One of the greatest feelings in the world is being relaxed. But as soon as anyone mentions a wellness or relaxation escape, most of us assume two things. The first is that it involves yoga and kale smoothies, the second is that you’ll need to take out a mortgage to pay for it all.

We want to shatter those perceptions. Some of us relax by taking a road trip, walking, or lounging in a hot spring – so we’ve found a way to unwind for every interest. And best of all, these once-in-a-lifetime experiences don’t cost the earth, starting from just $15 a night.

Rainforest retreat

One of the country’s best value wellness retreats is a Garden of Eden tucked away on an expansive plot of native bush 20 minutes outside the Coromandel township of Whitianga.

The moment you ascend the steep driveway to reveal Wairua Lodge, it’s as if you’ve arrived in paradise. Large flocks of quails parade around the grounds, alongside a welcoming committee of tūī.

After settling into your room, you can explore an extensive series of walking tracks along the river, with hammocks and relaxation chairs scattered along the paths, so you can find a secluded place to relax.

By evening, you can book (for free) a tree hut bath overlooking native bush, or a “star spa” – where you can marvel at the Milky Way without any light pollution. End the night gathered around a fire pit where you’ll be supplied with everything you need to make s’mores.

Great Barrier’s green heart

If you’ve already knocked off the obvious Great Walks, like the Tongariro Crossing, you may want to try Auckland’s hidden gem: the Aotea Track on Great Barrier Island.

This two- to three-day hike around the island’s Jurassic centre passes through kauri forests, serene wetlands, up through dramatic boulders, across swing bridges, and even has a natural hot spring.

The two huts on the circuit need to be booked in advance. The Department of Conservation says: “The track is a combination of easy walking tracks, boardwalks, steep climbs, stairways and bridges. It’s suitable for reasonably fit beginners or experienced trampers.”

Unwind in Milford Sound overnight

To truly appreciate the solitude of Milford Sound, you need to stay overnight. The mountains, which soar from the sea, act as a barrier to the outside world and prevents any form of mobile reception. All those weapons of mass distraction we own, like cellphones, iPads, and laptops, are pretty useless here – meaning an overnight trip to Milford is a 24-hour digital cleanse.

The only place to stay (on land) is at Milford Sound Lodge, which has mountain chalets with spectacular views of the fiord. Cross your fingers for heavy rain; as soon as it’s passed, head to a lookout to see hundreds of waterfalls descend from the heavens.

East Cape escape

State Highway 35, around East Cape, is the best under-the-radar tourist highway the country has to offer. A visit to remote communities like Ruatoria, Tikitiki and Te Araroa feel like a step back in time. Kids ride horses to the playground, there are empty beaches everywhere, and fresh kaimoana is served at most local pubs and fish and chip shops.

One of my greatest New Zealand travel memories is falling asleep to the sound of waves in a beachfront motel at Tokomaru Bay, after devouring a fresh seafood chowder at the Te Puka Tavern. The next morning, we woke for a walk on the beach, where we found kids playing on their horses. We then joined queues at Cafe 35, where people come from far and wide for a paua pie.

A trip around East Cape is like a nostalgic road trip through a 1970s version of New Zealand – where simple pleasures like the beach and food are all that matters.

Hot spring heaven

Nestled in the Lewis Pass National Reserve is a mountain hot spring retreat where it’s perfectly acceptable – if not encouraged – to stay in your dressing gown all day.

Maruia Hot Springs is found on the Lewis Pass alpine route, where most of the drive is gloriously empty of anything but nature. Even cellphone reception has no chance of penetrating the peaks – the retreat is entirely off-grid and is powered by hydroelectricity.

Although the resort caters for day-trippers, you’ll want to stay the night to take advantage of unlimited access to the hot springs, massages, free sauna infusions with the resident sauna master, free yoga classes, peaceful lounges for reading and relaxing and exceptional food.

You won’t find burgers and chips here; this is a place to rest the body just as much as the mind.

Safari on home soil

The southern coast of the South Island is home to the Catlins where you’ll find a magnificent mix of wildlife, Jurassic landscapes and magical waterfalls. For your best chance of seeing seals, penguins, albatross, dolphins and whales, you need to spend a little time getting acquainted with the area.

One of the best places to do that is Catlins Mohua Eco Park, a tranquil bush retreat with highly knowledgeable hosts who will point you in the right direction for finding wildlife, depending on the time of year.

Aside from wildlife, there are the Cathedral Caves (one of the longest in the world), numerous waterfalls and the Catlins’ version of Te Papa: The Lost Gypsy. This museum is a collection of weird and wonderful moving creations, with an exciting array of buttons and levers to push. Hit one, and a goat skeleton will start riding a bike. Another button will unexpectedly start squirting you with water from behind. You never know what to expect when you push or pull the next lever.

Soar above Queenstown

Many of us have hot air ballooning on our bucket list. The thought of silently gliding above the countryside is a once-in-a-lifetime adventure that has captivated people since the first balloon took off in Europe more than 230 years ago.

As most of us only do it once, we wait for a spectacular location like the arid landscape of Turkey’s Cappadocia region to give it a go. However, many don’t realise Queenstown is home to one of the most breathtaking balloon trips anywhere in the world.

With Sunrise Balloons, you take off from Lake Hayes before ascending more than 1.8 kilometres (6000 feet) above sea level. At that height, you get expansive views of the Southern Alps over to the West Coast.

Wine holiday

If your idea of wellness involves wine, there is no better place to spend a few days than among the vines at one of the country’s top wine estates: Craggy Range in Hawke’s Bay.

The stunning Mediterranean-style winery and cellar door has a range of villas tucked away in the vines where two couples can share the cost and make it surprisingly affordable.

Start the day reading in a quiet place among the vines, before a lunchtime wine tasting with canapes. Don’t miss dinner at Craggy’s exceptional restaurant – which elegantly embodies farm-to-table dining by showing you, in kilometres, how far away your food was sourced. Naturally, you’ll have an outstanding selection of wines to match your meals.

A journey to Siberia

One of the country’s most spectacular short walks is to the Siberia Valley, a remote but beautiful slice of Mt Aspiring National Park. Start the journey in Makarora – between Haast and Wānaka – where you’ll board a bright yellow bush plane known as Buttercup. You’ll travel deep into a magnificent mountainscape, before making a steep descent into the centre of Siberia.

You’ll then walk for three kilometres out of the valley to find a waiting jet boat, that will whisk you back to the start. This day trip has it all for those who want a spectacular walk with a dash of adrenaline.

An unexpected star

When most people think wellness, few expect to point their cars in the direction of Palmerston North. However, 15 minutes out of town is a charming country estate offering a candlelit spa, massages and expansive grounds to relax in.

