CONSUMED with Jaime Lewis

LEGENDS: Sommelier-turned-farmer Rajat Parr

When I developed this season of California and Central Coast legends, I came across an article about sommelier and farmer Rajat Parr. It was written by Esther Mobley, the senior wine critic for the San Francisco Chronicle. She called him one of the wine industry’s biggest celebrities and California’s most influential sommelier—and she’s certainly not the only one. Rajat Parr is an absolute giant of the wine world, having worked as a sommelier for restaurateur Michael Mina for many years in San Francisco, and co-authoring two very important books: Secrets of the Sommeliers and The Sommelier’s Atlas of Taste. So imagine my surprise when he instantly accepted my email request for an interview. Since moving away from the sommelier and restaurant world, he has taken up as a farmer and winemaker in Cambria at Phelan Farm, Stolo Vineyard, Domaine de la Cote, and Sandhi Wines. We talked about his upbringing in Calcutta, his original goal to become a chef, the way he risked it all to move to San Francisco, and his legendary and well-documented blind-tasting abilities.

Website: phelanfarm.com / sandhiwines.com / domainedelacote.com / stolofamilyvineyards.com

Instagram: @rajatparr

LEGENDS: Cult brewers Vinnie and Natalie Cilurzo, Russian River Brewing

There are few businesses I’d travel multiple hours to visit, but Russian River Brewing is one of them—and I am most certainly not alone. Vinnie and Natalie Cilurzo are the minds behind Pliny the Younger, one of the culty-est brews in the world, and one that is only available for a short time each spring. The brewery only makes a certain amount of this perfectly-balanced triple IPA, and only sells it for two weeks in March. People from around the globe line up outside their two locations to wait for the doors to open, and the economic impact on Sonoma County stands at $6.1 million, just for Pliny the Younger week. We talked about Vinnie growing up in a pioneering Temecula winery, how they met when Natalie bought booze for an underaged Vinnie, and the terror they felt that first time Pliny caught the world’s attention. I drove to their second location in Windsor for the day to hang out and chat, and the nine hours I spent driving were absolutely worth it.

Website: russianriverbrewing.com

Instagram: @russianriverbrewingofficial

 

 

 

LEGENDS: Chuck Hiigel, czar of Central Coast beer

Someone once called Chuck Hiigel the godfather of Central Coast beer, but I would go as far as to say that, in many ways, he is the godfather of beer across the state of California. What began as an obsessive side project to studying architecture at Cal Poly has since comprised a life and career that celebrates the art and craft of brewing, from managing the iconic Spike’s Pub in the San Luis Obispo Creamery—a business that has since closed but will forever have a place in the hearts of beer lovers everywhere—and convening the California Festival of Beers, to bringing his special brand of education and beer hospitality to the famous Transitions Beer Dinner, San Luis Obispo Mozart Festival, and local NPR affiliate, KCBX. I know Chuck as a beer man about town, but we also sing in the San Luis Obispo Master Chorale, so there is discussion about the similarities of classical music and beer that I like to believe will delight fans of either, both, or neither.

LEGENDS: Taco Works brand tortilla chips with CEO Robbie Bayly

Fritos were born in 1932. Same for Lay’s Potato Chips. Cheetos came on the scene in 1948, and Doritos in 1966. And then, in 1976, riding high on the snack wave, Taco Works Tortilla Chips arrived in San Luis Obispo, California. These crunchy, crispy chips originated with Ty Bayly at his Foothill Boulevard Mexican restaurant of the same name. But whereas the restaurant closed, the chips grew more and more famous for their light texture and signature seasoning. Today, Ty’s son Robbie Bayly runs the operation, and joined me to share the story behind these rather addictive snacks, the changes they’ve had to make over the years, and the letters and comments that Taco Works receives about their product. If your a Taco Works-head like we are in the Lewis household, you’re definitely going to want to listen in.

Photo credit: Jerry Perez for Edible SLO Magazine

Website: tacoworks.net

Instagram: @tacworksinc

LEGENDS: Cattaneo Brothers jerky with CEO Katelyn Kaney

If you’ve lived on California’s Central Coast for any amount of time, you’re aware of the name Cattaneo Brothers. Since 1947, this family-owned brand has produced artisan jerky, as well as other snacks and sausages, and their handiwork can be found nearly everywhere you look in San Luis Obispo County. CEO Katelyn Kaney joined me on the podcast to talk about the history of Cattaneo Brothers, its humble beginnings in the basement below present-day restaurant Luna Red, how her parents took the company nationwide, and, well...how the jerky’s made.

Website: cattaneobros.com

Instagram: @cattaneobros

LEGENDS: Brown Butter Cookie Company with Traci Hozie Alderson

Some products are so tightly woven into the culinary consciousness of a place that it’s hard to believe they ever didn’t exist. Such is the case with the Brown Butter Cookie Company, makers of a ridiculously addictive shortbread cookie that California and the Central Coast just can’t get enough of. I spoke with co-founder Traci Hozie Alderson about her beginnings in marketing for Calvin Klein fragrance, the origins of this special cookie in the back of a deli in Cayucos in 2008, how locals and out-of-towners alike have embraced it as “our cookie,” and the ways the company is currently giving back—and bursting at the seams.

