated for love” to share with someone 

special—or give yourself a treat. The 

Monday Club Conservancy is offering a 

“Vive L’Amour” feast that includes a bottle 

of wine nestled in French linen, gourmet 

treats (freshly baked tarts, baguette 

sandwiches, and fresh fruit), a vase filled 

with aromatic lavender, and more. 

Broadband Summit 2021 

California Secretary of Food and 

Agriculture Karen Ross headlines the 

SLO County Broadband Summit 2021, 

“Connections and the Digital Divide,” a 

virtual Zoom event free and open to the 

public. Other presenters include Mike 

Santorelli with New York Law School’s 

Advanced Communications Law & 

Policy Institute, and Tellus Venture 

Associates President Steve Blum. 

February 18 // sloevc.org 

SLO Film Fest 

The twenty-seventh annual SLO 

International Film Festival is shaping 

up to be one of the most unique festivals 

ever—a predominantly virtual experience 

with the possibility of a few special inperson 

events in compliance with state 

guidelines. This year’s “Shining a Light 

on the Joy of Cinema” events include 

an interactive social hub, behind-thescenes 

panels, watch-at-home kits, 

virtual audience award voting, filmmaker 

Q&As, and more. The festival will 

continue to honor industry professionals 

with its slate of annual awards. 

March 9 - 14 // slofilmfest.org 

Kosoko Jackson 

The SLO Public Library invites adults 

to register for this exclusive, live, Zoom 

Book Club event featuring Kosoko 

Jackson, author of “Yesterday Is History,” 

a romantic, heart-felt, and whimsical 

debut novel about letting go of the past, 

figuring out what you want in your 

future, and staying in the moment before 

it passes you by. 

February 4 - March 29 // artcentralartsupply.com February 14 // themondayclubslo.org 

March 23 // slolibrary.org SLO LIFE


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SLO LIFE FebMar2021

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