Hiwinui Country Estate is a place where you’ll find a roaring fire, plush furniture, and silence. Having only two rooms, you feel a sense of space and solitude. You’ll be hosted by Jan and Dave Stewart, alongside their daughter Julia – who serves a delicious cooked breakfast every morning.

Make sure to book the spa bath in the evening; an outdoor fire and candles will be ready for you to enjoy after dinner.

More information:

Milford Sound Lodge from $225, see: milfordlodge.com

Aotea Track hut bookings from $15. See: doc.govt.nz/aotea-track

Wairua Lodge from $225 a night. see: wairualodge.co.nz

Maruia Hot Springs from $199 a night. See: maruiahotsprings.nz

Catlins Mohua Eco Park from $225 a night, see: catlinsmohuapark.co.nz

Sunrise balloons $445 per adult and $195 per child (using the $50 discount code KIWI). See: ballooningnz.com

Craggy Range from $450 for a two-bedroom vineyard cottage. See: craggyrange.com

Siberia Experience from $455 per person, including flight and jet boat ride. See: siberiaexperience.co.nz

Hiwinui Country Estate & Day Spa from $370. See: hiwinui.co.nz

The author was hosted by the properties mentioned in the article.

Brook Sabin and Radha Engling travelled the length of New Zealand on a Stuff Travel nationwide road trip in a new Hyundai Kona Electric. The vehicle has 449km of real-world range on a single charge, for more information see: hyundai.co.nz/Kona-electric.

Stuff

In the dying days of 2019, winemaker Ken Eckersley armed himself with a bucket of water and a rake wrapped in a wet towel.

He’d set off in the car at his Gippsland winery, Nicholson River, to put out spot fires caused by the ferocious Sarsfield blaze burning about 10km north.

The aim was to protect the family-run winery he’d owned with wife Juliet for 43 years.

He’d already been told three times by authorities to leave that week, but evacuating wasn’t an option – even when the flames came within 250m of the vines.

The Eckersleys would stay and fight.

But at 11pm, by sheer luck, everything changed. Southerly winds pushed the fire away from the vineyard but the grapes still couldn’t be saved. Smoke had penetrated into the skins

making the entire crop unsalvageable.

No wine would be made at Nicholson River in 2020, and the Eckersleys weren’t alone.

The same problems were felt by grape growers and producers nationally, with many forced to make tough, expensive business decisions just months into the new year.

The pandemic followed soon after, keeping us at home for months and further crippling regional tourism.

Then, as we prepared to bid farewell to 2020, China – the country’s largest wine export market worth $1.15 billion annually – slapped tariffs on all imported Australian wines.

What a year.

But it wasn’t all bad news, with the people working in Victoria’s wine industry showing resilience and character by the barrel load.

Bushfires burning in New South Wales, South Australia and Victorian towns along the Gippsland coast made headlines here and abroad, yet little was mentioned about the silent killer choking the state’s north and northeast wine regions.

Smoke from the NSW fires had moved south, blanketing the regions of King Valley, Beechworth and Rutherglen for weeks.

No northeast district wineries were directly impacted by fire, unlike the Eckersleys or esteemed wine brand Henschke, which saw flames destroy 90 per cent of its Lenswood vineyard in the Adelaide Hills, including some of the region’s oldest pinot noir vines.

Instead many Victorian grapes, the skins in particular, were tarnished by smoke.

Smoke taint isn’t great for winemaking – mainly because red wine is made from grape skins as that’s where the colour, flavour and tannin lies and there’s no way of knowing how badly a crop is affected until it’s made into wine and sent for testing.

Young wines may show no signs of smoke taint, but can later develop traits after years in the bottle. Some winemakers argue in small doses the wine can taste like it has been aged in a toasted barrel, while others less poetically say it’s like “drinking an ashtray”.

Smoke taint affected 3 per cent of Australia’s national crush last year. But in the northeast, Wine Victoria estimates just 69 per cent of the 25,808 tonnes on the vine prior to harvest last year were picked.

Many King Valley wineries didn’t have enough viable grapes to make any red wine.

Wine Victoria chair Angie Bradbury says winemakers still wore the costs of vintage, even if the crop wasn’t salvageable.

“Some (growers) can’t make wine, but they still have to pay to pick that fruit off the vines and prune,” Bradbury says.

“Some will carry two full years of cost and won’t recoup any money until they sell wine for 2021.”

All Saints Estate chief executive Eliza Brown, along with her business partner-siblings Angela and Nick, was faced with this reality.

No fire tore through the Brown’s Rutherglen estate, but lingering smoke in the vineyards forced them to send the wine for testing.

Luckily the taint levels were low, meaning they could use the vintage in bulk wine – saving it from being turned into hand sanitiser.

“Sometimes you have to make those big calls. Winemaking is like gambling, you put it all on red or black and see how it pans out,” Brown says.

The Browns are fourth-generation winemaking siblings who own and run St Leonards Vineyard, All Saints Estate and Mount Ophir Estate luxury accommodation in northeast Victoria.

They are well known in the wine game, with their late father Peter one of the four Brown Brothers founders. Despite their stable footing in the industry, Brown still feared what 2020 would do to their business.

“Our biggest fear was how we would fund our winemaking,” Brown says.

“If we lose a vintage we need to fund the wine for that vintage, which doubles the amount of money going out.”

As soon as the first lockdown closed the gates at All Saints HQ in March, the Browns set to work on how to keep their customers.

Virtual wine tasting nights streamed on Zoom, and new wine styles were spruiked to its wine club members.

“Facebook and social media streams became incredibly important and it forced winemakers, who are really scientists by trade, to put themselves out there,” Brown says.

“People were buying better because they weren’t going out and were experimenting with wine they wouldn’t usually buy.”

Across Victoria, liquor retailer Dan Murphy’s was seeing wine sales from smaller producers grow at almost twice the rate of others since COVID, suggesting a desire to buy local.

Reports of people drinking more during lockdown was also widely reported.

But according to Bradbury, and many industry insiders, alcohol consumption was on-par with pre-pandemic habits.

“Across the board we didn’t see wine sales soar over COVID,” she says.

“More people were drinking more wine at home and I think the recycle bins were full, but the wine people would have ordered out at a restaurant or events … those sales had ceased.” During lockdown Matt Fowles, of Fowles Wines, was losing money at both his on-site restaurant and in the events arm of his Avenel winery in central Victoria.

So in June, he and his wife Luise launched DIY wine labels for drinkers to personalise wine bought at Fowles’ virtual cellar door – an initiative that worked surprisingly well. “Winemakers are really good at dealing with COVID,” Fowles says.

