marin living november 2022

Entertaining & Holiday Gifting

Cheers to the season of gratitude!

Jessica Cline CEO

jessica@marinlivingmagazine.com  707.302.0850

Dina Grant

Advertising Director dina@marinlivingmagazine.com  707.238.2030

ADVERTISING

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Carrie Moler carrie@marinlivingmagazine.com 415.271.3080

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Courtney Roberts courtney@marinlivingmagazine.com 415.720.3752

Casey Gillespie

Creative Director casey@marinlivingmagazine.com

Daniel Jewett

Executive Editor dan@marinlivingmagazine.com

EDITORIAL

Associate Editor

Caitlin Hamer

Contributing Designers

Roberto Avalos, Jamie Bankston, Madeleine Hannes, David Sebo

Contributing Writers

Casey Hatfield-Chiotti, Annie Gieser, Lorena Masso, Mitchel Sam Rossi, Laura Schooling

Contributing Photographer

Lorena Masso

Copy Editor

Cynthia Rubin

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table of contents.

2022

spotlight marin.

20 news.

S.F.’s beloved Union Square ice rink is back; November voting, by the numbers; a winter update from Lake Tahoe; and more.

30 local splurges.

Fuzzy toys for the little ones — because the holidays are just around the corner.

32 eat & drink.

A roundup of San Francisco’s must-visit bars and lounges for the festive season.

marin

36 local getaways. We head to St. Helena for some holiday shopping and wine tasting fun.

40 take note.

Sweetwater Music Hall is turning 50 — let the celebrations begin!

42 game changers.

Skyway is about to change the way we commute and look at the skies.

going places.

78 land & sea.

Heading to Tahoe? Add the Tahoe Science Center to your list of to-dos.

80 new digs. We break down the Inflation Reduction Act and what it means for you.

82 voyager. Need a break? It’s the most wonderful time of year in Burgundy.

88 drawn together.

Tiffany Shlain’s new feminism-and-time inspired exhibit is worth the ferry ride.

from the team.

16 from the ceo.

18 from the creative director.

Clockwise from top left: Erin Ng; courtesy of Skyway; Jellycat

How can human connection help your health?

Health and human relationships are inextricably linked. In general, people in loving, supportive relationships (be it good friends, companions or spouses) live healthier, longer lives and experience greater overall life satisfaction than people in unsatisfying relationships or those who are socially isolated.

Why are the holidays a good time to repair relationships?

Now is a good time to work on relationships with family and friends, checking in with those you might have drifted apart from and reinforcing bonds that were already strong. The holidays are as great time as any to give all your relationships the attention they deserve.

How to Take the Leap to Love

Innovative Match founder

What is it about relationships that make people healthier?

Satisfied partners provide a constant source of support. Couples in healthy relationships tend to take fewer risks or engage in substance abuse. Married people tend to help each other maintain healthy habits and are more likely to follow their doctors’ recommendations. I’ve found the desire to connect with a partner and the connection itself, even if platonic, helps with depression and sadness.

Do you need to be married to reap the health benefits of a relationship?

No! Strong social connections of many types make us healthier as well. You might be at a point in your life where all you really want is someone to spend time with and enjoy walks on the beach, dinner and movies.

Innovative Match, Ross | 415.259.8714 | www.innovative-match.com

Cassie Zampa-Keim can help you experience the mental and physical benefits of healthy relationships.

features.

44

Finding a Higher Consciousness

A look at how psychedelics are changing the face of modern medicine and how two Bay Area pioneers are leading the way.

48

Gifts That Keep on Giving

Our annual gift guide is chock-full of spectacular experiences just waiting to be had.

54

In Good Company

A few delicious recipes to elevate your holiday get-togethers.

On the Cover

Get in the holiday spirit with this refreshing mezcal gimlet (recipe on page 59). Photo graph by Lorena Masso

Courtesy of Roy Estate

Roy Estate’s Great Hall is home to Ugo Rondinone’s the love + the lust sculpture

Hapuna Beach Residences where legacy meets ultra-luxe

Experience the timeless Mauna Kea Resort while staying at the Island of Hawai’i’s newest ocean-front luxury residences. Upgrade your vacation to a spectacular escape like no other.

The Future Is Now

IT’S NOVEMBER 2022 and the future is coming at us fast. This month we introduce a new column called “Game Changers.” We love the idea of covering businesses that are indeed changing the game in their industries. We’ll be looking at each business in detail and what makes its approach in its sector different than all the rest. I couldn’t be happier to “launch” the column with Skyway on page 42. This unique business is using the sky for inspiration meaning you might soon be getting deliveries via drone from our heavily regulated sky space. It’s a fascinating read, and it’s people like Clifford Cruz who will change how we view the air above our heads.

It would be odd if I didn’t mention Thanksgiving in the November issue. If I’m being honest, the thing I look forward to the most is slowing down and spending time with family and friends uninterrupted. For one weekend a year, my emails and phone aren’t buzzing endlessly. I know we can all relate. My wish for all of us is that we go two full hours (or maybe even a full day like Mill Valley artist Tiffany Shlain suggests on our back page) without thinking about our cellphones and enjoy the precious time we have with each other. Our phones will still be there when we finish celebrating.

And finally, my deepest gratitude to our team. I’m in awe when I think about our journey and how far we’ve come in such challenging times. Our happy hours, dinners, events and random in-person meetings are what I live for!

Please enjoy Thanksgiving, be grateful and tell those you care about that you love them.

Warmly,

Portrait by Becca Teal Batista;www.stock.adobe.com/sonyakamoz (below)

Jessica Cline, CEO and Co-Founder

from the ceo.

Timeless Romance

SILVE

It’s the Most Wine-derful Time of the Year

I ADORE THESE END-OF-YEAR ISSUES because nearly every piece of content we create has a feel-good undercurrent and you get the impression that we are on the brink of popping open a bottle of champagne at any moment (which is most definitely the case). Aren’t the holidays great?

I considered going rogue with my letter this month and filling this page with an onslaught of funny, if not slightly irritating, holiday puns. “You sleigh me!” “But wait — there’s myrrh.” However, I had second thoughts: “Yule be sorry if you do.” (Am I the only one who thinks I am funny? Fine.) Puns aside (“Sleigh, what?!”), we have put together another great issue for you this month, packed with holiday cheer, gift-giving ideas and home-entertaining inspiration.

We ventured into San Francisco and found some truly must-visit bars and restaurants where you’ll want to meet up with all your friends and family for celebratory get-togethers. From chic rooftop lounges to cozy speakeasys, all with tree-mendous cocktails (sorry, had to), and in some of the best settings in the city.

When it comes to the gift guide, we’ve gone in a different direc tion and we think you are going to like it. For a while now, trends have been veering more toward experiences when it comes to gifting (and traveling, for that matter), and post-pandemic this prespective seems more relevant than ever. We hope you find that one of these experiences is perfect for someone special on your list and that it is love at frost sight! (I’ll stop now.)

Remember what I said about being on the verge of breaking out the champagne? Here is a fine example — this year marks Sweetwater Music Hall’s 50th anniversary and the celebrations are going on all over Mill Valley (check out this month’s install ment of Take Note to find out more). Another reason to cele brate? We have added a new column, “Game Changers,” to our lineup where each month we take a look at a local business that is disrupting its industry — often with positive global implications.

As we wade deeper into the holiday season, I hope that you are able to take some time out from all the shopping, traveling, cooking and planning to truly enjoy this festive time. With the worst of the pandemic behind us, it does feel like a curtain has been lifted and the real party is finally about to begin. Cue the champagne and let’s mistle-toast the holiday season!

Casey Gillespie Creative Director and Co-Founder

Portrait by Becca Teal Batista; Mark Larson (above)

Brasswood Estate

from the creative director.

spotlight marin.

“Ship collisions are currently a leading cause of death for large whales, and scientists estimate that over 80 blue, humpback and fin whales are killed by vessel collisions on the West Coast of the United States each year.”

— WHALE SAFE

Whale Safe is a technology-based mapping tool used to prevent deadly ship collisions with whales.

sun-drenched Mid-Century retreat rests atop a quiet knoll in the prestigious Country Club neighborhood. Sited on just over an acre, this home boasts sleek lines with walls of glass and offers incredibly private and peaceful outdoor spaces. The spacious living room enjoys open beam ceilings, floor to ceiling windows, a contemporary fireplace and flows seamlessly into the dining room showcasing a modern chandelier. French doors open to a brick herringbone patio with enveloping gardens providing incredible indooroutdoor flow. Upstairs, find refuge in the expansive primary suite overlooking the back garden with a lovely office nook and generous walk-in closet. This architectural gem is close to schools, hiking and biking trails, and historic downtown San Rafael. Estate potential with possibility to add a pool, tennis court or ADU.

News by Caitlin Hamer

Festive Fun

Union Square is once again home to the Safeway Holiday Ice Rink (www.unionsquareicerink.com). The rink is hosting a number of events this holiday season, like Drag Queens on Ice, Flashback Fridays and more. This popular attrac tion will be open daily from November 2 to January 16, and tickets must be purchased in advance. Skate rental is included in the price of admission.

