San Francisco Tour Guide Guild

One of the World’s Favorite Cities

A Message From Ken Reuther

President of the San Francisco Tour Guide Guild

Get Your Game Face On!

We hope GuidePost will be a publication for the spread of information, education and communication amongst the members of the San Francisco Tour Guide Guild (SFTGG).

The members of the 2015 Board of Trustees have been very busy planning for the growth and success of the SFTGG and its members. Since I took office as president in early January, the Board of Trustees has held six board meetings; more than double the number in three months than previous years. There has been a lot to do.

The 2015 Board of Trustees has been working to improve the SFTGG into a modern organization to benefit the membership and attract new members

Vice President Bryan S. Smith is spearheading the launch of the reimagined GuidePost. With help from Richard Miller as project coordinator, they plan to publish GuidePost a number of times this year. Members are encouraged to contact Richard Miller if you would like to submit an article, suggest a topic or author a regular column for upcoming issues.

Our membership chair Len Holmes has been contacting members regarding their contact information and membership status, and helping to improve communication with the membership

The Guild needs to grow and attract new members of all ages and skills. Len will be working to do that this year. But all members of the SFTGG must help. We encourage you to invite other colleagues, including guides, drivers, driver/guides, DMC employees and transportation specialists to join the SFTGG.

Our certification chair Ellen Josephy has actively begun contacting candidates to become Certified Members, encouraging and helping them get the required tours

completed, get their paperwork done and approved, take the certification test and become Certified Members.

Our mentoring chair Bronwyn Proust arranged a very successful and enjoyable event to help guides learn and network with other guides. More is planned for the coming year. If you would like more information about mentoring contact Bronwyn.

Our programs chair Don DeLaura has successful and well-attended programs for the membership this year and has ideas for more. If you have an idea or request for a particular program contact Don to discuss directly.

Technology guru Jesse Biroscak has helped with the task of moving the SFTGG into a more modern digital organization. Though the SFTGG started in an analog world, the world has become more digital. Jesse has helped the SFTGG use technology to move forward

And the two engines of the Board of Trustees, our secretary Phyllis Dulaney and our treasurer Clemencia Colmenares, help us function and operate as an organization. Without their devoted work many of the planned activities and success of the SFTGG would not happen. They are invaluable to the Board of Trustees and the SFTGG.

Finally, a few words to the membership. You are the team that can make the SFTGG a more respected and influential organization. To use a sports analogy, the Board of Trustees is the coaching staff. We plan what is going to happen in the game, but we don’t win the game. It’s the members who are the players who win the game. I want to win the game. Do you?

I encourage every SFTGG Member to suit up, get your game face on and participate in the SFTGG.

Farmers’ Markets in San Francisco 1943 to 2015

More popular than the Beatles

By Frances Gorman

The first organizers of a farmers’ market in San Francisco thought it would be a short-term event. On Aug. 12, 1943, The San Francisco Chronicle wrote, “Today’s inaugural of the free market will be, in a way, an experiment. If the pears and apples go like hotcakes, as it were, the farm-tokitchen market will be repeated either tomorrow or Saturday.”

At that time, no one was mentioning anything “organic”. The first farmers’ market arose because of World War II. John Brucato had helped organize San Francisco’s Victory Garden project, which included a lush vegetable garden in front of City Hall. So many cannery workers had gone to war, that farmers had no way to preserve their crops. When Brucato heard that hundreds of tons of potatoes were about to be dumped into the San Joaquin River, he orchestrated a compromise.

It wasn’t easy. In 1943, it was illegal for farmers in San Francisco to sell directly to the public. Brucato had to combine a pair of loopholes, which allowed farmers to sell on an unused city lot, as long as they sold from the back of a farmer-owned truck. The first farmers’ market at Duboce and Market Streets sold just pears and apples, from a Sonoma County crop that was about to be destroyed. It

was an instant sensation. Two farmers who showed up early sold out within 15 minutes of their arrival. By the time the market officially opened at 8 a.m., there was no fruit left. The next morning, 14 trucks showed up. By the end of the month, there were more than a hundred. The market grew in popularity, praised by both frustrated farmers and frugal residents. Then, as happens in San Francisco, it became mired in red tape, backroom dealings and a fight for survival. The consumers backed the market, but City Hall, influenced by powerful grocery and wholesale produce interests, reversed course. Supervisors insisted the city take control of the market and tried to include anti-market representatives on the controlling board. In 1946, with little warning, the supervisors voted to kill the market. But in a ballot measure citizens voted 145,000 to 25,000 to keep the market, despite heavy campaign spending against it. Brucato later said, “One guy even called me a lousy Sicilian communist for selling directly to the people.” Subsequently, the future Mayor George Christopher asked for a grand jury probe, suggesting that Brucato and supervisors who supported him were taking kickbacks. Forced out of their original location at Market and Duboce, the farmers’ market moved south of the city, to Alemany Boulevard

John Brucato at Alemany Boulevard Farmers Market.