“We deal with the randomness in nature every day, that is what we do. We have a plan, but we must be ready to react to Mother Nature – bushfires or disease outbreaks – we are good at adapting to these situations.”

Laurent Rospars, St Kilda’s Prince Hotel head sommelier, has seen his share of disasters across four decades in the food and wine industry.

The chef-turned-sommelier saw business take a dive after September 11 terrorist attacks and the Global Financial Crisis, but knows things eventually make a turn for the better.

“In nearly 50 years I have been working, I haven’t seen anything like (the pandemic),” Rospars says.

“We can’t say it’s anyone’s fault and we have to keep just doing what we do. The Aussies are very resilient.”

The last piece in the Prince Hotel’s redevelopment puzzle, Little Prince Wine Bar, opened a couple of days before Victoria’s second, 111-day lockdown.

Rospars stayed open for takeaway bottle sales. Business was quieter, as expected, but as soon as lockdown ended things boomed.

Bradbury says that sentiment was echoed in cellar doors statewide, with some seeing massive sales in the weeks after Victoria’s second lockdown.

“Some wineries were reporting 30 to 100 per cent increases from their normal cellar door traffic,” she says.

The state government’s Click for Vic campaign, launched in August, had also made Victorians more aware of buying local and direct from wineries. Blue Pyrenees chief winemaker Andrew Koerner saw an overwhelming response once lockdown lifted, and was getting “bus loads” of visitors to his western Victorian winery in the Pyrenees wine region.

“There was a real, noticeable desire to get out again,” Koerner says.

“The silver lining about keeping Victorians in Victoria has meant there was more business than ever before. Visitation is up, the accommodation is full, we are full at the cafe and cellar door. It’s a good problem to have.”

As Victorians woke from their long, lockdown slumber in November, the wine industry copped its final blow for 2020 when China imposed more than 200 per cent tariffs on all Australian wine imports, after the country launched an anti-dumping investigation. Preliminary findings from China’s investigation found Australia had been “dumping” or subsidising wine, causing “substantial harm” to its domestic market.

The relationship between the two countries soured after Australia and its other western allies supported a probe into the origins of COVID-19.

Australian Grape and Wine (AGW) government relations and external affairs general manager Lee McLean says the biggest problem growers and producers faced was finding another viable market.

“Businesses are working to diversify, but no other market offers the same prices, volume and growth potential as the China market at this point in time,” he says.

A free-trade agreement between Australia and China in 2016 perhaps made exporting to the country more appealing for many local winemakers.

Of all Australia’s wine exporters, 81 per cent export to China.

In 2015/16 Australia exported $416 million worth of wine into China, but in just two years it had more than doubled to $983 million.

At the end of 2020, Australian wine exports to China were worth a whopping $1.15 billion. However, the latest Wine Australia data, released in February, shows a sharp decline in export volumes and value in November and December last year – with tariffs causing a downturn in exports to mainland China by 14 per cent to $1.01 billion.

That figure may sound high but is expected to dive further into 2021 as the impacts of the tariffs are felt.

Smaller producers like Blue Pyrenees and Fowles Wine export small amounts to China but have diversified their markets.

Blue Pyrenees is looking to move some of its international exports (90 to 95 per cent would usually go to China) to Japan, while Fowles is comfortable with its long-term stake in the US.

“China would only be 5 per cent of our revenue and is a relatively low margin for us,” Fowles says. “(The China tariffs) are a bruise for us, more of a frustration than anything else. We went to the US years ago and have spent more time focusing on that market.”

Meanwhile, positive change is brewing on a larger scale with the launch of the first Wine Victoria digital database Behind the Vines in February.

Bradbury says the online database (vicwines.com.au) with hundreds of listings, along with the Click for Vic campaign, will do wonders for the wine industry.

While Victoria’s 2021 harvest has only just begun, Bradbury says early reports of yield and quality are promising statewide – even in smoke-affected Gippsland.

In a good sign, grapes are weighing down the vines at the Eckersley’s Gippsland vineyard this year.

“Things are looking good. We are more upbeat than last year,” Eckersley says.

kara.irving@news.com.au

@Kara_Irving

Originally published as Wine industry fights back after horror year

Mother’s Day might look a little different this year, as the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic continues to put the kibosh on many in-person plans. The typical type of Mother’s Day activity, like brunch at a crowded restaurant or traveling to see mom this year, are highly discouraged and not in-keeping with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Covid-related safety guidelines. But while you may not be able to get a big group together for mimosas and pancakes to toast to your mom or the motherly figure in your life, there are still a number of ways you can celebrate.

Mother’s Day isn’t just about sparkly gifts and elaborate presents. It’s about acknowledging and honoring one of the most important people in your life. While people typically associate Mother’s Day with Hallmark, it was actually started by Ann Jarvis. Jarvis started the holiday in 1908 to acknowledge the hard work and sacrifices made by mothers for their children. In the United States, Mother’s Day is celebrated on the second Sunday of May each year, albeit in a more commercialized way than Jarvis ever intended. Jarvis in fact denounced the holiday later in life due to the proliferation of greeting cards, flowers, and presents that she found distasteful.

This year, whether you’re able to see mom in person or celebrate virtually, it’s most important that you take a moment to celebrate her. From online courses and baking sessions to scavenger hunts and tea parties, there’s no shortage of ways to help mom feel loved.

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An historic court predating Alberta is up for sale in Fort Macleod. The old courthouse and town hall is on the block. The price is an easy sell, just $225,000. But with no shortage of suitors, the town has taken more than two years to make sure the new owner is the right fit. 3:17

A historic courthouse building in Fort Macleod is soon to get a new lease on life.

The nearly 120-year-old building, which is a designated historic property, is featured in both the Oscar-winning film Brokeback Mountain and Emmy Award-winning TV series Fargo.

Sue Keenan, the town’s chief administrative officer, says they have had a number of offers and are close to a deal.

“We’ve had people come through that want to use it as a personal residence, bed and breakfast, wine — like a wine store, wine cellar, wine tasting,” Keenan said.

Keenan said they even had one offer to use the old courthouse for a marijuana business.

“I thought, how ironic is that,” she said. “All the judges must roll over in their graves.”

Built in 1902, the building served as a courthouse and offices for the North-West Mounted Police.

In the late 1970s, the town’s administration moved in and maintained occupancy until the building went up for sale two years ago, listed at $225,000.

“When you look at what you’re going to get for that, it really is a good deal,” Keenan said, adding that they want to keep the designated historic property a public space.

“The consortium we’re dealing with out of Calgary have done a lot of historical buildings in Calgary, so they’re familiar with all the hoops they have to jump through, and they’re committed to keeping this building public,” Keenan said, adding she could not give more details just yet.

“I want to make sure when we have an announcement to make to our residents and the province, that the deal is a done deal.”