Concert for a Cause

Marin-based nonprofit Bread & Roses (www.bread androses.org) is holding its annual Fall Benefit Concert in San Francisco on November 19. This year’s fundraising event takes place at the Saint Joseph’s Arts Society and supports Bread & Roses’ mission of delivering hope and healing through its free live music program for children, adults and seniors who are isolated in Bay Area institutional settings. The event includes musical performances by Lucius, Aaron Lee Tasjan and Celisse.

Clockwise from top left: Ashish Tibrewal; courtesy of the Safeway Holiday Ice Rink; courtesy of Bread & Roses

Safeway Holiday Ice Rink

At

Lizzo is coming to the Bay Area

A Special Night

Make sure to catch the one and only Lizzo when she makes a stop at Chase Center in San Francisco on November 12 as part of the North American leg of her Special Tour (www.chasecenter.com).

The three-time Grammy Award–winning singer, songwriter and rapper has seen massive success with uplifting songs like “Juice” and “About Damn Time.”

Cetacean Safety

The increasing number of whales struck and killed by ships on the West Coast has led to the creation of Whale Safe (www.whale safe.com), an artificial intelligence–powered detection system. Now in operation around the San Francisco Bay, Whale Safe with its near-real-time data can inform large ships when whales are nearby, giving captains the chance to shift course or slow their approach.

Take Yourselves to Tahoe

There’s more than fall foliage at North Lake Tahoe this month. The Tahoe Chocolate and Wine Festival kicks things off on November 6 at the Hyatt Regency’s Lone Eagle Grille. Northstar (www.northstarcalifornia.com) is planning to open on November 18 and is celebrating its 50th anniversary with the launch of the improved Comstock Express chairlift. Palisades (www.palisadestahoe.com) is planning to open on November 22, with the new Base-to-Base Gondola set to transport skiers to terrain at both Alpine Meadows and Palisades Tahoe. Palisades has also relocated the Red Dog chairlift to offer direct access from the parking lot.

Clockwise from top left: Courtesy of the Chase Center; www.stock.adobe.com/Uryadnikov Sergey; Larry Zhou

Lake Tahoe

November Voting

There are numerous local measures on the ballots in Marin County this year, with residents having the chance to mail in or drop off ballots or cast their votes on important issues directly on November 8.

15 Total measures in the county

$98 Amount per year for Measure B library parcel tax renewal

$1.27 million Estimated annual revenue for Ross Elementary School District if Measure C passes

$1.6 million Annual amount to be generated by Belvedere’s Measure D, which will be used primarily for protection against the threat of natural catastrophe

¼ cent Amount Measure G would raise Larkspur’s sales tax

9 More years of San Anselmo’s library services tax at the rate of $70 per parcel if Measure H passes

$2.4 million Projected annual revenue if San Anselmo’s sales tax increases through Measure J

7.5 Percentage of net profits that cannabis businesses would be required to pay through Measure K if they take in more than $50,000 a year

$2.8 million Projected additional annual revenue for Sausalito if Measure L is approved

$18 million Amount to be raised to acquire Martha Co. property in Tiburon if Measure M passes

4 Number of years of continued paramedic services tax through Measures N, F and E

$276,000

Projected amount raised in the Inverness Public Utility District annually if Measure O passes

Addressing the Fentanyl Crisis

The nationwide fentanyl overdose epidemic has taken a deadly toll in Marin, resulting in local health leaders and educators launching a countywide effort to curb the threat it poses to adults and young people alike. The county’s public health department will be working with the Marin County Office of Education, county behavioral health division and RxSafeMarin to confront the issue on two different fronts. Education is being provided so that if people choose to experiment with drugs, they’ll know how to avoid high-risk situations, and officals are also ensuring that Narcan, an opioid overdose reversal drug, is widely available, including at Marin public schools. “Overdose deaths have doubled in the past three years and fentanyl is driving that increase,” says Dr. Matt Willis, Marin County’s public health officer. “Today, more than half of our overdoses are fentanyl related.”

Whirling Through Wine Country

Lang & Reed (www.langandreed.com) is hosting a Fall Release Party on November 6, with live music, food and plenty of chenin blanc and cabernet franc. On November 8, the winery is hosting an open house along with The Debate and Newfound Wines at Spring House. The Napa Valley Film Festival’s inaugural 2022 NVFF Film, Food and Wine Show case (www.napavalleyfilmfest.org) is happening November 10 to 13 at the Culinary Institute of America at Copia, with special culinary events held in tandem with film screenings. And you won’t want to miss Cakebread Cellars’ (www.cakebread.com) annual Cabernet Day on November 12, with food and wine pairings offered alongside the vineyard’s reserve cabernets.

Courtesy of Cakebread Cellars (above); Madison Scarlata (below)

Cakebread Cellars

Lang & Reed

Building Toward the Future

Following a Marin County Civil Grand Jury report that urged local governments to speed up the transition to electric appliances, San Ansel mo’s Town Council voted to approve an ordinance to ban gas lines from being installed during construction of new residences. “Phasing out fossil fuel infrastructure and transitioning away from methane gas is one of the most important steps we can take to address the climate crisis,” says San Anselmo mayor Alexis Fineman.

Kids’ Corner

Do you have little ones on your holiday shopping list and are you unsure where to start? We’ve assembled a list of a few irresistible toys, sold at local stores, they are sure to love.

By Casey Gillespie

1. Slumberkins Ginger Yak Kin comes with two books that focus on teaching kids self-acceptance — it’s the gift that keeps on giving. Available at Village Child (869 Grant Avenue, Novato) or www. shopvillagechild.com, $48.99

2. This Snuggler Bunny is sure to become a favorite.

Cozy in a cordy onesie and a carrot sleeping bag — your kids are sure to fall in love at first sight. Available at Five Little Monkeys (Town Center Corte Madera) or www.

5littlemonkeys.com, $25

3. The holidays are right around the corner and Lenny Snowman is a great stocking stuffer — or holiday decoration that the entire family can enjoy all season long. You decide. Available at Fiddle sticks (540 Hayes Street, San Francisco) or www.shopfiddle sticks.com, $29.50

4. Does it get any cuter than these hand-knitted Cuddle + Kind fawns? For every doll that is sold the company donates 10 meals to a child in need. It’s a no-brainer. Available at Bon Ton Baby (107 Plaza Street, Healdsburg) or www.bonton-studio. com, $66

5. Turkey on the Table is helping put the “great” in grateful. Simply write what you are grateful for on the included feathers — and the whole family can get in on the action. Each purchase feeds 10 people through a partnership with Feeding America. Available at Nordstrom (The Village at Corte Madera) or www. turkeyonthetable.com, $42

Five Little Monkeys and Fiddlesticks, courtesy of Jellycat; all others courtesy of the brands and stores

Sipping in San Francisco

Our picks of where to gather with friends and family this holiday season.

By Caitlin Hamer

Charmaine’s

Cold Drinks Bar

Inspired by 1930s Shanghai but still oozing contemporary luxury, this cocktail bar radiates elegance and sophistication. One floor above China Live, Cold Drinks Bar serves up sleek, mysterious vibes and approachable Scotch-centric cocktails. Food and bites from Eight Tables by George Chen round out the experience with offerings like reserve caviar on prawn chips. Can’t make it to S.F.? Every third Thursday of the month, Marinites can pick up preordered food and drinks from Cold Drinks Bar at Green Jeans Garden Supply in Mill Valley. 644 Broadway, San Francisco, www.chinalivesf.com

Drink to try: Sometimes Old Fashioned, which is composed of Peking duck fat–washed Glenmorangie X, George Dickel Rye, black pepper, mushroom, Peychaud bitters and lemon bitters.

Shuggie’s

Shuggie’s vibrant, neon monochromatic interior — half of the restaurant is an electric yellow, the other a sultry green — has been drawing in crowds since it opened earlier this year, but the food-waste-reduction-inspired menu also plays a huge part in the spot’s popularity. The interior screams maxi malist fun house, with eye-catching murals and funky decor providing a party-like atmosphere. A selection of natural wines by bottle or glass complements the pizzas and share ables, which are nuanced yet unpretentious and sourced from off-cuts and blemished produce. 3349 23rd Street, San Francisco, www.shuggiespizza.com

Drink to try: Stonefruit Froze Slushie, a refreshing rotating wine slush made with blemished and surplus fruit.

Cold Drinks Bar

Charmaine’s

If you’ve ever lamented the lack of rooftop bars in San Fran cisco, look no further than Charmaine’s. Atop the San Fran cisco Proper Hotel, Charmaine’s sits 120 feet above Market Street and offers both indoor and outdoor seating. Chic European vibes meet California cool at this bar and lounge, with a tastefully decorated interior and plush terrace seats overlooking downtown. Don’t worry about the city’s often chilly weather dampening your fun: Charmaine’s boasts 16 fire pits, an indoor fireplace and extensive drink options to keep you toasty. 1100 Market Street, San Francisco, www.properhotel.com/san-francisco

Drink to try: the Proper Cup, a refined but easy-drinking spin on a classic Pimm’s — with the addition of absinthe.