[Freely adapted from an article by Peter Hartlaub, published in the San Francisco Chronicle, March 1, 2015.]

By then the market was too big for the government to kill. Cities across the Bay Area started their own farmers’ markets. Even Los Angeles officials wanted to copy San Francisco. In the first 10 years, the market grossed $25 million in cumulative sales. By the early 1960s the market attracted more than 40,000 visitors on a Saturday. By comparison, the historic Beatles final public concert at Candlestick Park in 1966 drew only 25,000.

Over the years, the market has changed along with the city’s population and social values. Originally it was a symbol of conservatism. In the 1940s, families bought the boxes of tomatoes, pears and apricots to can for winter storage.

In the 1970s, the Summer of Love hippies started raising their own families, and this new generation discovered the potential health advantages of buying from the source. Also, vegetables were cheaper than meat, poultry or fish at the time

In 1980 a new farmers’ market was approved in United Nations Plaza to provide food for poor Tenderloin residents. It became popular with upper-middle-class workers in the Civic Center government buildings. A farmers’ market also was introduced in Stonestown

In the 1990s, markets multiplied in the wealthier

suburbs and vista points. In 1993, the Ferry Building introduced a farmers’ market with organic produce. The Ferry Plaza Farmers Market has become a “scene” similar to a trendy street fair

Epilogue: 1943 to 2015 What would the shoppers in 1943 buying pears for canning think of the Ferry Plaza’s chocolate fondue or flan made from Dungeness crab? The “father” of the farmers’ markets, John Brucato, probably would love it!

As the market changed through the 1950s, ’60s, ’70s and ’80s, he remained an adviser, ready to crown the latest winner of the “Most Beautiful Farmer’s Daughter” contest, or promote the new farmer selling fancy nuts and dried fruit.

In 1958, Mayor Christopher, who as a supervisor had called for the grand jury probe against Brucato, proclaimed Aug. 9-16 Farmers’ Market Week to celebrate its 15th birthday. During their terms in office, Mayors Christopher, Joseph Alioto, George Moscone and Dianne Feinstein all attended a farmers’ market celebration, and were adorned by Brucato with the ceremonial wreath of reeking garlic.

Brucato outlasted all his adversaries, including every supervisor who opposed him! He died in 2003, at the age of 97. His “children,” our neighborhood farmers’ markets, continue to multiply.

Adapted by Frances Gorman from an article by Peter Hartlaub, published in the San Francisco Chronicle, March 1, 2015. For publication only in GuidePost, an association newsletter for the San Francisco Tour Guide Guild

Duboce Farmers Market Aug. 2, 1951.

Muir Woods Training Tour

By Bronwyn Proust

someone else giving it, a different perspective, a mini bus that is open to see the views out the front, and a convivial group of tour guides eager to learn, share and enjoy the day. Wow!

And the highlights were:

• Don DeLaura thinks that “gold is what changed San Francisco.”

• Kim Novak dived to her characters death in the film “Vertigo.”

• Termites do not eat redwood.

• Redwoods do NOT have a tap root. The roots go down 10-13 feet but spread horizontally 80-100 feet.

• Muir Woods is “more than a walk in the park, much more than that.”

• A guide’s job is to enhance the experience of anything.

• Take time to sit in Cathedral Grove, even in the rain and slowly feel the stress every 10 minutes release …“it is my religious experience.” Don De Laura.

• Rock on Mt. Tamalpias came up from the bottom of the sea.

• Fossils of Redwood trees are found on six continents. They species to 160,000 years ago, making it one of the oldest plants with woody fiber.

• Family circles of trees are related to a parent tree through DNA.

• Round growths called burls are filled with genetic material that sprout offspring.

• When fire occurs in the forest burning the “duff” on the ground, the Redwood cones open up and the seeds spread.

Muir Beach overlook is magnificent on a clear day and usually very windy.

Long time Ranger Mia Monroe is leaving her post to work for the Parks Conservancy office and to work on an important initiative - a reservation system to better control the crowds and ease traffic in and near the park.

Important things to remember to inform your guests:

them to take nothing out of the

2. Where the restrooms are as there are few of them.

3. What time to be back at the motorcoach.

Our driver Gilbert was perfect and he was gracious.

Lunch being included on the tour made it easy, and we felt like we were real guests.

Seven Certified Guides attended as well. Driving back to San Francisco from Sausalito each of us took the microphone and did a short introduction. What interesting backgrounds and life journeys we have among us. It is great to be a part of the SFTGG! Yeah!

