JUNE 28, 2019
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position and an assistant brewer position soon, so he won’t have to work long hours every day anymore. His current profession is a big change from a few years ago, when he was working as a mechanical engineer. Even then, however, he was passionate about home brewing, which he did for 12 years before “turning pro” when Rouleur opened in early 2017. In the tasting room, the photos and other art are all cycling-themed. The most prominent is a kinetic sculpture made of bicycle wheels and chains. Rouleur sponsors several local cycling groups: an elite women’s competitive team, a triathlon team, and two local cycling clubs. Rouleur has made such a name in the local cycling community that they are involved in every local cycling event in one way or another. Rouleur hosts weekly Thursday night group rides that typically involve about 40 riders. On the holiday rides, as many as 250 riders come out. The rides range from 20 to 80 miles in length. Macias himself didn’t start cycling seriously until he turned 30; he just turned 36 a couple of weeks ago. The next iteration of Rouleur, which Macias is planning now, will be more generally themed around an active lifestyle. Exactly when the next step will take place is somewhat up in the air. Rouleur’s lease in their current Brewery Ignitor space ends in about half a year. Before then, Macias and Rouleur will be making some decisions about future directions and timelines. Building another brewery in North County seems likely. Their current space just isn’t big enough to meet demand for their multiaward-winning beers. In their first nine months, Rouleur produced about 450 barrels of beer. (A barrel contains 248 pints.) In 2018, production increased to 700 barrels; in 2019, they are on track to produce about 1,000 barrels, which is close to maximum capacity in their current configuration. The fermenting tanks are nearly always full, Macias says, which is why he is installing two new fermenters soon. After that there is no more space in the location, which would mean expanding into nearby warehouse space in the same complex, or looking for new digs altogether. The advantage of Rouleur’s current location is that it is a Brewery Ignitor, an HG Fenton concept that includes the tasting room and brewing system as well as the space itself. The idea is that a new brewery can move in quickly, do a proof of concept, establish a brand, build a customer base, and then move out within a year or two to establish their own location. The first Brewery Ignitor opened in Mira Mesa, and is home to Amplified
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T he C oast News Ale Works and Pure Project. The second Brewery Ignitor, in North Park, is home to Eppig Brewing, Pariah Brewing and JuneShine Hard Kombucha. While a Brewery Ignitor location helps a brewery get open quickly without having to do a buildout or raise a lot of capital to buy equipment, there are some disadvantages, too. Among these is the fact that the rent is about four times higher than it would be for an empty space. The locations were designed without input from brewers, so there are various little issues that make things difficult (inadequate drains, cramped systems, insufficient cold storage, and so on). Most problematic, however, is the fact that the brewing systems installed are not big enough, even brewing flat out, to allow breweries to cover rent and other costs while saving up enough to move on to their own spaces. Rouleur is doing everything they can to grow, though. The two new fermenters, taking advantage of mobile canning services to get their products out to local bottle shops, developing new beers that appeal to hot trends, and making the very best beer that they can. “We don’t release a beer unless we are happy with it,” Macias says. That last part in particular is working incredibly well. Macias is proud of the fact that brewers at other breweries regularly come by his spot to drink his beer. Another measure of that brewing quality is the fact that Rouleur has been winning a lot of medals in important beer competitions. In 2018, Rouleur won a bronze at the World Beer Cup — the Olympics of the beer world — for Domestique, a Belgian-style blonde ale. Rouleur won a San Diego International Beer Competition bronze medal in 2018 for Puncheur, a pale ale; that same beer won a Gold at the 2019 Los Angeles International Beer Festival (LAIBF) and another bronze at the 2019 San Diego International Beer Competition (SDIBC). In total, Rouleur won four medals at the 2019 SDIBC (one gold, two silvers, one bronze), and four awards at the 2019 LAIBF (one gold, one bronze, one bronze for a collaboration beer with next door neighbor Papa Marce’s Cerveceria, plus an honorable mention). That makes Rouleur one of the most-awarded breweries at the two most important California beer competitions of 2019. Although when Rouleur first opened they had a focus on Belgian-style beers, today only three of their 14 taps are Belgians. The rest are the usual mix for a San Diego brewery — pale ales, IPAs, a stout, and so on. New releases in the last few weeks include a raspberry-lime hard seltzer and a Japanese-style lager called Raida, Japanese for “rider.” With its combination of skill, passion and discipline, I expect Rouleur to go far.