Marianne’s

With a glamorous ambiance befitting the bar’s namesake Marianne Faithfull, this exclusive, private salon has a speak easy vibe. Tucked away behind The Cavalier, Marianne’s sets the mood with dark hues and low lights. Everything from the doorman at the entrance to the artistically graffitied bathroom (inspired by the Rolling Stones album Beggars Banquet) and eclectic decor speak to the level of attention guests receive here. If you want to soak up the vintage rock-’n’-roll vibes that accompany the elevated drink and bite options, grab some friends and stay awhile. 360 Jessie Street, San Francisco, www.thecavaliersf.com/mariannes

Drink to try: Angel of the North, which features Glenlivet Founder’s Reserve Scotch with a volcanic rock salt rim.

Empress by Boon

Empress by Boon’s top floor location offers striking views of Chinatown and the city skyline from three unique vantage points, all of which are incorporated into the interior design. Dim lighting and upbeat music make this opulent restaurant welcoming and lively, and the space blends modern design elements with restored original features like the intricately carved panels and the entrance’s original wooden pergola. And of course, Michelin-starred chef Ho Chee Boon’s seasonal and modern Cantonese menu is sure to make a trip here even more memorable. 838 Grant Avenue, San Francisco, www.theempresssf.com

Drink to try: Too Damn Gorgeous, a vodka cocktail made with dragon fruit, chrysanthemum, rose, Calvados and lemon.

Courtesy of Marianne’s

Marianne’s

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A Day Out in St. Helena

By Casey Gillespie

Courtesy of Smith-Madrone Vineyards

Smith-Madrone Vineyards

St. Helena is one of Napa’s most charming destinations — luxe locally owned shops line Main Street and some of the valley’s most iconic wineries are situated close by. While the railroad was built in St. Helena in 1868, the town was not incorporated until a decade later. From the start, it was known as the commercial center of Napa’s central valley, with fruit, grain and mining products arriving via rail. Perhaps best known as home of the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) at Grey stone, St. Helena and its impressive history shouldn’t be overlooked. In fact, three blocks of downtown are listed as a National Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places. Exploring this small Wine Country town is a delightful way to spend an autumn afternoon — and here are a few spots you should add to your list of stops.

local getaways.

Brasswood Bar + Bakery

3111 ST. HELENA HIGHWAY www.brasswood.com

This is California Wine Country comfort food at its most delicious. Ask for the irresistible Mozzarella al Minuto, hand-pulled mozzarella on a toasted crostini with olive oil and rosemary. The hand-assembled, ultra-festive holiday gifting boxes launch this month, too, and feature Brasswood wine as well as other tasty Brasswood Bar+Bakery provisions. It’s the perfect gift.

Clif Family Enoteca

1334 VIDOVICH LANE www.cliffamily.com

Offering Clif Family wines’ most exquisite wine-and-food tasting experiences (plantbased tasting options are now available at the Enoteca), the salon boasts gorgeous views of the Mayacamas Mountain Range. Book the fireside experience — you won’t regret it. And be sure to visit the website for more info on the November 6 library tasting.

Briana

Clif Family Enoteca

Conn Creek Winery

8711 SILVERADO TRAIL www.conncreek.com

We love this decidedly chic tasting salon and the newly launched AVA Wine & Food Journey (available Friday through Sunday, $130 per couple) shouldn’t be missed. The seated experience includes cabernet sauvignons paired with delicious cheeses, charcuterie and seasonal trimmings that underscore the exceptional flavors of the region.

elysewalker

1234 ADAMS STREET www.elysewalker.com

If you are looking for that luxury Beverly Hills or Madison Avenue experience in Napa, then look no further than elysewalker. Chloe, Paco Rabanne, Tom Ford, Saint Laurent, Dries van Noten — you will find it all here and much more. November 7 to 21 there will be an in-store “holiday charm” event when customers can build their own jewelry with an elevated assortment of charms and chains.

Meadowood Napa Valley 900 MEADOWOOD LANE www.meadowood.com

This storied Napa resort has just opened the doors at Forum, a new on-property dining experience and neighborhood gathering place. The menu is filled with expertly crafted yet approachable dishes. Try the outdoor lounge for evening cocktails (or one of the delicious cold-pressed juices) — and enjoy the beauty fall in Wine Country.

Napa Valley Vintage Home

1201 MAIN STREET www.napavalleyvintagehome.com

An anchor store on Main Street, this delightful spot makes you feel as if you’ve been transported to some quaint French village. Take your time exploring the small yet tasteful selection of clothing, luxe candles by makers like Thymes and Diptyque, heady soaps from France and everything you need to create your dream cheese board (minus the cheese).

elysewalker

Pearl Wonderful Clothing

1219C MAIN STREET www.pearlwonderfulclothing.com

Expect high-end European designers and a curated assortment of clothing and accessories that you won’t find elsewhere. While you’ll discover a small selection online, it’s definitely worth stopping in to the store, if only to see the jewelry in person.

Smith-Madrone Vineyards

4022 SPRING MOUNTAIN ROAD www.smithmadrone.com

Visits can only be scheduled for Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 10 a.m., but if you are craving an authentic (and charmingly rustic) tasting with the winemaker while taking in bucolic views of Spring Mountain, then this is your spot.

The Charter Oak

1050 CHARTER OAK AVENUE www.thecharteroak.com

Chef Christopher Kostow (formerly of three-Michelin-starred The Restau rant at Meadowood) has brought his culinary know-how to The Charter Oak. This month it is launching the Yurts at Charter Oak, which includes a welcome toast of sparkling wine, the chef-curated Legacy Menu, and a cocktail finale ($135 per person), all in the comfort of your own private yurt.

Woodhouse Chocolate

1367 MAIN STREET

www.woodhousechocolate.com

This family-owned business specializes in handmade confections containing only the finest ingredients — and it’s apparent in every delicious bite. Chocolate lovers won’t want to miss this month’s holiday offerings, which include chocolate turkeys, squirrels, walnuts and special Thanksgiving assortments.

Michelle Dondero for Brasswood Estate (top); Kelly Puleio (bottom)

One of Brasswood’s holiday gifting boxes.

local getaways.

The Charter Oak

Sweet Sounds

The 50th anniversary celebration of the Sweetwater Music Hall is bringing the entire community together to make the month of November unforgettable.

By Daniel Jewett

WHEN HOURS AND HOURS OF FILM, VHS tapes, cassette tapes, photos, flyers and posters representing the early history of the Sweetwater Music Hall were recently donated to the Lucretia Little History Room at the Mill Valley Library, Sweetwater general manager Maria Hoppe knew the venue had to do something special to celebrate it.

As the library began to digitize the contents of the boxes, which represent the personal archives of former Sweet water owner Jeanie Patterson, Hoppe and Sweetwater (www.sweetwatermusichall.com) talent buyer Chris Porter put their heads together to see how they could celebrate the venue’s storied place in American music history (the venue got its start in 1972 at a 90-seat watering hole then located on Throckmorton Avenue).

“The donation really sort of triggered in my mind, ‘Oh, wow, we have to do something with that. That’s huge,’ ” Hoppe says. “What’s a milestone that we could build that around? And then someone said, ‘Well, you know, it’s going to be 50 years.’ ”

And with that lightbulb moment, planning and booking for the 50th anniversary celebration — to be held during the entire month of November culminating in a November 17 all-star benefit concert featuring Bob Weir & Friends — was underway.

When a respected venue like the Sweetwater comes asking, Porter found he didn’t have to do much persuading: acts like Weir, Austin De Lone, Jules Broussard, Bonnie Hayes, Tommy Castro and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott were eager to be a part of it. Hoppe said the idea was to book acts that had experience

Bob Minkin

Bob Weir at the new Sweetwater

at the venue. “We really wanted to try to make as many of the shows as possible be with artists that had a tie to the old Sweetwater, even if they played there only once or twice,” she says. “Obviously, it starts with Big Brother and the Holding Company — no explanation needed there.”

“Sweetwater Music Hall has a long and great history in Marin. I have many memories, old and new, of playing there,” says Big Brother drummer David Getz. “It has always been a special club where local musicians and bands really want to play and where we want to invite our friends and fans to hear us.”

Another who is eager to take the stage in November is guitar phenom Charlie Hunter, who first played Sweetwater as a teenager. “Hard to believe it’s been 40 years since I played the original Sweetwater,” says Hunter, who will be performing with Garage A Trois. “The ‘now’ Sweetwater kind of ties it all together for me.”

Hoppe says that the music venue, which closed at the old location in 2007 and then reopened around the corner in 2012, is obviously a musicians’ favorite, but it is also a fan favorite. “We are not just a venue, we curate. Everything we bring, whether you’ve heard of it or not, whether you listen to that genre normally or not, you know is going to be an exceptional show,” Hoppe says, adding that people enjoy the wide variety of music at the Sweetwater that includes

rock, blues, reggae, bluegrass, R&B and soul. “The audience, our local residents, will sometimes just come because there’s something on and if it’s here, it must be good.”

If getting bands was relatively easy, bringing in community partners was even easier. “I literally didn’t have to wrangle anything,” Hoppe says. “If you say, ‘November is the 50th anniversary of the original Sweetwater,’ everybody’s just like, ‘Yeah, count us in.’ ”

And that list of partners and related events is remarkable and includes just about every aspect of Mill Valley life. The Mill Valley Library and the Mill Valley Arts Commission will be involved, art and pop-up exhibits will be in place throughout Mill Valley, Equator Coffee and Pond Farm Brewing will offer tribute collaborations, and there will be a coffee-table book spotlighting local rock photographers’ Sweetwater images (including images from the November celebrations), all topped off with a 50th anniversary poster by celebrated artist Stanley Mouse.