Of course there was much more said and we thank Don for his enlightening presentation and organizing. We look forward to the next training tour.

Things to Remember When Visiting Levi’s Stadium in the Off Season

By Donna West

I find the public tours and museum at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara may appeal to almost any person whether you are a football fan, San Francisco history enthusiast or a technology interest. After my recent visit, I recommend including this with our Bay Area itineraries now.

Tickets may be purchased online http://www.levisstadium.com/tours/public-tours/ or in person at the Visa Box Office the day of. Public tours are $25 per person and combination packages with museum are $35 per person. Be sure to ask for military, senior, children discounts.

The stadium tour is about 90 minutes and be sure to wear comfortable walking shoes. The tour ends at the museum where you may go on a self-guided tour. There are VIP Tours or private groups of 20 or more that may be arranged with the stadium directly.

The stadium is open Monday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. except during game days (of course). Be sure to check the stadium event schedule in advance on the website as there are concerts and events scheduled at various times during the off season. I had to reschedule my visit because of the hockey game. A plus, I did see the breakdown of the hockey field and how it was removed.

I discovered the public tour departures are scheduled with the equivalent time allowed and you may have a short wait. You may visit the museum and 49ers store during this time. It is a short walk back to Gate A (by the store) to meet your Stadium Tour Guide and group.

The Bourbon Steak & Pub (restaurant) has two areas for lunch and dinner – Monday through Thursday and is closed on Sundays. Be sure to call and verify the restaurant hours if you want to go as times may change with events.

Getting There

People may drive or take public transportation from San Francisco.

Drive: From Great America Parkway to Tasman Drive, turn into the parking area behind Santa Clara Hilton.

Take CalTrain to Mountain View, switch to light rail to Santa Clara. The stop is easy walking to the stadium on Tasman Drive, which is across from the Santa Clara Convention Center and Hyatt Regency.

Parking is free (except during events or games), and you will walk across one of the three new “solar” bridges, connecting the main parking area to the stadium, with hundreds of solar panels.

There are attendants that will search your day pack or purse before you walk in, however, the strict NFL plastic bag is not in effect during the off season.

You will need to walk a short distance to the Visa Box Office to purchase tickets. This is between the museum and the Bourbon Steak & Pub entrance. Distances are not too far away.

Stadium Tour Highlights

The Stadium Guide is professional and tells the story of the 49ers and of Levi’s Stadium and is equipped with a microphone for the group that is easy to hear. You will learn the technical facts, which may be found at the Levi’s Stadium website. And of course each guide has fun stories about the 49ers history.

Key things to remember: The stadium is using recycled and reclaimed building products where possible; example is reclaimed wood from a local airplane hangar at Moffett Field in Mountain View. The stadium features a 27,000 square foot “Green Roof” on the top of the stadium’s suite tower. The stadium will self-consume PV-electricity generated from its three NRG Energy solar-paneled pedestrian bridges and its one solar-paneled roof deck.

Tip: Only small hand-held cameras are allowed – no large video/photo equipment allowed.

Some of the behind the scenes areas to visit on the west side of the stadium you may not otherwise access during games are:

• Go inside the Visitor’s locker room;

• Specialty restaurants made for fans and the restaurant at field level – where you walk out to the field;

• Media area;

• The green roof atop the suite tower on the west side of the stadium;

• Cheerleaders’ dressing room

Museum Highlights

The museum is my favorite because of the many interactive exhibits and San Francisco history. Allow enough time to enjoy these highlights:

• Augmented Reality – This is one of my favorites. As you walk into the museum you appear to be interacting on a screen with many of the players, coaches and celebrities.

• Inside the Morabito Theater, which features a 50’ x 18’ screen and Sony 4K technology, I enjoyed a movie that has great San Francisco history with the football flavor intertwined in it.

• Touch screens to learn about first-person stories.

• Re-creating Bill Walsh’s Redwood City office.

• In the Game – This area offers multiple interactive challenges and exhibits, including a passing and kicking simulator, be the Broadcaster a real-life booth where fans can call the team’s most iconic plays and the Gridiron Challenge, a series of motion-driven, gesturebased challenges that bring out the athlete, cheerleader, uniform designer and touchdown scorer in everyone.

Photos above (Left to Right): Haight Ashbury exhibit, Bill Walsh’s Redwood City Office and the roof top at Levi’s Stadium.

ALMADEN QUICKSILVER PARK

By Sharon Traeger

Mercury (also called quicksilver) was “discovered” in the California Coastal Mountains in 1845. Andres Castillero, an observant Mexican soldier and mining engineer, noticed red paint on the bodies of the local Ohlone Indians and on the walls of the Santa Clara Mission. He inquired about the source of the paint and was guided to some cinnabar ore in a nearby cave. Cinnabar is a combination of mercury and sulfur in rock. Understanding the significance of this ore, Castillero made a claim on the property and began a small scale mining operation, the first in California.