Photo credit: Ruby Wallau for Edible SLO Magazine

Website: brownbuttercookies.com

Instagram: @brownbuttercookiecompany

LEGENDS: Steak and Champagne Cake at The Madonna Inn with Amanda Rich

The Madonna Inn is a California icon for many reasons, most famous of which might be its embrace of the color pink: pink walls, pink goblets, pink carpet—even pink tennis courts and pink lamp posts. Who made the decision to go pink? That would be Mrs. Phyllis Madonna, who co-founded the hotel and restaurant with her late husband Alex Madonna, a successful businessman, developer and contractor. Their over-the-top aesthetic and unique interpretation of luxury turned the inn into a destination for travelers driving Highway 101 through San Luis Obispo—and over the years, a whole new generation has adopted the Madonna Inn as its own. (Just search up “Madonna Inn” on Instagram and brace for impact.) But it isn’t just tourists who love the inn: we locals love it too, and have been known to argue about which is better: the Pink Champagne Cake or the Black Forest Cake. Interestingly, when I sat down with Marketing Director and longtime assistant to Mrs. Madonna, Amanda Rich, she spoke mostly about Mrs. Madonna’s Cheese Pie (whose recipe I share below) and her own favorite dessert, which I guarantee isn’t one you would guess.

Website: madonnainn.com

Instagram: @madonnainn1958

 

Madonna Inn Cheese Pie
(courtesy of Madonna Inn)

12-14 graham crackers

1/4 cup melted butter

4 3-ounce packages cream cheese (whipped)

2 eggs (whites beaten stiff)

3/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

1 cup sour cream

3 1/2 tablspoons sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Crust: Crush graham crackers until fine, then mix with melted butter. Press and shape into a pie plate. Bake in 350-degree F oven for 5-7 minutes. Remove and cool.

Filling: Combine cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar, egg yolks, 2 teaspoons vanilla and lemon juice. Beat until light. Fold in beaten egg whites. Pour mixture into graham cracker crust. Bake in 350-degree F oven 15-20 minutes. Remove and cool for five minutes.

Topping: Blend 1 cup sour cream, 3 1/2 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Pour over pie filling. Bake 10 minutes more. Refrigerate for 5 hours.

LEGENDS: Santa Maria Style BBQ at Far Western Tavern and Susie Q Brand with Susie Righetti

If you don’t recognize the name Susie Righetti, you might recognize her two iconic businesses: she is the founder of Susie Q Brand, a purveyor of Santa Maria Style barbecue seasonings, pinquito beans, salsas and jerky; and along with her family members, she is co-owner of the Far Western Tavern in Santa Maria. I chose Susie as one of this season’s legends because she grew up hanging out in the Far Western’s dining room and kitchens, and she knows both Santa Maria and barbecue. Also, family lore says that her family line dates back to the De Anza Expedition along the California coastline and predates the Declaration of Independence—if that doesn’t make her a legend, I don’t know what does. We talked about what makes Santa Maria Style Barbecue different, important, and delicious, and we discussed the evolution of the Far Western Tavern, too, which moved from its original building in Guadalupe to its new location in Orcutt just a few years ago.

Websites: farwesterntavern.com / susieqbrand.com

Instagram: @susieqbrand / @farwesterntavern

LEGENDS: Pioneering Rhône varieties and regenerative agriculture with Tablas Creek Vineyard proprietor Jason Haas

When you think of wineries that really changed the game in California, Tablas Creek Vineyard should be one of the first to come to mind. A partnership between a wine importer, Robert Haas, and winegrowers in the south of France, Jean-Pierre Perrin and Francois Perrin, Tablas Creek has been a pioneering producer of Rhone-varietal wines in Paso Robles since it opened in 1989. I spoke with Jason Haas, the second-generation proprietor of Tablas Creek Vineyard who has continued the work set out by his father and the Perrin family: to establish Paso Robles as a premier appellation for Rhone varieties, and to do so with rigorous attention to sustainability and regenerative agriculture. In these ways, Tablas Creek has been one of the first if not the very first to approach winemaking this way in Paso Robles, and well ahead of their time. Jason and I talk about his beginnings in the tech industry, his affection for ultimate frisbee, and the accolades he’s won for his writing on the Tablas Creek blog at tablascreek.typepad.com.

Website: tablascreekvineyard.com

Instagram: @tablascreek

 

LEGENDS: Novo, Luna Red and Robin’s owners Shanny Covey and Robin Covey

The concept of fresh, local, seasonal ingredients in restaurants is one most Californians are very familiar with, but in 1985, it was pretty radical. Fortunately for those of us who dine at Robin’s in Cambria, Novo and Luna Red restaurants in San Luis Obispo, owners Robin Covey and Shanny Covey didn’t know any better: it’s just the way they liked to eat. Over time they formed a shared company called the Blue Mango Restaurant Group that operates these three beloved restaurants, keeping the mandate for fresh, local and seasonal ingredients front and center at all times, and inspiring other restaurants to do the same. They’ve managed to do this through the outrageous challenges of restaurant ownership, as well as through divorcing but remaining business partners. So many of us consider these restaurants a forever-part of the local culinary landscape, and we have their creative thinking and acumen to thank.

Websites: novorestaurant.com / lunaredslo.com / robinsrestaurant.com

Instagram: @novorestaurant / @lunaredrestaurant / @robins_restaurant