But for Hoppe, the best part of the anniversary is how it is also bringing together the people of Mill Valley, and how that made planning an event this complex much easier. “A lot of people stepped up to volunteer their time, to brainstorm or use their connections to tap into other organizations,” she says. “It’s not just a music story, it’s a big part of the history of Mill Valley.”

Jay Blakesberg

Jerry Garcia and Elvis Costello at the old Sweetwater, April 24, 1989

game changers.

Sky’s the Limit

One San Rafael–based company is disrupting the aviation industry in a way that may change the way we view the air over our heads.

By Annie Gieser

IT’S NO BIRD. AND IT’S NO PLANE. That up there, flying in the sky? That’s tacos getting delivered via drone. The Jetsonesque dream of flying objects occupying our skies is no longer just the makings of a cartoon. Just ask Clifford Cruz, the CEO of Skyway (www.goskyway.com) — a revolutionary navigation services company ready to utilize the highway up in the sky.

“Urban air mobility (UAB) is 5,000 feet above the ground, and that is an economic front that no one uses,” Cruz explains. “Air is looking like the new commodity of the industry. Our goal is to build the largest privatized air traffic center in the country.”

Based in San Rafael, Skyway launched in 2021 and has since partnered with big industry names like NASA, TruWeather, Transoft Solutions and Zing — the last of which made a historic first drone delivery of tacos in Orlando, Florida.

The vision of taking flight came to Cruz 10 years ago at a drone expo in L.A. Back then, it hit him — drones are the future, and there’s an entire air economy waiting to erupt. But when 10 years passed without any big leaps, Cruz dug in to figure out what was keeping us in the past.

“When we started getting down into the bones of the industry, we looked at NASA and the FAA and realized that the money was thrown into the wrong place,” Cruz says, pointing to the old-school aviation industry as the culprit. “So now we have a lot of software out there that no one can buy, or that no one can really utilize for business, and that makes no business sense.”

Skyway aims to bridge the gap between the aviation industry and Silicon Valley. As the FAA and NASA start to peel back the red tape on what literally can and cannot fly, the airspace of cities becomes an open market. But this is not your usual tech industry disruption — everything in the sky is regulated, and it’s uncharted territory that calls for new legislation. Skyway is positioned to be crucial for new companies embracing the skies.

As an air traffic management service provider, Skyway works as air traffic control, navigation and communication for companies utilizing drones or electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles (eVOTLs). Taking from the tried-and-true structure of traditional air traffic control, Skyway has imple mented machine learning to watch thousands of aircraft at a time and then notifying one of the company’s Air Traffic Navigators (ATN) to step in, should a vehicle need help.

While that’s a huge jump start for Skyway and the UAB industry as a whole, the future holds much more. Cruz mentions patents the company has received for drone delivery trays, transfer systems for the tops of buildings, and even charging systems that are built on the side of skyscrapers where drones can reload. Our skylines may soon take on a whole new look.

“We need Silicon Valley to wake up and smell the sky,” urges Cruz. “We have enough dating apps. We have enough taxi apps. We’re good there. Look up.”

Courtesy

Skyway

let’s get social!

Finding a Higher Consciousness

Psychedelics — once associated with hippies and ravers — are captivating medical researchers and winning over skeptics with treatment breakthroughs for people with long-standing psychological challenges. Two Bay Area practices are paving the way with treatments in the areas of addiction, depression and PTSD.

By Laura Schooling

ANYONE WHO HAS RESIDED in the Bay Area knows that remnants of ’60s psychedelia are everywhere. Just try to drive the 101 without spotting a Grateful Dead “lighting skull” sticker. Walk into any used bookstore and you’ll soon spot a copy of Tom Wolfe’s Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. But how many remember that the rollicking exploits of Ken Kesey and his band of Merry Pranksters actually came to pass because Kesey, while a graduate student at Stanford, was recruited to take hallucinogens as part of a govern ment study in association with Menlo Park Veterans Hospital?

Back as far as the 1950s, researchers saw the potential of psychedelics for various pain and mental health treatments, but as recreational use proliferated, the research diminished. Yet, behind the tie-dyed curtain, some experts persisted. One is Mill Valley’s Dr. Howard Kornfeld, medical director and founder of Recovery Without Walls. Back in the ’80s and ’90s while a visiting physician-in-residence at Big Sur’s Esalen, he was the principal convener of the Pacific Symposium on Psychedelic Drugs that united 35 leading physicians, academics and government officials to, as materials from the time state, “consider the use of psychedelics as healing and research tools in the fields of psycho therapy, neuroscience and medicine.”

And to “consider the public policy issues guiding regulatory decision making regarding psychedelic research and applications.” This meeting of prominent leaders led to a new para digm of research with psychedelics, the results of which had a significant impact in ushering in the current psychedelic renaissance.

As a pain and addiction specialist, Kornfeld is hardly freewheeling when it comes to dispensing drugs, but he sees significant promise in the careful use of psychedelics. “Our practice, which treats very serious cases of addiction and chronic pain, tends to get some of the more severe cases in the commu nity that have often resisted treatment with other practices,” Kornfeld says. “In 2020 we carefully instituted the use of ketamine-assisted psychotherapy [along with other treatments like buprenorphine] and we’ve had some really beautiful outcomes. However, it doesn’t work for everyone.” But this is a huge stride considering the cold-turkey detoxes that have become commonplace among addiction recovery practices.

The modern legitimization of psyche delics can be attributed to Bay Area super-journalist Michael Pollan. His 2018 book How to Change Your Mind has brought the conversation to the foreground, documenting how some patients, for whom everything else has failed, found profound relief through the use of guided therapeutic sessions that include psychedelics. The Netflix series of the same name brings this to life (and tears to your eyes) with reallife transformations. Pollan’s research, which notably inspired him to undergo his own experimentations, also led him to co-found the UC Berkeley Center for the Science of Psychedelics. There are dozens of active clinical trials testing therapeutic treatments, including at Stanford (MDMA, more commonly known as ecstasy) and UCSF (LSD and psilocybin). At the moment, the only psychedelic that can be legally used for addiction treatment (outside of a clin ical trial) is ketamine, an anesthetic that can be found in hospitals everywhere.

There isn’t much debate about whether ketamine can be helpful to severely depressed, traumatized or addicted patients; the question is how it is helping. There is some evidence to suggest that merely taking the drug helps form new pathways in the brain that generate more positive feelings. But most treatments involve being led through an hours-long therapy session while experiencing the effects of the drug. Ketamine is known as a “disso ciative anesthetic,” allowing people to observe their own thoughts as if they were an impartial observer. Instead of reliving the pain of a traumatic event, they can neutrally watch it. Patients often describe feeling an intangible positivity after the treatment, a can-do feeling of optimism, though it’s been reported that this fades over time and ongoing treatments will likely be required. Kornfeld says, “We’re not suggesting that a series of ketamine sessions alone will single-handedly turn someone’s life around, but we want to use every tool we have.”

Not surprisingly, one of the local experts in this treatment has a practice in Denver and in Sebastopol, known as the home of the holistic and open-minded. Evolve Mind Wellness opened in 2018, specializing in ketamine-assisted psychotherapy to treat chronic depression, trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder, suicidal ideation, anxiety and other mental health conditions. It is led by board-certified psychiatrist Dr. German Ascani, who, while in psychi atry residency at Harbor-UCLA, was introduced to research on psychedelics and mental health. Before opening his own practice, he worked in San Anselmo with Dr. Phil Wolfson, an early ketamine-assisted psychotherapy pioneer, best known for his book The Ketamine Papers

One could think of this kind of treatment as a reset for the brain, but it’s not a quick fix. Ascani explains how patients experience ketamine and use it therapeutically: “You are having these profound experiences that then need to be digested and decoded and incorporated into your life. They can be experiences of awe or near-death and you have to make sense of them with someone through integration. As a result, you may see suffering in a different way, you may change your relationship to a trauma experience. It’s a process of changing your perspective, your meaning, your narrative about yourself.”

Ascani talks about the satisfaction this treatment provides. It can reduce or eliminate suicidality, independent of depression symptom improve ment, and the combined power of augmenting ketamine with psycho therapy and integration sessions can lead to improvement, recovery and healing. “I believe in treating the individual holistically and using all the tools available whether they are phar maceuticals or psychotherapy tools. There are a lot of practices that can heal when used appropriately, in the right dose and in the right setting.”

If you or someone you know is experi encing suicidal thoughts, dial 988 for free, confidential help, 24/7.

46 november 2022 marin living.

Gifts

That Keep On Giving

This year, skip the stuff and give your nearest and dearest an experience they won’t soon forget.

By Marin Living Editors

Savor the Taste of Napa

After losing their grounds in the 2017 Atlas Fire, the folks at Roy Estate (www.royestate.com) have rebuilt and reopened, and they’re welcoming wine lovers looking to gather somewhere special. Indulge in a Roy Estate Exclusive Access Experience (for groups of six to 16), which includes use of private guest spaces, a canapé reception and a meal prepared by estate chef Tom Stafford with paired grands crus wines (availability may be limited). The three-hour experience also includes a guided vine yard walk and a chance to taste unreleased barrel samples. Plan ahead — inquiries should be made at least 60 days in advance. For a more intimate experience, an Estate Tasting exploring Roy Estate’s portfolio can be booked for as few as two or as many as 14.