Keenan is hoping to make a formal announcement next week. 

The building has 2,000 square feet of original flooring, beams, a hot water boiler and two heavy vaults. There is historic woodwork framing all the old doors and transom windows.

“This is old, old, old,” Keenan said as she toured the CBC’s Terri Trembath through the building, showing off the original hot water boiler from the early 1900s.

The basement, with its sandstone and exposed brick walls, is equipped with holding cells for the courthouse.

“It would make a great wine cellar, if you ask me,” Keenan said.

The old courthouse, designed by architect David Ewart from Ottawa — who also designed the Canadian Mint — has been deemed an historic landmark by both the provincial and federal government.

Eventually, the cost of upkeep and the daunting cost of renovations to a heritage building proved too much for the town.

As for the new deal, Keenan is optimistic.

“I am very confident that they will do this building justice, and the residents of the town of Fort MacLeod will be very pleased with the direction that it’s going to head.”

Rockin V Wine Barrel Creations rock on: Napa Valley craftsman creates everything from dog beds to cabinets

KATHLEEN REYNOLDS

More than three decades ago, Frank Villas designed a livestock brand, The Rockin V; a clever combination of his initials cradled in a curved rocker rail. He also developed a side business making useful, beautiful objects from different parts of a used wine barrel.

“My family has been in the Napa Valley since the 1920s,” said Howard Glover, nephew of Villas, who now runs The Rockin V Wine Barrel Creations. “Many in our family have worked in the wine business. In 1980, my grandmother was one of the first people to have a job in the wine tasting room at Silver Oak.”

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That’s another tradition carried on by Glover. He spends half of his working life building wine barrel furniture and art and the other half — yes, in the wine tasting room at Silver Oak Cellars.

“Most of my life I’ve spent building things” Glover said. “My dad was a homebuilder and as an adult, I worked in construction. I’ve been in the wine business for seven or eight years now.”

He always admired the décor and furniture crafted by his Uncle Frank. In 2020, the older man asked Glover if he was interested in taking over the business.

“I didn’t give it five seconds of thought before I said, ‘Of course.’ Now I carry on the family tradition.”

Glover uses an advertising option unavailable in the first years of The Rockin V. Social media, including Instagram and Etsy, showcase the wine barrel wares. The Rockin V Instagram account shows an array of artfully crafted wine barrel designs. From trays and candle holders to wine cabinets and dog beds, anything Glover or one of his customers imagines, he will try to create.

“I put together ideas with solutions,” said Glover. “People will call to pick my brain. It’s what I like most: the creativity of it. When I worked as a handyman, I did the same thing: coming up with answers to needs.”

There is a lot of competition in wine barrel design industry. A crafting site such as Etsy has a plethora of wine and whiskey barrel items for sale from all over the country. Many of them look crude and sometimes amateurish.

“What differentiates my items is that I pay attention to finishes. They’re not rough but smooth. Sanding and sealing brings out the wood grain and the rich red color of the Cabernet once stored in it. That’s what sets my work apart.”

Most of the barrels he uses are American oak, made by a cooperage in Missouri and procured from Silver Oak Cellars. He also sometimes uses French oak barrels, which have a slightly more rustic look, from Keenan Winery.

His best-selling furniture item isn’t a planter, chair, or a barstool. It’s not even for humans.

“The most popular item is the dog bed, Glover said. “They go like crazy. During Christmas, I was selling four or five a week and sending them all over the U.S.”

Lately, for no specific reason Glover understands, folks in El Dorado County can’t seem to get enough of his multi-level planters.

The second runner-up in popularity are his Lazy Susan rotating barrel ends. The most recent additions to his line are dog feeders.

“They’re a half-barrel shape, designed to fit up against a wall. Two bowls nestle into holes on the top. The dog feeders are $125 each.”

Prices range from $125 for a Lazy Susan, $150 for a dog bed and higher depending on the item’s size and complexity.

What’s next for Glover?

“I’ve ordered hardware to start making full barrel fire pits using propane. I think that’ll be fantastic. I enjoy doing bigger projects like that, but there’s just me and only so much time.”

He has no significant plans to expand the business, content with the quality and quantity he’s currently producing. Recently he relocated to a woodworking shop in the Alta Heights area with a studio space underneath it that suits him.

Glover pauses when asked why people are drawn to creations made from wine barrels.

“Wine has a mystique around it that people enjoy,” he said. “There’s history in the barrel. I take satisfaction knowing that the deep color comes from the best cabernet in the world. I love it.”

Glover realizes that the art is his legacy and someday he’ll have to pass the business on to the next generation. Although he doesn’t have children, he knows it will stay in the family.

“The Rockin V motto is, ‘Continuing the family tradition with laughter and love,’” Glover said.

Uncle Frank must be proud.

Check Etsy.com to find Rockin V Wine Barrel Creations or email hglover02@msn.com.

WATCH NOW: BOTTLES OF WINE RETURN TO EARTH AFTER A YEAR IN SPACE

CHECK OUT ST. HELENA’s EASTER ‘EGG’ HUNT 2020

Little Backpacks Preschool

Easter bunny barrel

Barrel in Angwin

Easter barrel, April 12, 2020

Wine barrel

Easter bunnies, April 12, 2020

Humpty Dumpty

R2-D2 barrel

Star Wars Easter egg barrels, April 12, 2020

Happy Easter barrel, April 12, 2020

Easter bunny barrel, April 12, 2020

Easter barrel, April 12, 2020

Easter barrel, April 12, 2020

Easter bunny barrel, April 12, 2020

Easter bunny barrel, April 12, 2020

Minion barrel, April 12, 2020

Easter barrel and planter, April 12, 2020

Patriotic Easter barrel, April 12, 2020

Easter egg barrel, April 12, 2020

Easter barrel, April 12, 2020

Easter bunny barrel

A mountain lion was spotted in a central Napa neighborhood earlier this month. There are witnesses and a video to prove it.  

A woman who was sexually assaulted in a portable toilet at BottleRock 2019 has filed a civil lawsuit against the music festival’s organizers a…

Napa County has received more than 840 complaints since its shelter in place order was lifted for the first time in June 2020, records show. 

A deteriorating two-story concrete building in remote south Napa County wetlands once relayed news from Asia to the rest of the United States …

Experts say the spike is the result of a pandemic economy and far from normal. In the meantime, skyrocketing home values could displace renters.

An appeals court rules the Expo’s offer to keep a model railroad exhibit at the Napa Expo — though at higher rent — renders an anti-eviction p…

Transportation officials are looking at creating 2 roundabouts on Highway 29 in Oakville and Rutherford.

The move would follow an earlier round of job cuts by NVUSD in early 2020, as enrollment continues to fall in the district.