The unique properties of mercury allow it to combine with most other metals to form an amalgam. The amalgamation process permits mercury to attract even small particles of metal and offers miners a way to collect metal efficiently. When the mercury is heated and vaporized, only the metal remains. Castillero had worked in the silver mines of Mexico where mercury was imported from the Almaden Mine in Spain, owned

In 1847 Castillero, lacking capital to develop the mine and embroiled in title disputes, sold it to Barron & Forbes, a British trading company.

Barron & Forbes named the mine “Nuevo Almaden” (after its predecessor in Spain) and began the capital intensive work of hard rock mining. They hired skilled Mexican and Chilean miners (later English and Chinese as well). They developed the infrastructure to crush cinnabar, heat it, collect the mercury, store it in iron flasks, and ship it to San Francisco and beyond. In 1863 they sold the mine to Quicksilver Mining Corporation, an American Company.

From the 1850s to the 1890s the Nuevo Almaden Mine was a center of commerce and residential life. Over 1800 miners and their families lived in three camps on the site: English camp, Spanish camp, and Hacienda camp. The miners processed 300 tons of cinnabar ore per day, reduced it to mercury and placed the mercury in flasks for transport. Their product supplied more than half the mercury production in the world. Eventually the mine would transport over 1 million flasks of 76 pounds each, yielding $75 million for its beneficiaries. Continued on next page..

“The traveler in San Francisco, asking the question Englishmen invariably ask, What’s to be seen? would be thus answered. The Big Trees, Eusamity Valley, Napa and the Quicksilver Mines.” Charles Dickens, All the Year Round, 424-28

Almaden Quicksilver Park is a county park, 16 miles south of San Jose in the Capitancillos Range of the Coastal Mountains. The 4,157 acre park includes hiking trails, remnants of the old mining camp, and Casa Grande, an 1854 Hacienda, now the Quicksilver Mining Museum.

and controlled by a cartel of the Rothschild family.

By the late 19th century there were over 500 mercury mines from Oregon to Santa Barbara. The mercury mines of the California Coastal Range supplied the mercury needed for the gold rush and the silver rush.

Had it not been for the discovery of mercury in California, the story of the gold rush might have been one of dependence on European interests.

In the 20th century the output from the New Almaden Mine declined as cinnabar became scarcer and more difficult to extract. New methods for processing metals used cyanide instead of mercury. In 1975 the mine ceased operations.

Between 1973 and 1976 Santa Clara County bought properties around the mine and established the Almaden Quicksilver Park in 1976.

ALMADEN QUICKSILVER PARK

Fun Facts about the mine and its surroundings:

• Henry Halleck was superintendent of the mine from 1850 to 1863.

• In 1863 Federal officials (with a writ from Abraham Lincoln) tried to seize the mine, prompting armed resistance from the miners and their allies. Lincoln and the military backed down when they realized the risk of California seceding from the Union was too great.

• Andres Castillero’s claim was disputed until it was heard by the Supreme Court and denied in 1863.

• John McLaren did much of the landscaping for the camp and gardens.

• Wallace Stegner used Mary Foote’s account of life at New Almaden in his novel “Angle of Repose.”

• In 1867 F.S. Pioche leased 2.5 acres of the Hacienda property for 10 years to bottle the carbonated mineral water from Los Alamitos Creek. He sold it for $4 per bottle as Vichy water (the cure-all for every known affliction).

• In 1893 the first Dry Ice (a by-product of the mine) was liquefied, bottled and marketed.

• The mine was a tourist destination, visited by James Fair and William Ralston among others.

THE CALIFORNIA STREET WIGGLE –

THE LOMBARD STREET THAT NEVER WAS

By Hudson Bell

1905 Illustration of California Street, terraced up the east side of Nob Hill from Grant to Powell, and tunneled. At the tip-top on the left is the Stanford Mansion (today the location of Stanford Court). The church on the left is pre-1906 Grace Church, which was then located on the SE corner of California and Stockton, where the Ritz-Carlton is today. (Verbiage in upper left is in regard to a different photo, just FYI.)

Ironically, while most everything east of Van Ness Avenue was destroyed in the wake of the April 18, 1906 earthquake, it may have been the earthquake that saved the cable car in San Francisco. As the city continued to expand in the beginning of the 20th century, many new and alternative modes of transportation were being considered, and in regard to the hills, tunneling and terracing started to look like a more practical solution moving forward.

Just four months before the 1906 cataclysm, on the evening of Dec. 5, 1905, the Merchants’ Association held its 8th annual dinner at the Palace Hotel, and hosted William Barclay Parsons, engineer of the New York Rapid Transit Commission, member of the Royal Commission on Street Traffic in London and consulting engineer of the Panama Canal Commission. At the dinner, Parsons presented a majorly anticipated report in regard to San Francisco’s street traffic problems.