Exclusive experience starts at $2,700, tasting experience, $175 per person. 1220 Soda Canyon Road, Napa

Roy Estate

Barrel room at Roy Estate

Grab the Best Seat in the House

Tired of getting shushed in the movie theater for having a little too much fun with your moviegoing friends? Well, at Tiburon’s brand new state-of-the-art Cinelounge® (www.cineloungefilm.com), you and up to 60 friends can make all the noise you want as you enjoy new movies, old movies, TV or sports games or get into the action and play Playstation, karaoke — you can even host a silent disco party. And don’t worry, you will be well taken care of as you lounge in the Lagoon Room’s Jonathan Adler–designed swivel chairs, beanbags and custom designer sofas as dedicated staff run the movie and bring you the company’s own organic and biodynamic wines, delicious bites and some of the best gourmet popcorn you may have ever had. Open for all ages and it is recom mended to book early; visit the website for booking information. Hourly rate is $450. Cinelounge Tiburon, 40 Main Street, Tiburon

Courtesy

Cinelounge®

Cinelounge’s lobby

Food options at Cinelounge

Take to the Skies

A flight with Scanlon Aviation (www.scanlonaviation.com) will interest sightseers and potential pilots alike. As a flight school, Scanlon teaches the ins and outs of flying, but anyone looking for unparalleled views is welcome, too. A flying lesson with a Certified Flight Instructor here includes preflight discussions on the process and methods involved in piloting an aircraft, and once you’re airborne, you’ll get a hands-on lesson in aerodynamics, maneuvers, how planes fly and how to fly them — and yes, that means you take the controls, no experience required. Flights, whether it’s a lesson or a sightseeing excursion (which is still educational but won’t require flying the plane yourself), take about an hour to 90 minutes in a comfortable Cirrus SR20 G6.

Hourly rate for lessons or sightseeing flights starts at $500. 451 Airport Road, Novato

Scanlon Aviation

Spa All Year Round

If there is a wellness lover on your gift list this year, we have found the ultimate indulgence. Stanly Ranch’s recently opened (and highly touted) Halehouse is offering a monthly membership and it is a dream come true for spa and fitness fans. The monthly package includes unlimited access to Spring House (salt therapy, wet and dry sauna, cold plunge bath and hyperbaric oxygen chamber), Fieldhouse movement studio, the luxe pool at Halehouse and all movement classes as well as one 60-minute treatment and two guest passes per month. Who says you can’t buy happiness?

200 Stanly Crossroad, Napa, www.aubergeresorts.com/ stanlyranch, price available upon request

Courtesy of Auberge Resorts Collection

Halehouse’s luxe pool

Stanly Ranch

At-Home Cooking for Gourmands

Why not give the foodies on your list something special this year? Christina Cavallaro and Sandra Enterline are cooks and hosts with an infectious knack for cultivating joyful experiences, and they offer in-home cooking lessons for up to 10 people. The epicurean affair will begin with a seasonal cocktail to get the party started, followed by a one-hour cooking lesson that includes one dish on the menu. The rest of the meal will come pre-prepared, ready to reheat and serve at your convenience (take-home recipes for the dishes will be provided for all the guests). When booking the experience, recipients will work with Cavallaro and Enterline to create a seasonal menu that is completely customizable. Dinner and a party, anyone?

Visit www.axidentialchef.com, price varies based on menu and number of guests and is available upon request.

In Good Company

The holidays are finally here, and we have a few recipes to start your gathering off right.

Recipes and photos by Lorena Masso

Tingle Bell Champagne Punch

MAKES 10 TO 12 COCKTAILS

1 cup sugar

1 cup water

4 bottles well-chilled champagne

½ cup bourbon

2 large oranges, cut into slices

1 large (16 ounce) jar of maraschino cherries

1. To make a simple syrup, combine sugar and water in a medium saucepan. Cook until the sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate or set aside until the syrup reaches room temperature.

2. In a punch bowl, combine all the remaining ingredients and ¼ cup of the simple syrup and stir until combined. Garnish empty glasses around punch bowl with a slice of orange and a cherry, and place remaining slices of oranges and cherries in the punch bowl for decoration.

Tingle Bell Champagne Punch

Mezcal Gimlet

Mezcal Gimlet

SERVES 1

1 cup sugar

1 cup water 2 ounces mezcal

1 lime

1. To make a simple syrup, combine sugar and water in a medium-size saucepan. Cook until the sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate or set aside until the syrup reaches room temperature.

2. In a shaker half filled with ice, combine the mezcal, juice of one lime and 1 ounce of simple syrup. Stir until mixture is well chilled. Strain into a martini glass, garnish with a slice of lime and enjoy!

Mini Crab Tarts

MAKES 60 MINI TARTS

1 whole crab (roughly 1 pound)

1 8-ounce block of cream cheese

4 tablespoons finely chopped chives

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 egg

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

½ teaspoon salt

60 pre-baked frozen Athens phyllo shells

1. Preheat oven to 380°F.

2. To cook the crab, fill a large pot (approximately 6 quarts — enough to cover the crab) with salted water (approximately 1 teaspoon) and bring to a rapid boil. Add the crab and let it boil for 8 to 9 minutes. Extract the crab from the water, set aside and allow to cool. Once cool enough to handle, remove all the crabmeat from the shell and shred the meat as necessary. Place crab shell pieces in a plastic bag, seal and discard.

3. Place the cream cheese in a bowl and with an electric mixer on slow, cream the cheese until soft. Once soft, add 3 tablespoons of chives and the remainder of the ingredients (except the phyllo shells) into the bowl with the cream cheese, and mix well using a slow setting.

4. Remove phyllo shells from freezer, arrange them on a baking tray, and allow them to reach room temperature. Bake in the preheated oven for 2 to 3 minutes, until warm (not hot). Remove the tray of warm shells from the oven and place on counter. Using a teaspoon, proceed to fill each shell with the crab and cream cheese mixture. Return the tray of filled shells to the oven, and bake for 10 minutes at 380°F. Remove the tray of shells once again from the oven and set aside. Increase the oven setting to broil, and once the oven has reached broil, return the tray of shells to the oven for 2 to 3 minutes or until the tops are browned. Remove from the oven and place on the counter to cool and set for just a few minutes. Garnish shells by sprinkling the remaining 1 tablespoon of chives over them. Plate and serve.

Ahi Poke Tuna in Cucumber Cups

MAKES APPROXIMATELY 96 CUCUMBER CUPS

12 Persian cucumbers

5 tablespoons soy sauce

2½ tablespoons sesame oil

4 tablespoons sesame seeds

4 tablespoons finely chopped green onion

1 tablespoons Sriracha

About 12 ounces ahi tuna

1. Cut the cucumbers into 1-inch bite-size rounds (approximately 7–8 rounds per cucumber). Once sliced, take each round and using a teaspoon or melon baller, remove the seeds and create a round well in the middle, about half the depth of the round. Sprinkle the cucumbers with salt and set aside.

2. In a bowl, combine the soy sauce, sesame oil, 3 tablespoons sesame seeds, 3 tablespoons finely chopped green onions and the Sriracha, and mix all together well. With a very sharp knife, cut the ahi into small (approximately ¼-inch) cubes and add it to the sauce mixture. Stir well.

3. To serve, spoon some of the ahi mixture into each cucumber cup, allowing for approximately 3 cubes of ahi for each cup. Once all cups are filled, lightly sprinkle all with remaining 1 table spoon of sesame seeds and remaining 1 table spoon of finely chopped green onion to garnish. Plate and serve.

Ahi Poke Tuna in Cucumber Cups and Mini Crab Tarts

Community Minded

Helping Our Furry Friends in Need

We have a special place in our hearts for animals here at Belinda Wickwire Jewelry. Our favorite visitors are those with four legs and long whiskers. Our effort is to assist and donate to those animal charities or shelters that are in dire need. Even the smallest contribution can save a life of the voiceless. We make it a point to dedicate online flash sales and special in-store event sales to this cause. We encourage our customers to join us in this support of animals in need, because even a little can go a long way.

Belinda Wickwire Jewelry 526 San Anselmo Ave. | San Anselmo, CA 94960 belinda@belindawickwirejewelry.com

Empowering People to Take Control of Their Health and Wellness

Beth McDougall, M.D., has practiced patient-centered medicine in Marin for more than 20 years. In early 2022, she co-founded Jyzen which pairs her team of integrative medical physicians with leading-edge technologies to offer customized programming to support people in reaching their unique health and wellness goals. Whether that’s recovering from illness, hitting a PR in their next race or improving brain function, the team at Jyzen believes that everyone has the right to a life of wellness as they define it. Jyzen hopes to become Marin’s primary destination for health and wellness.