Napa’s new card room, Ace & Vine, opened for business this past week. Take a look inside. 

Some Napa school traditions manage to live on, pandemic or not. Like picture day. 

In the dying days of 2019, winemaker Ken Eckersley armed himself with a bucket of water and a rake wrapped in a wet towel.

He’d set off in the car at his Gippsland winery, Nicholson River, to put out spot fires caused by the ferocious Sarsfield blaze burning about 10km north.

The aim was to protect the family-run winery he’d owned with wife Juliet for 43 years.

He’d already been told three times by authorities to leave that week, but evacuating wasn’t an option – even when the flames came within 250m of the vines.

The Eckersleys would stay and fight.

But at 11pm, by sheer luck, everything changed. Southerly winds pushed the fire away from the vineyard but the grapes still couldn’t be saved. Smoke had penetrated into the skins

making the entire crop unsalvageable.

No wine would be made at Nicholson River in 2020, and the Eckersleys weren’t alone.

The same problems were felt by grape growers and producers nationally, with many forced to make tough, expensive business decisions just months into the new year.

The pandemic followed soon after, keeping us at home for months and further crippling regional tourism.

Then, as we prepared to bid farewell to 2020, China – the country’s largest wine export market worth $1.15 billion annually – slapped tariffs on all imported Australian wines.

What a year.

But it wasn’t all bad news, with the people working in Victoria’s wine industry showing resilience and character by the barrel load.

Bushfires burning in New South Wales, South Australia and Victorian towns along the Gippsland coast made headlines here and abroad, yet little was mentioned about the silent killer choking the state’s north and northeast wine regions.

Smoke from the NSW fires had moved south, blanketing the regions of King Valley, Beechworth and Rutherglen for weeks.

No northeast district wineries were directly impacted by fire, unlike the Eckersleys or esteemed wine brand Henschke, which saw flames destroy 90 per cent of its Lenswood vineyard in the Adelaide Hills, including some of the region’s oldest pinot noir vines.

Instead many Victorian grapes, the skins in particular, were tarnished by smoke.

Smoke taint isn’t great for winemaking – mainly because red wine is made from grape skins as that’s where the colour, flavour and tannin lies and there’s no way of knowing how badly a crop is affected until it’s made into wine and sent for testing.

Young wines may show no signs of smoke taint, but can later develop traits after years in the bottle. Some winemakers argue in small doses the wine can taste like it has been aged in a toasted barrel, while others less poetically say it’s like “drinking an ashtray”.

Smoke taint affected 3 per cent of Australia’s national crush last year. But in the northeast, Wine Victoria estimates just 69 per cent of the 25,808 tonnes on the vine prior to harvest last year were picked.

Many King Valley wineries didn’t have enough viable grapes to make any red wine.

Wine Victoria chair Angie Bradbury says winemakers still wore the costs of vintage, even if the crop wasn’t salvageable.

“Some (growers) can’t make wine, but they still have to pay to pick that fruit off the vines and prune,” Bradbury says.

“Some will carry two full years of cost and won’t recoup any money until they sell wine for 2021.”

All Saints Estate chief executive Eliza Brown, along with her business partner-siblings Angela and Nick, was faced with this reality.

No fire tore through the Brown’s Rutherglen estate, but lingering smoke in the vineyards forced them to send the wine for testing.

Luckily the taint levels were low, meaning they could use the vintage in bulk wine – saving it from being turned into hand sanitiser.

“Sometimes you have to make those big calls. Winemaking is like gambling, you put it all on red or black and see how it pans out,” Brown says.

The Browns are fourth-generation winemaking siblings who own and run St Leonards Vineyard, All Saints Estate and Mount Ophir Estate luxury accommodation in northeast Victoria.

They are well known in the wine game, with their late father Peter one of the four Brown Brothers founders. Despite their stable footing in the industry, Brown still feared what 2020 would do to their business.

“Our biggest fear was how we would fund our winemaking,” Brown says.

“If we lose a vintage we need to fund the wine for that vintage, which doubles the amount of money going out.”

As soon as the first lockdown closed the gates at All Saints HQ in March, the Browns set to work on how to keep their customers.

Virtual wine tasting nights streamed on Zoom, and new wine styles were spruiked to its wine club members.

“Facebook and social media streams became incredibly important and it forced winemakers, who are really scientists by trade, to put themselves out there,” Brown says.

“People were buying better because they weren’t going out and were experimenting with wine they wouldn’t usually buy.”

Across Victoria, liquor retailer Dan Murphy’s was seeing wine sales from smaller producers grow at almost twice the rate of others since COVID, suggesting a desire to buy local.

Reports of people drinking more during lockdown was also widely reported.

But according to Bradbury, and many industry insiders, alcohol consumption was on-par with pre-pandemic habits.

“Across the board we didn’t see wine sales soar over COVID,” she says.

“More people were drinking more wine at home and I think the recycle bins were full, but the wine people would have ordered out at a restaurant or events … those sales had ceased.” During lockdown Matt Fowles, of Fowles Wines, was losing money at both his on-site restaurant and in the events arm of his Avenel winery in central Victoria.

So in June, he and his wife Luise launched DIY wine labels for drinkers to personalise wine bought at Fowles’ virtual cellar door – an initiative that worked surprisingly well. “Winemakers are really good at dealing with COVID,” Fowles says.

“We deal with the randomness in nature every day, that is what we do. We have a plan, but we must be ready to react to Mother Nature – bushfires or disease outbreaks – we are good at adapting to these situations.”

Laurent Rospars, St Kilda’s Prince Hotel head sommelier, has seen his share of disasters across four decades in the food and wine industry.

The chef-turned-sommelier saw business take a dive after September 11 terrorist attacks and the Global Financial Crisis, but knows things eventually make a turn for the better.

“In nearly 50 years I have been working, I haven’t seen anything like (the pandemic),” Rospars says.

“We can’t say it’s anyone’s fault and we have to keep just doing what we do. The Aussies are very resilient.”

The last piece in the Prince Hotel’s redevelopment puzzle, Little Prince Wine Bar, opened a couple of days before Victoria’s second, 111-day lockdown.

Rospars stayed open for takeaway bottle sales. Business was quieter, as expected, but as soon as lockdown ended things boomed.

Bradbury says that sentiment was echoed in cellar doors statewide, with some seeing massive sales in the weeks after Victoria’s second lockdown.

“Some wineries were reporting 30 to 100 per cent increases from their normal cellar door traffic,” she says.

The state government’s Click for Vic campaign, launched in August, had also made Victorians more aware of buying local and direct from wineries. Blue Pyrenees chief winemaker Andrew Koerner saw an overwhelming response once lockdown lifted, and was getting “bus loads” of visitors to his western Victorian winery in the Pyrenees wine region.