The first main thrust of Parsons’s report was the suggestion to streamline San Francisco’s transit system into one uniform mode, that being the overhead trolley, or what we think of as the streetcar today (though many people of course call them trolleys, cable cars are not trolleys). To effectively do this, Parsons suggested running trolleys through tunnels in the hills, and abolishing the cable car system all together, as well as doing away with the use of steam engines and horses (omnibuses) as “motive power.” He suggested two tunnels, both through Nob Hill: one under California Street, and the other under Jackson. “In order to serve the population on top of Nob Hill,” Parsons said, “stations should be constructed in the tunnels and equipped with elevators and staircases running from the platforms to the surface of the streets.”

Even more interesting however, is the suggestion Parsons next gave in regard to getting up Nob Hill via California Street, in a carriage or vehicle: to terrace the heights. Some sidewalk space could be given up for creating a “series of inclined terraces having a width of 18 feet, sufficient for two vehicles to pass.” Furthermore, Parsons explained that “the

space between the terraces on California Street, or on a wider street if one should be made, can be partly paid out with parks and made an attractive as well as a practical improvement of the first magnitude.” An illustration was presented in regard to what this would look like. Looking at the illustration today, the first thing that comes to mind is San Francisco’s world-famous crooked street, that is the Lombard Street “wiggle” atop Russian Hill, constructed in 1922. While constructed 17 years later, the seed of Lombard’s design dials right back to Parsons’s 1905 presentation.

Due to the disaster that struck San Francisco four months after the Parsons report, all plans to renovate the city’s transit system were dropped, as simply rebuilding was the focus. Many neighborhood improvement associations started up. By 1910, tunneling came back into discussion in many parts of the city (for instance, there were those that wanted to tunnel Fillmore, tunnel Divisadero, etc.). The first tunnel to come to fruition, backed by the Merchants’ Association and the Nob Hill Tunnel Association, was the Stockton Street Tunnel, completed in 1914.

Lombard Street

When the two-way, brick paved street was constructed in 1922, the curved switchbacks were installed and the grade was reduced to 16 percent. This one block of the street consists of eight turns and approximately 250 steps on each side. The agreement was that the city would pay for the street, and the residents would pay for the steps and maintain the plantings. When the work was completed, people could drive up and down, and the property values rose.

The street was made one-way in 1939. In its high season, summer weekends, as many as 350 cars per hour drive down the street. Some tourists even ask to use residents’ bathrooms. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors has been presented with petitions to close the street to all except residents in 1970, 1977, and 1987. Each time the Board has decided there is no cause for the closure, despite Dianne Feinstein taking up the cause for residents when she was a supervisor. Tour buses were banned in 1980.

William Barclay Parsons

Stop Wining!

By Richard Miller

Neolithic humans produced the first wine (about 6,000 years ago in Northern Iran) using primitive knowledge and skills. About 3,000 years ago viticulture reached Sicily and about 500 B.C. arrived in Spain, Portugal and France. The history of wine has molded the industry in to what it is today. Technologies have changed, but the basic process has remained the same.

The history of California wine began with the Spanish mission system. Wine and brandy were made not only for ecclesiastical use, but were also traded for other goods. Father Junipero Serra planted the first grapes used for fermentation in California.

In 1779, the first vines were planted at Mission San Juan Capistrano. Simple table wines were made using the Criolla varietal (also known as the Mission varietal). Angelica was an early fortified wine that is still produced in limited amounts.

The Spanish Mission System laid the foundation for grape growing and wine production in California. Franciscans established a series of missions throughout California between 1769 and 1823. The Franciscans typically made more brandy than wine because it was easier to preserve and ship. Because they lacked proper barrels for aging, their wines tended to be high in tannins and did not age very well. For these reasons, brandy and fortified wines were more successful products.

The Buena Vista Winery, in Sonoma, was the first commercial winery opened in California in 1859.

Ninety percent of all the wine in America comes from California, as well as 90 percent of all table grapes and 100 percent of raisins.

California is the fourth largest wine producer in the world. France is first, followed by Spain and Italy.

Before the 1970s, California was known for jug wines. That referred to the one gallon glass bottles it was sold in. Much of the wines from California were Italian varietals.

Probably the single most important event for the wine industry was a blind tasting, in 1976, outside Paris and called Judgment of Paris. At the blind tasting between American and French wines, the gold medal was awarded to Chateau Montelena for its Chardonnay. Stags Leap won the gold medal for its Cabernet.

Trivia and fun facts

The United States is the only country that is not metric, but our wine bottles are metric. The standard wine bottle is 750 mil. In Sonoma country it takes an average of 750 grapes to make enough wine to fill the bottle.