Jyzen | 100 Shoreline Highway, Ste. A210 Mill Valley, CA 94941 | www.jyzen.com info@jyzen.com | 415.729.0449

Community Minded

The Shopping Center at the Center of It All

Featuring a mix of local, regional and national tenants such as Peet’s Coffee and Tea, West America Bank and Lark Shoes, Red Hill is the area’s favorite neighborhood shopping experience. It is strategically located on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard to serve San Anselmo and the surrounding communities of Fairfax, San Rafael, Ross and Greenbrae. Designed as a classic town and country shopping center, the rustic motif buildings use slump stone, heavy beams and wood shingles to maintain the charm and beauty of the wooded surroundings.

834-916 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, San Anselmo, www.redhillshoppingcenter.com, @redhillshoppingcenter

PROMOTION

Health, Wellness + Beauty Innovators

In this issue, we pay tribute to the Bay Area’s top health, wellness, fitness and beauty Innovators. In the pages that follow we offer an inside look at the people and businesses that are making a significant impact in the Bay Area through state-of-the-art practices, treatments and products.

Health, Wellness + Beauty Innovators

Jennifer Brinn Reiki of Marin

Find a more calm and centered you.

What is it about you that makes you a wellness expert?

As a Reiki healer and teacher for 20 years in the Bay Area, my work is trauma-informed, drawing from holistic disciplines of energy healing, somatic experiencing and spiritual guidance. This helps you regulate stress responses and improve coping strategies, which calm the nervous system and ultimately leads you to a place of wholeness.

What is your unique approach to wellness that sets you apart in the industry?

Good health, wellness and even true

beauty is best attained from a calm, regulated nervous system. At Reiki of Marin, our primary focus is to help you feel ease in your body so you become more resilient and responsive to the stressors of daily life.

Why is now the best time to focus on wellness?

November is a perfect time to get grounded and centered before the “holidaze.” Moving through the holiday season with more mindfulness and self-awareness helps us to feel less depleted and more nourished and fulfilled.

Reiki of Marin | 300 Valley Street, Ste. 202, Sausalito, CA 94965

415.430.5813 reikimarin@gmail.com | www.reikimarin.com | /@jenniferbrinnreiki

/@jenniferbrinnreiki

Health, Wellness + Beauty Innovators

Lucy Nguyen, LMFT

Executive Director Paradigm Treatment

Paradigm offers residential treatment to teens and young adults struggling with mental illness.

What is it about your business that separates it from the pack?

For over 12 years, Paradigm has focused exclusively on the unique mental health needs of teens, 12 to 17, and young adults, 18 to 26. We believe that it is our calling to lift our clients up and build on their strengths, while providing coping tools that enable them to approach their lives differently and productively.

What is unique about your approach to serving your customers?

In-depth assessments and psychological testing that result in accurate diagnoses — these are a critical part of our treatment programs, providing us with a blueprint to build lasting, effective treatment plans for each and every young client. We utilize a variety of exhaustive testing instruments in concert with a comprehensive and humanistic approach that empowers us to actively address the needs of our clients and their families.

What new services and products do you specialize in that address our current times?

Our treatment teams delve deep to address the root causes of the struggles that young people face in today’s always-on-yet-disconnected world. Our therapeutic program is an amalgamation of the most current evidence-based modalities and experiential therapies that together address the whole person, body, mind and spirit.

Paradigm Admissions 877.469.2098 | paradigmtreatment.com admissions@paradigmtreatment.com LMFT #101033

Health, Wellness + Beauty Innovators

Dr. Faye Jamali

Belle Marin

Aesthetic Medicine

Skin treatments that will make you feel like you are in a world-class spa.

What do you want people to know about your business?

We are a medical practice that focuses solely on noninvasive medical aesthetic treatments. Dr. Jamali performs all our treatments to ensure the highest quality in patient care. We offer complimentary consul tations with Dr. Jamali so that our patients have the opportunity to be an active participant in designing their care plan and be well-informed about the services we provide.

What new services do you offer?

We are very excited to be the only provider in Marin County to offer AviClear for acne. AviClear treats active acne and helps prevent future acne by suppressing the sebaceous glands. It is safe for all skin types, tones and acne severity. We can treat acne safely and effectively in both teens and adults.

What treatments should people focus on now?

As we start getting into cooler weather and less sunny days, now is the time to focus on laser and light therapy. When those summer tans fade and you are left with sun damage, red spots and brown spots — we have you covered.

Belle Marin Aesthetic Medicine 250 E Blithedale Avenue, Ste. B Mill Valley, CA 94941 415.887.8718 hello@bellemarin.com /@bellemarinca

Wellness + Beauty Innovators

Beth McDougall, M.D. Jyzen

Embracing technology, the new frontier of wellness is here now.

What is Jyzen?

It is the place where integrative medicine, nature, research science and technology come together. We have created a space where our clients are empowered to take control of their own health and wellness. We are guides, showing our clients the path to finding the solutions they seek to live better.

What makes Jyzen unique?

We believe that the future of wellness means embracing technology as a primary influence on how people optimize the body, the mind and the spirit. We are developing a digital dashboard that will allow us to track the key factors important to an individual patient and create custom programs to support them in achieving their unique goals. We will be able to layer biometric data, medical records, blood work and health tech wearables to create actionable programs. Paired with our Integrative Medicine practice, this insight allows us to truly unite ancient wisdom with modern technology for better living.

What inspired you to co-found Jyzen?

I founded CLEAR Center of Health 20 years ago because of my desire to practice patient-centered medicine. We founded Jyzen as the next iteration of that approach.

Jyzen

100 Shoreline Highway, Building A, Ste. 210 Mill Valley, CA 94941 www.jyzen.com www.bethmcdougallmd.com /@bethmcdougallmd @jyzenlabs

Wellness + Beauty Innovators

Ellie Dominguez

Ellie’s Essential Blends

Essential oils made with heart.

What prompted you to start your company?

Ellie’s Essential blends was created during the pandemic, while I was home with two boys with ADHD — I was in need of additional support for them as well as myself. The purpose of my products and wellness events is to bring women together in a community where you can feel connected to others and know you are not alone. My products are simple, pure and organic.

Why essential oils?

Aromatherapy has been around for centuries supporting people emotionally, physically and spiritually. Essential oils are an additional natural tool to add to your self-care routine. They can even be used on the littles.

Ellie’s Essential Blends | ellie@elliesessentialblends.com www.elliesessentialblends.com | /@elliesessentialblends

Dr. Denise Belanger

Mindful Nature Practice

Learn mindfulness for stress reduction, outdoors.

What unique services do you offer to help your clients?

To me, health, wellness and beauty come from the inside. They involve living in alignment with ourselves and being able to tap into a sense of calm, balance and inner freedom, regardless of the circumstances we may find ourselves in. But in these challenging times, many of us are feeling unwell in body, mind or spirit. We are also spending much of our time indoors or in front of screens. We crave inner and outer stillness, presence, authenticity and the beauty of nature.

What makes you an innovator in your field? To my knowledge, I am the only professional in Marin who is certified both as a mindfulness teacher and mental health nurse practitioner, and who practices exclusively with women outdoors in nature.

Denise Belanger, Ph.D., PMHNP, CMT-P | Mindful Nature Practice www.mindfulnaturepractice.com Licenses: NP #23844 | PMHN #574 | CMT-P #0272

Health, Wellness + Beauty Innovators

Kelsay Myers

Dialogical Persona Healing Arts

Discover a program that will change the way you look at yourself.

What is it about you that makes you a health and wellness expert?

I help people discover and reclaim their creative flow, experience more joy in life, and feel settled in their whole system. In my mental health practice, I bring a decade’s worth of experience teaching, researching and collaborating in integrative somatic trauma therapy modalities, ways of understanding the self and what makes a meaningful life, and using the arts for transformation and healing.

What is your unique approach to wellness that sets you apart in the industry?

My coaching uses a variety of modalities and approaches to meet each client where they’re at in their own life experience.

Dialogical Persona Healing Arts | www.dialogicalpersona.com /@dialogicalpersona | /dialogicalpersona

Janie Escamilla Moonstone Skin and Body Care

Organic, customized skin care just for you.

What is your unique approach to wellness and beauty?

When I moved to Novato, I focused on offering customized skin care treatments and bringing organic and natural skin care to Marin. Today, I continue to honor organic and natural skin care. In addition, I’ve introduced modern treatments like NanoFusion facials and Microcurrent treatments to naturally and organically encourage skin health as well as increase your own body’s collagen and elastin.

How are you thinking outside the box?

Our industry was greatly affected by Covid closures, and I had to get creative to stay connected with my clients and business community. I began offering virtual skin care consultations, selling my products online, as well as creating virtual spa parties for both my clients and corporations.

Moonstone Skin and Body Care | 1129 1st Street, Novato, CA 94945 415.898.0426 | www.moonstoneskincare.com

Beauty Innovators

Libby Wood

Senior Settlers

Making tough transitions trouble-free.

What new innovation do you offer?

Senior move management is a new type of business. So many people I meet tell me they wish they had known that it existed when they were going through a difficult move, either for themselves or for family members. We fill the need for people who need or want some help with their complicated projects: downsizing, moving, or just getting organized.

How are you thinking outside the box?