“There was a real, noticeable desire to get out again,” Koerner says.

“The silver lining about keeping Victorians in Victoria has meant there was more business than ever before. Visitation is up, the accommodation is full, we are full at the cafe and cellar door. It’s a good problem to have.”

As Victorians woke from their long, lockdown slumber in November, the wine industry copped its final blow for 2020 when China imposed more than 200 per cent tariffs on all Australian wine imports, after the country launched an anti-dumping investigation. Preliminary findings from China’s investigation found Australia had been “dumping” or subsidising wine, causing “substantial harm” to its domestic market.

The relationship between the two countries soured after Australia and its other western allies supported a probe into the origins of COVID-19.

Australian Grape and Wine (AGW) government relations and external affairs general manager Lee McLean says the biggest problem growers and producers faced was finding another viable market.

“Businesses are working to diversify, but no other market offers the same prices, volume and growth potential as the China market at this point in time,” he says.

A free-trade agreement between Australia and China in 2016 perhaps made exporting to the country more appealing for many local winemakers.

Of all Australia’s wine exporters, 81 per cent export to China.

In 2015/16 Australia exported $416 million worth of wine into China, but in just two years it had more than doubled to $983 million.

At the end of 2020, Australian wine exports to China were worth a whopping $1.15 billion. However, the latest Wine Australia data, released in February, shows a sharp decline in export volumes and value in November and December last year – with tariffs causing a downturn in exports to mainland China by 14 per cent to $1.01 billion.

That figure may sound high but is expected to dive further into 2021 as the impacts of the tariffs are felt.

Smaller producers like Blue Pyrenees and Fowles Wine export small amounts to China but have diversified their markets.

Blue Pyrenees is looking to move some of its international exports (90 to 95 per cent would usually go to China) to Japan, while Fowles is comfortable with its long-term stake in the US.

“China would only be 5 per cent of our revenue and is a relatively low margin for us,” Fowles says. “(The China tariffs) are a bruise for us, more of a frustration than anything else. We went to the US years ago and have spent more time focusing on that market.”

Meanwhile, positive change is brewing on a larger scale with the launch of the first Wine Victoria digital database Behind the Vines in February.

Bradbury says the online database (vicwines.com.au) with hundreds of listings, along with the Click for Vic campaign, will do wonders for the wine industry.

While Victoria’s 2021 harvest has only just begun, Bradbury says early reports of yield and quality are promising statewide – even in smoke-affected Gippsland.

In a good sign, grapes are weighing down the vines at the Eckersley’s Gippsland vineyard this year.

“Things are looking good. We are more upbeat than last year,” Eckersley says.

kara.irving@news.com.au

@Kara_Irving

Originally published as Wine industry fights back after horror year

It was inevitable, right? Wine in space. If there is going to be an effort to colonize the galaxy beyond the stratosphere then arrangements must be made to provide wine for those doing the colonization.

This past month word came that a case, 12 bottles of Bordeaux, stored in steel cylinders had returned from an epic space mission. The bottles came floating to Earth inside a SpaceX Dragon cargo capsule that landed in the waters off the Gulf of Mexico just west of Tampa, Florida, on a late January evening. And nary a drop was spilled.

The bottles had spent 438 days and 19 hours at zero gravity, aboard the International Space Station as it circled the Earth at a distance of 250 miles above the vineyards where the grapes were grown. In those 14 plus months, the bottles traveled more than 180,000,000 miles at speeds averaging 17,000 miles an hour.

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Give or take.

Also on the return flight, that dropped so neatly into the sea, were 320 grape vines, half Cabernet Sauvignon and half Merlot, both Bordeaux varietals, which had spent a little less time – 312 days to be precise – in the heavens. And who says the space program doesn’t have practical value?

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All kidding aside, this was a wondrous achievement for WISE, or the Wine In Space Experiment program that was undertaken by the Europe-based Space Cargo Unlimited in association with the University of Bordeaux and assorted French wine interests to study the effects of space travel and weightlessness on wine. Upon arrival, the wines and the vines were sent to ISVV (Institut Superieur de la Science et du Vin in Bordeaux, France) for analysis and at the end of this month there will be a “private organoleptic wine tasting held under the auspices of oenologist and agronomist Franck Dubourdieu” to gauge what affect the journey had on the wines.

Yes, “organoleptic” was a word new to me as well. It is defined as “the assessment of flavour, odour, appearance and mouth feel of a food product.” Big word. Simple meaning.

Monsieur Dubourdieu will be the first to taste these, the most travelled wines in history. But, oddly, the names of the wines and who made them have yet to be revealed publicly. Will they be wines from the esteemed First Growth Château, like Latour or Haut Brion, or will they be vin ordinaire as the French refer to their everyday-drinking table wines? My guess is somewhere in the middle, leaning towards the top end. It is assumed that once the tasting takes place, the house, or houses, that produced them will get their moment in the sun, as it were.

Make no mistake; the WISE undertaking is as important as it is progressive. Not just in terms of wine but in a broader agricultural context as well. With commercial space flight finding its way forward, it is obvious that the production of viable agricultural products in space will one day be, well, a thing. So why not begin with wine?

Still, the image of wine in space, to me, holds a bit more romance than simply a cylinder along for the ride for test purposes. Rather, I imagine one day sitting on the deck of an opulent space ship staring out at the rings of Saturn on my left and the known galaxy on my right, as a robotic sommelier, towel folded neatly over one arm, pours a glass of 2050 Bordeaux. How it flows from the bottle into the glass in a weightless environment is a question for the scientists.

Stranger than fiction.

AND BACK HERE ON EARTH…

The Little Nell announced this week that the much-anticipated Little Nell Wine Academy gathering has been canceled for the second straight year due to concerns regarding COVID-19. This comes on the heels of the successful virtual online tasting that saw the sommeliers — who were scheduled to be expert instructors at this year’s Academy — take participants through both old and new world wines as a precursor of the April event.

“We initially designed our virtual tasting in January to be a preview of our Little Nell Wine Academy in the spring, following the same theme,” said a spokesperson for the Nell. “But we came to the decision to cancel the 2021 Wine Academy due to restrictions around travel, events and gatherings this year.”

But never fear. Plans are afoot for continuing the Academy both in person and in potential online events.

“Since the virtual tasting was a success measured by the number of participants that registered, the positive comments from those who (attended), in person and remotely, and the enjoyment by our sommeliers leading it, we are discussing offering more.”

Check here for news about future events.