In Sonoma 900 – 1300 vines can be planted on one acre. That yields about 4.5 tons of grapes after the harvest. The winery can produce 4000 bottles or 16,000 glasses of wine from one acre. One barrel of wine yields about 24 cases of wine.

Wine is California’s number one finished agricultural product. US exports of wine represent four percent of the world market. The United Kingdom is our top export market, followed by Canada and the Netherlands.

Chardonnay is the most widely produced wine in California. More Chardonnay grapes are grown in California than any place in the world. The cool climates of Carneros, Sonoma Coast and the Russian River Valley are the best for this grape. The Chardonnay grape originated in Burgundy in the 1100s and a lot of Champagne is made from this grape.

The largest winery in the world is Ernest and Julio Gallo. They produce over 60 million bottles of wine a year.

WineNose

By Bronwyn Proust

The subject came up in my wine tasting group. What does the term mean? What is it? Why do winemakers do this?

Clarifying or fining a wine is to clear something out of the wine that is not wanted. Literally, you pull out unwanted substances by adding something to the wine, which these unwanted particles will cling to. And then they sink or settle to the bottom of the barrel.

A side result of this process is a clearer and more stable product. It can also prevent heat haze or a cloudy wine.

What are these unwanted particles? They are extra proteins, tannins and bitter flavors.

Below are four fining agents:

1. Egg whites

2. Bentonite clay

3. Synthetic polymer powder or PVPP

4.

Isinglass (pure protein) or fish bladder

Do not worry of the possibility of salmonella contamination with egg whites:

• Salmonella tends to reside in the yolk, not in egg whites.

• Alcohol and pH level will kill off bacteria.

Egg whites are used in fresh form (approximately a tablespoon mixed with another small amount of water per 60 gallon barrel). And clay has been used for centuries.

All of them require time to settle, even a few weeks ... after mixing … and bringing the “stuff” to bottom. The wine is then racked and moved to another container.

They all help to make wine look clear, as well as the other factors mentioned above. All agents are used with care, as they can strip the wine of flavor, fragrance, color, etc. Gently does it–wine is alive!

Here is to drinking a clear glistening liquid, we call wine.

The Echo of Fine Wine

By Pietro Buttitta Winemaker for Rosa d'Oro Vineyards

One of the many great things about the Bay Area is it’s location in the middle of wine country. In only two hours one can visit most of the key wine regions in Northern and Central California, the Sierra Nevadas and make it halfway to Paso Robles. But with all of this wine accessibility also comes a lot of confusion about the different styles and traits that different regions produce. How do we know where to find something light and delicate or big and full bodied? And how will it go with dinner?

One of the biggest clues to note is where the grapes came from. In general, the warmer the vineyard area, the more fruity and soft the wine will be. This is a general rule for most red and white wines because like most fruit, a certain degree of warmth is needed to ripen grapes fully and develop deeper flavor. Cooler regions such as those near the coast often produce grapes with less intense color and overt fruit, but often greater complexity and crispness, think Pinot Noir, but may be splendid with food. Warmer climates will produce wine with less acidity, more dark fruit characteristics, and often darker color as well, like a big Paso Robles Cabernet with high alcohol.

Warmer regions will include parts of Lodi, Eastern Paso Robles, northern areas of Sonoma County, some of Mendocino and Lake Counties, Amador County and quite a few others. Cooler regions will include much of Sonoma County again – Sonoma is

very diverse, Southern Napa Valley – Carneros specifically, much of Mendocino County, MontereySanta Cruz and Western Paso Robles near the coast.

One other thing to heed is the specificity on the label of where the grapes came from. Every wine label will state somewhere on it where the grapes came from, and generally the more specific the information, the higher the wine quality should be. The level of detail often ranges from state “California” to county “Sonoma” to AVA (American Viticultural Appellation) such as “Russian River Valley” to specific vineyard “Litton Estate Vineyard.” For example, if your wine simply says “California” on the label it will often be from many Central Valley vineyards of modest distinction, if any. A bottle stating “Kronos Vineyard” in the Rutherford AVA of Napa Valley is much more distinct, expensive, and one should hope of significantly better quality.

Part of wine appreciation is in visiting the vineyards and exploring the unique geography and climate of different regions. So when faced with wine choices I encourage you to think of the region that a bottle came from. Is it from a hot, sunny area? If so the wine should be more juicy, rich and full bodied. Was the Russian River Valley in Sonoma cool and foggy, even in summer? Then you can safely imagine those wines in a less ripe style, lighter in color and perhaps with more spice and acidity. The uniqueness of the region should always echo in a good wine. Salud!