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Tell Your Story

Wine, Dine & Gift Guide Special Section

In the December issue, Marin Living will showcase the Bay Area’s retailers, wineries and restaurants that offer holiday solutions for readers’ gifting and entertaining needs. This advertorial feature will provide our audience an inside look at these people and businesses, and will showcase their offerings for the festive season. We will enhance your exposure by promoting your profile in a linked sponsored article on our website for one year, newsletter sponsored promotion to 16,000 opted-in email subscribers and social media posts. Get in touch today if you want to be part of this exciting holiday offer!

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going places.

Delightful Diversions

Learning more about the ecology of Lake Tahoe; fall is the most beautiful time of year in Burgundy; and a Marin-based artist’s exhibition at the S.F. Ferry Building you won’t want to miss.

The Cook’s Atelier, Burgundy, France Abbie Melle

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Deep Dive

Lake Tahoe’s only science center provides educational family fun for those looking to take a break from the slopes.

By Caitlin Hamer

DEEPER THAN THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING is tall, Lake Tahoe beckons millions of visitors each year, including many from Marin. But the lake is more than just a sight to see, just like the surrounding region is more than just a popular destination for hikers, campers, and winter and water sports enthusiasts. In order to fully understand and appreciate the Tahoe Basin — and to be a better visitor — it’s best to spend a little time learning about the intricacies of the largest alpine lake in North America. That’s where the Tahoe Science Center (https://tahoe.ucdavis.edu/ tahoesciencecenter) comes in.

Located at Incline Village in Nevada, the Tahoe Science Center provides the public with the latest findings from the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC, https:// tahoe. ucdavis.edu), dedicated to researching the water quality, physical processes and ecology of Lake Tahoe and its watershed. TERC’s findings aid research at other lakes and also help inform local policy decisions. But on a smaller scale, its work lets the Science Center operate as a place for both play and learning.

Since 2006, it has been open for tours and self-guided exploration year-round. While the center serves as an important educational hub, the information is presented in a fun, hands-on way that is especially interesting to kids but can be appreciated by lifelong learners, too.

“The themes here are really what’s unique about Tahoe: what are the issues we’re facing, what does science and research tell us about those issues and what is being done?” explains TERC’s education and outreach director, Heather Segale.

The interactive exhibits and activities make for an immersive experience. Visitors can take a virtual excursion on a scale model of a research vessel and learn about water clarity and how to measure it, through a series of videos; they can also peek at tiny aquatic creatures through a microscope at the virtual lab and discover what’s living beneath the surface of the lake. Other activities include watching a short educational film at the 3D theater, playing with an interactive sandbox, which shows how the landscape is interconnected, and much more. It even goes beyond the lake itself, with chances to learn about trees, geology and snow and how they all affect the lake. Tours typically last an hour to an hour and a half, but anyone who is keen to stay longer is welcome to explore at their own pace. Advance reservations are required, and Segale recommends that guests be at least 8 years old for optimal enjoyment.

The lake’s conditions have been closely studied for decades, but some of the recent concerns that Science Center visitors will learn about revolve around non-native species, algal growth, wildfires, climate change and microplastics, all of which nega tively impact the lake, both aesthetically and on a more profound level. Fortunately, some of the problems are solvable with help from the general public, and it starts with spreading awareness.

“I want our visitors to learn that Lake Tahoe is a unique and special place, and that there are environmental issues that we’re concerned about, but that looking at it through the lens of science is a good way to understand and find solutions,” says Segale. “We can all be part of protecting this place. There is a way to make sure Tahoe remains blue and beautiful, for all of us to enjoy for future generations.”

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Lake Tahoe

Caught in the Act

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 — a momentous legislative achievement. But what’s in it?

By Mitchell Sam Rossi

THE INFLATION REDUCTION ACT (IRA) has been heralded as one of President Joe Biden’s most sweeping accomplishments. While it may not ease inflation, as its name suggests, the legislation invests nearly $740 billion to address several social, economic and environmental issues. In today’s divided Congress, ratification of anything this significant can only be viewed as a D-Day type victory.

Trying to decipher the details of the 725-page bill and how it will benefit the average taxpayer can be daunting. Yet, given the reach of the new law, the IRA will help millions of Americans. For homeowners looking to upgrade their residences, the IRA offers a range of tax credits, rebates and incentives promoting energy-efficient renovations. Solar panels, wind turbines and residential battery storage units can qualify for a 30 percent tax savings to offset cost and installation.

Updating home systems such as adding a heat pump can earn homeowners as much as $8,000 in rebates. Unlike a standard furnace, which forces warm air into a home, a heat pump does double duty by not only sending warm air into the living space but also drawing it out. This type of system can substitute for both a furnace and a

home air conditioning unit. Replacing two inefficient systems with one environmentally friendly component is a consider able step toward sustainability.

The IRA also has incentives for installing energy-efficient windows and exterior doors and for updating a home’s insulation, wiring and ventilation.

Some qualified homeowners can earn rebates for small-scale improvements as well. Replacing older stoves, cooktops or ranges with electrical appliances that have received the Envi ronmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Energy Star rating will bring significant savings. The Energy Star label acknowledges a product has been certified to the EPA’s efficiency standard.

Beyond supporting sustainability for the home, the IRA addresses the growing climate crisis in other important ways. In 2010, the federal government offered $7,500 in tax credits toward the purchase of an electric vehicle. The extent of this credit, however, depended on the number of fuel-efficient vehicles an automaker sold. If sales topped 200,000 units, the rebate would slowly phase out. The new law does away with this condition, allowing compa nies to continue to offer the full value of this incentive. Additionally, the IRA has created a new credit toward the

purchase of a used EV, allowing up to a $4,000 tax credit. The pre-owned vehicle must meet certain conditions, but this opens a market for automobiles whose long-term value was uncertain.

On another front, the bill invests in the expansion of Medicare and, for the first time, allows the federal govern ment to negotiate lower prescription drug prices. For seniors, the IRA is designed to cap annual costs for insulin and other high-priced medications. It will extend subsidies for the Affordable Care Act recipients that were scheduled to expire this year through 2025.

The IRA establishes Environmental Justice Block Grants to promote investments in low-income and disadvantaged communities. The Internal Revenue Service, which has been underfunded for decades, will be revitalized by an $80 billion investment over 10 years. This will help the department improve taxpayer services, modernize its business systems and enhance its enforcement division.

The Inflation Reduction Act is a far cry from the president’s original Build Back Better law, but even in this scaled-down version, it is poised to offer solutions for critical issues that have been set aside for too long.

France’s Deep Roots

Wine lovers will want to make the pilgrimage to Burgundy for an autumn or winter getaway that includes wine tasting, cooking classes and a stay in newly reimagined hotels.

By Casey Hatfield-Chiotti

I VISITED BURGUNDY for the first time one brisk weekend in 2014. My husband and I were living in Paris and were eager to learn more about the hallowed wine region in east-central France known for producing the world’s best pinot noirs and chardonnays — so revered is the terroir that UNESCO added the vineyard plots or climats of Burgundy to the World Heritage list in 2015. We stayed in the walled city of Beaune — the region’s undisputed heart — and sampled Vosne-Ro manée straight from the barrel, meandered through the quiet streets to find fluffy loaves of bread speckled with apricots and hazelnuts and enjoyed visiting the renowned Saturday market in the center of Beaune without the crowds. During more than half a dozen return visits, I’ve learned the destination is wonderful in all seasons, but it may be at its most alive in late autumn, when the vines turn a deep burnished gold, the region’s famed boeuf bour guignon is bubbling on stovetops and one of the most famous and distinguished events in the wine world, the Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction, takes place. The Sotheby’s-organized auction, where grand cru and premier cru barrels are auctioned off for hundreds of thousands of dollars to fund the work of the local hospital foundation, is always the third weekend in November.

Here’s where to go for a divine escape in Burgundy.

Where to Stay

The department of Burgundy, known as the Côte d’Or, includes the most prestigious vineyards, Beaune, the city of Dijon and verdant mountains. In the Morvan Regional Natural Park, Le Relais Bernard Loiseau (from $280 per night; www.bernard-loiseau.com) is a storied culinary getaway that marries a classic French countryside feel with contemporary, modern flourishes. New cocoon suites debuted in 2022 and incorporate local materials like Burgundian stone and wood with more modern bird nest–inspired beds and chinoiserie-style wallpaper (all 33 guest rooms will eventually have a similar look). The multistory spa, which opened in 2017, is angular and modern with indoor pools and a penthouse spa suite with a hammam and views of the Auxois Mountains. The hotel has an annual closure in January, but it will reopen in February 2023, the 20th anniversary of the death of renowned chef Bernard Loiseau. To honor his legacy, the hotel will serve a special tribute menu featuring reinterpretations of his classic dishes. The Loiseau family also oper ates the restaurant Loiseau des Vignes at hotel Le Cep in Beaune.

The five-star Hostellerie Cèdre and Spa (from $252 per night; www.cedre beaune.com) is just outside Beaune’s medieval center, but the 40 guest rooms have views of the ramparts or a leafy garden and contemporary furnishings and tiled bathrooms thanks to a recent renovation. Deluxe rooms and suites include a visit and tasting at Maison Champy, one of the oldest wine houses in Beaune.

Many of the best places to stay in Burgundy are small and intimate and book up far in advance as a result. The bed-and-breakfast Les Jardins de Loïs (from $184 per night; www. jardinsdelois.com) in a historic carriage house just behind the Hospices de Beaune has just six guest rooms including an apartment. Amenities include a hammam, library lounge and a large garden.