City manager, city employees get raises By Aaron Burgin
ENCINITAS — Encinitas’ top employee and its rank-and-file employees will receive 2% raises, as the City Council approved the pay increases at a recent council meeting. City Manager Karen Brust received high praise from the council, which voted 4-0 to approve her $5,000 pay bump for the 2019-2020 fiscal year. A subcommittee composed of Mayor Catherine Blakespear and Councilwoman Kellie Shay Hinze negotiated the wage increase. “She does an outstanding job,” Blakespear said, citing Brust’s 30
years of experience and her performance since she was hired in mid-2015. “We are really excited about this.” The council hired Brust — one of two employees the council controls — as the permanent replacement to Gus Vina, who took a position in Northern California. She was formerly the top administrator in San Juan Capistrano and Del Mar. Blakespear has credited Brust for navigating the city through a tumultuous period marked by turnover of key staff as she put together her executive team. The raise will bump
Brust’s base compensation to $255,043.86 annually. “She has done a tremendous job,” City Councilman Tony Kranz added. Brust also received an additional week of paid vacation as part of her amended contract. Previously, the council gave Brust a $7,283 raise and a $20,000 contribution to her deferred compensation plan last fall. The City Council also agreed to a new contract with its employees represented by the Service Employee International Union Local 221 and fire chief officers.
Under the new contracts, those employees will receive 2% raises each July 1 between 2019 and 2022, as well as increases to a cash credit that employees can use to purchase health and welfare benefits as part of a flexible benefits plan. That cash credit starts at $13,300 and increases to $14,200, $14,400, $14,600 and $14,800 over the next four years. The City Council also voted in closed session to bring back the contract of City Attorney Glenn Sabine with amendments, though the council did not specify what those amendments would be.
Medical Integration(Mi) Strength:
FEATURING SAIMA KHAN By Chloé Nyenhuis
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ou may have heard the name or seen an article mentioning a new type of fitness program and wondered, “What is Medical Integration?” Medical Integration (MI), at its foundation, is small-group fitness training developed from evidence based research and led by nationally certified personal trainers with specialized certifications. This enables them to modify workouts for individual needs. It is the missing link between healthcare and fitness and only found at Tri-City Wellness & Fitness Center. MI is composed of four categories: Medical Integration Strength, Medical Integration Ortho with land and aquatic options, Medical Integration Cardio, and Medical Integration Neuro. Within the Medical Integration umbrella, the MI Strength Program is unique because it utilizes titrated training based on scientific data to help promote bone health, increase muscle mass, and improve joint integrity. Members, such as Saima Khan, begin with learning proper form and technique before moving to progressive resistance training. Saima joined the MI Strength program in September of 2018 and remains an active member. She had goals of losing weight and gaining muscle, which she has achieved, but what she did not expect to gain was the “new found energy and optimism the program has given [her]”. She has found a community of like-minded members who keep her accountable and push her during the 1-hour workouts to give her best effort. They will often find themselves competing jovially to see who has the strongest grip strength or who can deadlift the most amount of weight! This community of “dear friends inspire [her] to do more every day.” The MI Strength Program
TRI-CITY WELLNESS & FITNESS CENTER has become so much more than just a place to work out for Saima; the caring trainers, new friends, and tailored training have made it her “happy place!” Courtesy photo
is a beneficial addition to a healthy person such as Saima but it is also designed to provide a wellness option to those with a variety of medical histories. The MI Strength program supports those with or in remission from cancer, MS, recovering from an injury or surgery, arthritis, and many looking to lose or keep off weight can benefit. There are several members in MI Strength who knew they needed to make their health a priority and joined the program to build a foundation for greater independence and better quality of life. MI Strength and our other three programs are not unilateral workout programs, these specialized training programs are modified to each member’s needs by their trainers. For those in MI Strength, they understand that more than just exercise, they need training. Training differs from exercise alone because of the structure and instruction provided by the specialized trainers. In her interview Saima raves about her trainers: “My trainers, Brandon and Kunal, are amazing! They truly care and want the very best for each and every one of us.” The structure of a
planned workout coupled with the trainers instruction allows for those who are healthy as well as those who need modifications to exercise up to their full potential within a safe environment. This structure also helps with accountability; Saima explained that she appreciates how the trainers gear the exercises for her and keep them at her pace while still pushing her to become her very best! Tri-City Wellness & Fitness Center has become so much more than just a place to work out for Saima; the caring trainers, new friends, and tailored training have made it her “happy place!” Come experience the difference between training and exercise to see how Medical Integration at Tri-City Wellness & Fitness Center could become your happy place as well. Feel free to call 760.931.3127, visit our website tricitywellness. com/medical or email susan. webster@activewellness.com for more information.