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

By Bryan S. Smith Vice President of the San Francisco Tour Guide Guild

Everybody knows the name Alcatraz. The famous prison, home to some of America’s most notorious felons should be one place you put on your ‘bucket list’ of must dos.

Spanish explorer Juan Manuel de Ayala found this barren sandstone rock back in 1775. Must have been tough to find, the thing is huge!

He named it “La Isla de los Alcatraces” The island of the Pelicans

Considered an ideal defense location, the US Army started building on it in 1853. Eventually becoming a US Army disciplinary barracks, Alcatraz would soon become the first federal maximum security prison. The worst-of-the-worst were sent to Alcatraz, considered escape proof, but many attempts were made.

At any one time there were 260 prisoners, and officially there were 14 escape attempts recorded. One guy made it to Fort Point across the Bay but some kids turned him in to authorities. Too bad! He got two extra years added on to his sentence. He was found clinging to rocks; frozen, naked, exhausted.

The isolation of the island was a fascination to people

wondering about the prisoners who lived there.

Inmates got only the basics; food, clothing, shelter and medical care. Everything else was a privilege to be earned. The prisoners themselves called it ‘incorrigible.’ Rumor had it that the temperature of the showers was controlled by the administration. Cold water pumped straight from the sea was one, and another was that the water was boiling all the time. There were no hot or cold shut offs because of possible escape attempts. The reason being, taking cold showers would acclimate the prisoners to the freezing temperature of the Bay

Alcatraz was operated for only 29 years from 1934 – 1963. During that time, it housed an interesting variety of men. There were never any women at Alcatraz. “You weren’t a human at the Rock,” described Jim Quillen, Alcatraz prisoner #586. Other inmates names read like a who’s who list, including George “Machine Gun” Kelly (1934-51), Al “Scarface” Capone in for tax evasion from 1934-39, Robert Stroud “Birdman of Alcatraz” doing time for manslaughter and murder from 1942-59

Everything was considered a privilege even work assignments. If a prisoner had a job he spent 18 hours in his cell. If not, he spent 23 hours a day behind bars.

The most potentially dangerous room was considered the dining room where each inmate carried a knife, fork and spoon on metal trays. A revolt over spaghetti brought the law enforcement into the dining room. In came the guns – everybody was good!

Forty-two of the least popular cells but by far the best in roominess were the state-of-the-art D-Block isolation rooms.

The “Hole,” cells #9-14, was solitary confinement where it was always dark.

The “Battle of Alcatraz” on May 2, 1946, included six convicts’ attempt to escape. Led by

Bernie Loy, who worked in the library, the men overpowered several guards, broke into the gun galley, stole guns and keys and took control of the cell house. They were never able to get out of the building, and it took three days for the Alcatraz guard staff, the San Francisco Police, Marines and Coast Guard to regain control. Two guards and three inmates were killed.

In the early 1960s, Alcatraz was not considered effective as a maximum security prison, and on March 21, 1963, it was closed due to deterioration and high operating costs.

With its fate unknown, a Native American occupation took place in the ‘60s. Today, Golden Gate National Recreation Area oversees Alcatraz. There are many unique plants, stunning flowers and a bird sanctuary now, and buried in history, the famous footprints of American tough guys

Al Capone (top), Robert Stroud (left) and George Kelly.

The Ferries and Cliff House Railroad

By John Martini

A long-forgotten railroad once ran around Lands End. Known as the “Ferries & Cliff House Railroad,” it was another of the fantastic public improvements made to the far west end of San Francisco by silver baron and one-time mayor Adolph Sutro

When Sutro purchased the Cliff House in 1881 he decided to build his residence on the high hill across the road, which was the highest promontory in the vicinity and commanded a sweeping view of the Golden Gate, the Marin Headlands and Ocean Beach. Sutro’s modest home was eventually surrounded by acres of lush gardens coaxed from the sand dunes and ornamented with statuary, hedge mazes and other Victorian attractions.

Sutro grandiosely named his estate “Sutro Heights” and opened its paths and sheltered overlooks to visitors. A major problem, though, was that his Heights lay at the extreme western edge of the city and reaching it was a challenge for people without personal carriages or the means to rent one. The closest public transit was many blocks away at the terminus of the Park & Ocean Railroad at the corner of today’s Balboa Street and La Playa Avenue. Passengers departing the little train faced a several block uphill walk over dunes and unpaved roads to Sutro Heights. And its cost was prohibitive for many people, since reaching the beach involved paying two fares totaling 10 cents. These factors led Sutro to begin work on his own railroad to carry people to his seaside attractions safely and cheaply.