Twenty minutes from Beaune in the hamlet of Saint-Aubin, Château de Saint-Aubin (from $250 per night; www.chateau-st-aubin.com) is what once was the property of the Countess of Trébon, a descendant of one of Louis XIV’s Musketeers. The four guest suites are elegant and understated

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Dining at Le Relais Bernard Loiseau

— just like the formidable white wines produced in Saint-Aubin, which is tucked away behind the two Montra chet villages. The suites have parquet floors and a mix of modern and vintage furniture. Each booking includes a tasting in the Prosper Maufoux cellar and access to the outdoor pool, which overlooks estate vineyards.

If travelers want to be in the heart of Beaune, Ma Place Carnot Airbnb (from $174 per night; www.airbnb. com/rooms/11678945) offers a central location overlooking the Hôtel-Dieu and the covered market where the annual wine auction takes place. The Saturday marché is where vendors sell everything from black truffes to heirloom apricots and is set up on the square and streets outside the hospices. The two-bedroom accommo dation has a gourmet kitchen — where you can cook something fabulous with your market finds — and a large farm house table.

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What to Do

The Hospices de Beaune or Hôtel-Dieu (www.hospices-de-beaune.tickeasy. com) is a former hospital for the poor turned museum and one of Burgundy’s most recognizable landmarks, with its Gothic architecture and polychrome roofs. The 162nd Hospices de Beaune Wine Auction and accompanying food and wine festival takes place November 18 to 20 and includes gala dinners, parades, a half-marathon, special tastings and gourmet food stalls on Place Carnot in Beaune.

The ambitious International City of Gastronomy and Wine (www. citedelagastronomie-dijon.fr), opened in the center of Dijon, the historical capital of Burgundy, takes place in May. The 16-acre complex houses a culinary school, a three-story cave and wine bar where more than 200 wines are available by the glass, a gastronomic marketplace and museum exhibitions dedicated to the history of

food and wine in the region. The Route des Grands Crus begins in Dijon and winds its way past the most famous vineyards of the Côte de Nuits and the Côte de Beaune, ending in Santenay.

Stop at Château du Clos de Vougeot (www.closdevougeot.fr) to see the medieval vat-house and presses and the wall-enclosed grand cru vineyard. The wine farm was built by monks in the 12th century and the Renaissance château was added in the 1500s.

One of the most intriguing winetasting experiences lies beyond an unassuming door in the center of Beaune. Family-owned Joseph Drouhin (tours and tastings from $44; www. drouhin-oenotheque.com), offers tours of the 2.5-acre caves that once belonged to the dukes of Burgundy and the kings of France beneath Beaune’s historic center. Tours, avail able by appointment, include seeing 2,000-year-old Roman wall remnants and wine-soaked barrels and end with

Courtesy of Hostellerie Cedre and Spa

Hostellerie Cedre and Spa

voyager.

Adeline Borra

a tasting of excellent Joseph Drouhin vintages like a 1er Cru Meursault. Silicon Valley entrepreneur Michael Baum bought Château de Pommard (tastings from $41; www.chateau depommard.com), one of Burgundy’s most impressive estates, a few miles southwest of Beaune in 2014. Visitors can book an educational wine tasting in an 18th-century château overlooking the estate’s biodynamic vineyards and explore the manicured gardens. A five-star hotel is in the works.

Where to Eat

Burgundy’s best restaurants range from homey bistros to Michelin three-star fare. Visitors will surely rub shoulders with renowned winemakers at local favorite Caves Madeleine (www.caves madeleine.com). The restaurant seats guests at a handful of small tables or a long communal table beside racks of wine bottles and serves just four appe tizers and four main courses nightly, such as house-made pâté and beef cheeks cooked in red wine. There are just 10 seats around the counter at Le Bissoh (www.bissoh.com), where guests can watch chef Mikihiko Sawahata craft a multicourse izakaya-style meal including sashimi, tempura and skewers grilled over charcoal, which all pair incredibly well with Burgundies such as delicate Gevrey-Chambertin.

The bistro La Table du Square (www.tabledusquare.com) is located just outside the historic center of Beaune serves an ever-changing menu of seasonal ingredients and roasted meats like côte de boeuf for two. In the town of Savigny-les-Beaune, a chef who worked at many of Paris’s hippest wine bars including Yard and Au Passage is cooking up inventive small plates at Le Soleil (www.lesoleilsavigny.fr). Wines from Simon Bize & Fils estate are offered by the glass. Burgundy’s only three-Michelin-star restaurant, Maison Lameloise (www. lameloise.fr), is a quick 20-minute drive south of Beaune in Chagny. Chef Eric Pras features local ingredients in unique preparations like escargot with pickled garlic and nettle coulis. The Relais & Châteaux hotel also has 16 guest rooms.

Two Immersive Culinary Experiences

Burgundy’s food and wine are legendary, and there may be no better way to immerse yourself than by taking a cooking course. Burgundy native Adeline Borra-Aoust offers food and wine experiences for everyone from beginners to professionals. If booked on a Saturday, Terroirs By Adeline’s Cook & Taste experience (from $114 per person; www.terroirsbyadeline.com) begins with a tour of the market and visits to the excellent bakeries Pâtisserie Fabien Berteau and Boulangerie Marie Boucherot and the cheese shop Alain Hess, followed by a hands-on cooking class at Borra-Aoust’s Lab. In the space with a gleaming range and a custom oak dining table, guests will learn to make gougères and other Burgundian specialties and sample those with premier and grand cru wines, of course. Borra-Aoust’s wine-focused “Day in Burgundy” experience includes visits to Romanée-Conti and tastings in Gevrey-Chambertin and Chassagne-Montrachet.

Started by an American mother and daughter, The Cook’s Atelier (from $494 per person; www.thecooksatelier.com) is a French fantasy come to life. The multistory space in Beaune is a culinary boutique, wine shop and French cooking school with copper Mauviel pots and a marbletopped butcher block. Experiences include five-day master classes — where guests learn bread-baking and preserving in an 1800s cottage — and one-day cooking classes.

Terroirs by Adeline

Big Ideas

In her first solo exhibition, Mill Valley’s Tiffany Shlain leads viewers through nature and time — all with a feminist touch.

By Daniel Jewett

TIFFANY SHLAIN ATTRIBUTES HER multihyphenate artistic success — her films have earned an Emmy nomination and been featured at Sundance; she wrote a book on the need to spend one day a week off of computer screens, founded the Webby Awards, was a pioneer in the tech world and performed a spoken cinema show at the MoMA in New York in 2020 — to growing up in Mill Valley.

“I grew up in Tam Valley going to Muir Woods and spending a lot of time on Mount Tam, which I think has very much influ enced the work,” Shlain says of her first solo exhibit, Human Nature (www.tiffanyshlain.com/art), which opens this month at SHACK15 in San Francisco’s Ferry Building. “It’s about how much nature and time changes your perspective.”

She hopes the show, which incorporates film, sculpture and photography, will offer new perspectives on complex ideas. “What are we doing? Where are we in history? I want to address these bigger philosophical questions that a lot of people ask, and so I started to try to create artwork that I felt would articulate that,” she says. “A lot of the pieces are about a feminine perspective, the female gaze on history — what are the big ideas that would stand the test of time that we keep turning back to in society?”

As she began work on the show in her cramped home studio during the Covid lockdowns, two fortunate events would come together to alter its ultimate direction and scale.

The first was an opportunity for a much bigger, grander space in which to work (and eventually host the show): an offer to become an artist-in-residence at the Ferry Building’s

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SHACK15, a dramatic coworking space with extra-large curved windows that reveal views of the bay and the ferries as they come and go. “It just shows you how much space can change your thinking,” Shlain says, who has been at the studio for the last year. “Moving into this space where I take the ferry in, it’s so filled with light, I’ve kind of fallen in love with the Bay Area again; and then I started making these bigger pieces.”

The next surprise happened when someone told staff at the National Women’s History Museum in Washington, D.C., about the show, especially its centerpiece — a tree-ring piece made from deodar cedar that highlights key moments in women’s history. “They saw all the work and we had a meeting and they were like, ‘We want to be involved in the whole show.’ ”

And right as she was finishing the tree-ring piece, Roe v. Wade was overturned — Shlain has made numerous films for Planned Parenthood in her career — and what should go on the last line was suddenly obvious. “Even though Roe v. Wade got overturned in the United States, I also, on the second line, say 65 countries have legalized abortion in the last year, including Ireland, which is huge,” she says. “So I think going through this whole tree ring is really about the struggle of progress for women.”

Human Nature runs Nov. 2 to Dec. 15 at the Ferry Building’s SHACK15. A Nov. 2 opening reception is from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. and a Dec. 10 public artist tour day is from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Shlain posing with “DENDROFEMONOLOGY (feminist history tree ring),” 2022, 55-by-61-inch salvage wood sculpture

championing the cannabis revolution

is what

crafted with grace

A visit to Patz & Hall is more than a wine tasting. It’s a journey through California’s top family-owned vineyards. The grit of our grower partners, plus our winemaker’s graceful influence, is evident in each sip. Join us in Sonoma among the vines and explore our range of single vineyard Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.