It’s a feathered frenzy of preening birds, theatrical mating rituals and rampant adultery. Pinned to the ocean edge of Cape Kidnappers, it’s the largest and most accessible mainland gannet colony in the world. Its very name is steeped in historic drama, stemming back to Captain Cook’s visit in 1769 and the young Tahitian he had on board the Endeavour, employed as his translator. As the young Polynesian interpreter tried to negotiate with local Maori for fresh provisions and water, they wrongly assumed that he’d been imprisoned. Tragically the misunderstanding forced Cook to fire his cannon, killing two Maori warriors, as they tried to kidnap him. The young Tahitian managed to escape, making his way back on the ship, prompting Cook to name it Cape Kidnappers. I explored the cape with Gannet Safaris, the award-winning sightseeing company.

My guide for the day was David, a fabulously informative font of wisdom and wit, who had my vanload of fellow passengers in the palm of his hand as he unfurled a wealth of knowledge and incisive anecdotes about the cape. From Te Awanga, as you turn off the coastal road into the station entrance, you’ll discover Julian Robertson and Cape Kidnappers Lodge has invested mega-bucks on tar-sealing and upgrading twenty bridges to tame the rigours of romping across this craggy peninsula. The eastern side of the cape, studded with a 10.5km –long predator proof fence boasts New Zealand’s largest private wildlife sanctuary. Run by 2 fulltime staff and over 300 volunteers, the 5000-acre sanctuary sports the most diverse range of birds, insects and reptiles, including the prized treasure –  a 150-strong kiwi refuge, most of which are brown kiwi and also little spotted. David remarked that since the fence was built in 2007, over 1500 feral cats have been shot on-site.

David stopped to show us the vertiginous cliff named Bank Manager’s Corner, after a banker who was reluctant to lend money for the early development of the farm was ushered closer and closer to the cliff’s edge until he agreed to the loan!  But the tour de force is the intimate encounter with the heaving hordes of Australasian gannets, 20,000 squawking, fornicating and nesting birds. They are members of the Booby family, with distinctive black eye markings and a pale gold crown. The gannets, known as takapu in Maori, have been nesting here since the 1870s. Their lifespan ranges from 25 to 40 years, but their lives are launched in dramatic fashion. The 16 week old chicks, who’ve never been airborne before, ambitiously embark on a 2,800 kilometre Tasman Sea crossing, which averages about 8 days. They will fly to Australia either north of New Zealand or to the south, but they won’t fly overland or through Cook Strait. If they land in their first days of the attempted crossing, they’ll be too fat to fly off again, so it’s a high-stakes trip!

After successfully crossing the Tasman, the birds will stay in Australia in 3-4 years, before attempting the return flight. Only 15% successfully make it home. The boys apparently arrive first, in July, tidying up the nest before the girls start descending.  Not dissimilar to men presenting women with roses as a romantic gesture, the young boys will fly around the girls dangling seaweed from their beaks, slapping it across the girls as a lust-laden offering. How kinky. Our group saw some of the boy birds flapping about with the most ridiculous over-laden hauls of seaweed dangling from their mouths as part of the mating ritual. Apparently the birds don’t nest in earnest until they reach five years of age.  The quaint old saying, like gannets in a gut truck, is vividly brought into sharp and sensory focus, 4D-style, at Plateau Colony, where we stood in awe, just metres from these birds, with their striking black eye markings and pale gold crown.

While many nested in serried rows, some preened and performed various recognition rituals, while others swooped and dived, bringing fish back from the deep sea. The view down to the windswept and wave-lashed Saddle Colony is majestic. David shared a stream of insightful nuggets with us, like the fact that when James Cook came here, his crew had gannet for Christmas, nicknaming it colonial goose. But the biggest and most scandalous discovery was that adultery, divorce and remarriage is rife amongst the gannets. The birds can be seen from September to early April, so the clock is ticking on this season. In September they return from their winter escape to build their nests ready for the arrival of the chicks during December and January.

The chicks are then fattened up ready for their first and departing flight in late April when they go off on their annual ritual to warmer climates. Watch these champion seabirds soar, swoop, dance and dive right before your eyes, before their April departure. Twice daily tours depart at 930am and 130pm from Te Awanga, priced from $88 for adults. www.gannetsafaris.co.nz

Elephant Hill Winery is just a few minutes down the road from Gannet Safaris Overland Depot, so after your tour unwind from your day with a wine tasting and/or a delicious dinner at this beautiful winery. You can sit inside or outside and enjoy fine dining and beautiful Hawkes Bay wine while taking in vineyard and seaviews. I adore their Syrah and Pinot Noir. They’re passionate about caring for the land, treading as lightly as possible on the earth. Elephant Hill has installed their own state-of-the-art biological water treatment system that allows them to recycle winery waste water back into valuable clean water. Wildflowers are planted in the vineyards and creek banks to contribute to the beauty of the property and attract beneficial insects for biodiversity. All Elephant Hill vineyards are 100% accredited by Sustainable Winegrowers of New Zealand.

If you fancy having a serious splurge to remember, spoil yourself with a night of supreme luxury at The Farm at Cape Kidnappers. Set on 6,000 acres of stunning pastures in Hawke’s Bay, this world-acclaimed Julian Robertson lodge boasts 180-degree ocean views, a wine cellar with a tasting room, open fireplaces and an infinity pool with a hot tub. Guests enjoy complimentary pre-dinner drinks with hors d’oeuvres, gourmet dinner, full breakfast and a complimentary in-room minibar with domestic beer only.

Strung across rolling farmland and rugged cliffs that give way to vast sea views, this is not just a lodge and spa, but the property also boasts an award-winning Tom Doak-designed golf course and a sanctuary for some of New Zealand’s most precious flora, fauna and endangered animals. The main lodge overlooks the working farm, golf course and Pacific Ocean, and houses the guest lounge, library, wine cellar and snug, providing a variety of options of dining locations. And never short on incredible experiences, activities include exploring the expansive estate on horseback or Can-Am and hiking any of the many walking trails.

The main lodge features lounge and dining spaces, outdoor entertainment areas, a fully equipped fitness centre and a day spa. The luxurious 5-star accommodation options include private suites and a 4-bedroom self-contained cottage. All are air-conditioned and feature a private balcony with views over the ocean and 18-hole golf course. All include an LCD TV, DVD player and in-room safe.

Relax under the shaded poolside cabana, or indulge yourself at The Spa which offers ocean views and a variety of spa treatments such as massages, reflexology, body wraps, facials, pedicures, manicures and hair care. You’ll enjoy gourmet restaurant cuisine from award-winning chefs, showcasing the finest New Zealand lamb and beef, as well as the best local produce and seafood. It’s perfect for honeymoons, special anniversaries and romantic getaways.  Take advantage of the Summertime Special, knocking $420 off the nightly rate per guest, available until 31 March 2021, inclusive, for a minimum two-night stay. Exclusively priced for New Zealand residents only, from $825 + GST per person, per night, on a double/twin occupancy basis. https://www.robertsonlodges.com/

I picked up my Avis rental car from Wellington Airport to free-roam the North Island. The Avis Safety Pledge allows customers to pick up and drop off vehicles with minimal contact. This has been complemented with the Digital Check In option, dramatically speeding-up time at the counter. With so much to explore in New Zealand, if you’re planning a cheeky long weekend road-trip, Avis is currently “third day free” weekend rentals. www.avis.co.nz

Mike Yardley is our Travel Correspondent on Jack Tame Saturday Mornings.

The coronavirus crisis may still be spreading its death and devastation, but baseball is back and this weekend the world champion Los Angeles Dodgers begin chasing back-to-back glory. All is right with the world.

Noozhawk drew an audience of 107,002 readers this past week, according to our Google Analytics. What follows is my recap of the Top 5 stories you were reading during that period.

This is my opinion column, and although it may be light on that this week, this is not a news story.

1. Bill Macfadyen: Tragedy All Around in High School Student’s Alleged Attempted Murder of Classmate

I have nothing new to report in the case of 18-year-old Cora Vides, the Laguna Blanca School senior who has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder and related charges in the Feb. 14 stabbing of a classmate. She’s due back in Santa Barbara County Superior Court on March 8.

The victim, also 18, is recovering at a Los Angeles hospital, but her family has released no information on her condition as they try to protect her privacy.

2. Santa Barbara Considers Changes at Little-Used Eastside Neighborhood Park

Santa Barbara’s Eastside Neighborhood Park is charming and inviting. Whenever I drive past it on a hot summer day, the shade from its canopy of oak trees beckons. I just want to lie down for an afternoon nap.

Unfortunately, neighbors don’t necessarily share my romanticized view of the small park at the corner of East Yanonali and South Soledad streets across from Franklin School.

Looks can be deceiving, they say, and if you peer closer and for longer you’ll observe plentiful criminal activity, already limited parking spaces occupied by people living in their vans and cars, too much shade, and a children’s playground too secluded for parental comfort.

“People avoid coming into contact with criminal activity,” Denise Johns, an associate park planner for the city Parks & Recreation Department, said in a sweeping understatement.

“These are people loitering at the restroom or areas intended for picnicking or play.”

As our Josh Molina reported Feb. 21, the department has put together a $750,000 plan to overhaul the park, perhaps as soon as next year.

The conceptual plan was presented last month to the Parks and Recreation Commission and the department hopes to have public meetings about it in March.

Looks like my nap will have to wait.

3. Proposed Building for Santa Barbara’s Funk Zone Aims High with Rooftop Deck and Bar

Plans for the creative conversion of a Funk Zone warehouse won unanimous support from Santa Barbara’s Architectural Board of Review, clearing the way for the project’s next stop at the Planning Commission.

As our Josh Molina first reported, Hannah Beachside LLC owns a 1,643-foot warehouse at 16½ and 20 Helena St. and 11 Anacapa St. and wants to turn it into a wine-tasting business with a rooftop deck and bar.

The project includes an elevator and stairwell, along with a 22-vehicle mechanical parking lift structure to complement the 45 parking spaces at the site.

“We’re very excited about this project,” said Jill Johnson, owner of Loveworn, a vintage clothing boutique at 11 Anacapa St. “The rooftop vistas are going to be incredible and lend something incredibly new and innovative to the Funk Zone.”

The ABR voted 6-0 to approve the project, but board members expressed concerns about the modern look of the rooftop design.

“It’s sort of this midcentury, modern pavilion that just landed on top of this funky old building,” board president Kevin Moore said.

“There is such a great opportunity to make something on top of this building that fits in really well and has materials similar to what we see here and has a little bit more Funk Zone flavor.”

4. Santa Barbara District Staff Urges Denial of Outdoor-Learning Charter School

The proposed Thoreau Community School may have hoped to inspire students, in part, with lessons from Life in the Woods. After the Santa Barbara Unified School District shot down the charter school, perhaps Civil Disobedience should be added to the reading list.

As our Josh Molina reported, Thoreau is envisioned as an outdoor learning school with up to 100 students in transitional kindergarten through sixth grade. The emphasis would be on an experiential, hands-on education.

Organizers have been working on the concept for more than three years and had a letter of intent to use La Casa de la Raza’s community center building on the Lower Eastside, although other sites were being explored downtown.

“We really believe we are offering something unique and wonderful, and the children are going to thrive there,” said Marianne D’Emidio-Caston, the nonprofit school’s board president.

SBUSD staff disagreed, and recommended that the district’s school board deny the charter application. According to staff, special-education services were incomplete, the board organization was insufficient, there were financial concerns, there was uncertainty about a location and there were questions about the school’s demographics.

On Feb. 23, the school board deadlocked 2-2 on the application, which essentially killed the project. Namesake Henry David Thoreau likely would have been exasperated, but not surprised.

Trustees Laura Capps and Kate Ford voted for the charter, while Virginia Alvarez and Rose Munoz voted against it. The fifth trustee, Wendy Sims-Moten, was absent.

In other news, the board voted to reopen SBUSD elementary schools on March 1. It’s not clear when secondary school students will return to in-person instruction.

5. BizHawk: Closure Brewing for Starbucks at State and De la Guerra in Santa Barbara

By sheer volume, Starbucks may still be ubiquitous, but downtown Santa Barbara will lose one of its two stores when the shop at the corner of State and De la Guerra streets closes March 16.

As our Josh Molina reported, the termination is part of a move by the Seattle-based coffeehouse and roasting chain to close up to 400 stores throughout the United States, and 300 more in Canada.

The company’s “transformation strategy,” announced last summer, is a response to changes in consumer habits during the COVID-19 crisis, and includes adding new drive-through locations, curbside pickup-only coffee shops and expanded delivery service.

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Last Year on Noozhawk

What was our most-read story this time last year? Officer Fires Nonlethal Rounds in Subduing Suspect Inside Santa Barbara Store.

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Bill Macfadyen’s Story of the Week

Just to be clear, the reward is for the dogs and not the dog walker?! Lady Gaga Offers $500,000 Reward After Thief Stole 2 Bulldogs and Shot Her Dog Walker.

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Best of Bill’s Instagram

Had to add a #mailtheft public service announcement to my #mailboxesofmontecito2021 feature in my Instagram feed this past week.

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Watch It

This fluffball otter know it would be so much easier in the water. HT to Maddie Dougherty.

(RM Videos video)

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— Bill Macfadyen is Noozhawk’s founder and publisher. Contact him at [email protected], follow him on Instagram: @bill.macfadyen, or click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.