Soon after buying the Cliff House, Sutro began lobbying for a longer and more scenic railway around Lands End that would drop visitors literally at his front gate. In 1884, using his cousin Gustav as a surrogate, Sutro gained a charter to build a railroad from Presidio Avenue to Sutro Heights. Adolph initially spent $40,000 on grading and other preliminary work, but soon sold the franchise to an already-existing cable car company called the Powell Street Railroad. Sutro had a condition, though; visitors headed for the Heights had to be issued transfers from the cable line to the steam train to keep down costs. The Powell Street Company agreed, and the little train was dubbed the “Ferries and Cliff House Railroad” because both destinations could be reached for a single fare. Due to its spectacular right-of-way, it was soon dubbed “The Cliff Line.”

The inner depot of the Cliff Line was located at the corner of Presidio Avenue and California Street, with a roundhouse at the site of today’s Jewish Community Center. Heading west along California Street, the trains initially crossed a seemingly barren sea of sand dunes for 2½ miles, but at 33rd Avenue the tracks curved north, and then west, following the rugged shoreline of Lands End and the vast Sutro Estate. This was the favorite part of the line, where passengers enjoyed stunning views of the Golden Gate, Fort Point, the Marin Headlands, the Pacific Ocean, and if the weather was clear, the Farallone Islands far offshore.

The western terminus of the railroad was a rural-looking depot located at the corner of today’s 48th Avenue and El Camino Del Mar. Facing the depot across the tracks was a strip of commercial buildings owned by Adolph Sutro called Ocean Terrace. Its attractions included a couple of restaurants, a tintype photo gallery, a seashell shop, and five places that served alcohol. Behind the depot, yet another tavern dubbed “Sutro Heights Casino” offered another opportunity for passengers to quench their thirst

After two years of construction, train service on the Ferries & Cliff House line began on July 1, 1888. As promised, the fare was only five cents and included transfer to connecting Powell Street Railroad cable cars at Presidio Avenue. A nickel trip from the Ferry Building to the Cliff House was a reality.

The steam line was an instant hit. However, the new railroad was not without its problems, which former owner and lessee of the right-of-way Adolph Sutro followed closely. The scenic stretch around Lands End was also the most treacherous part of the journey, since landslides were common along the route. Sometimes, trains had to stop midway around Lands End while the crew brought out shovels and dug sand from off the tracks. Other times, torrential winter rains undermined entire sections of the track. In one spectacular pile-up, a locomotive totally derailed and hurled its cars and passengers into the brush.

1902 it ended up as part of the sprawling network of streetcar lines operated by United Railroads of San Francisco (URR). In 1905, the URR decided the Lands End trains were outmoded and spent several months converting the old steam line to a modern electric streetcar route. The last day of steam operations on the Ferries and Cliff House line was April 17, 1905.

In the course of the rebuild, the old narrow gauge tracks were ripped out and new standard gauge tracks with overhead electric lines installed. URR at first called the new streetcar route The Cliff Line, but soon renamed it the #1 California Line. In February 1925, heavy rains washed out the streetcar tracks in several locations along the Lands End section of the line. Reconstructing the washouts was

considered too costly, and the streetcar company elected to abandon the old right of way and rerouted the #1 streetcars along city streets.

Aside from some portions of the original roadbed, virtually nothing remains from the Ferries and Cliff House train line. Even this alignment has been greatly impacted, first by the 1905 widening of the right-of-way to accommodate double tracks during the conversion to an electric streetcar line, then by the 1925 landslides that caused the streetcars to cease operations altogether. Subsequent landslides have continued to erase the old right-of-way until today only about half of the original steam train alignment remains in place. Today, these remaining sections of right-of-way have been incorporated into the Coastal Trail that connects Sea Cliff with Lands End and the Cliff House.

SOMA Architecture Tour

By Bronwyn Proust

We were invited by the San Francisco Chronicle to an architecture tour by columnist John King. Three members of our SFTGG were there, as well as one from City Guides.

The guests were avid Chronicle readers and architecture buffs. It was wonderful.

John King, architecture critic and the writer of Cityscapes, engaged and enveloped us–took us on a journey, short in distance, long in information, rich in history and great value.

We ended the two-mile walking tour at House of Shields on New Montgomery Street with a round of drinks and conversation.

Photo (Left to Right): Robert Munzer (City Guides), Frances Gorman, John King, David Stein and Bronwyn Proust.

Beyond The Bay

New York City

By Donna Marie Smith

As you make your vacation plans for 2015, don't forget New York City as a possibility, even if you only have time for a long weekend trip. NYC has something for everyone! There's a wealth of things to do – from Broadway shows (highly recommended) to museums and art galleries to sightseeing of famous landmarks to restaurants featuring every variety of food imaginable. All food establishments now have a letter grade posted in their front windows, so you can't go wrong in your choice.

For those who enjoy the water, a trip around the island of Manhattan on the Circle Line may suit you, or take a shorter ferry ride to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. If you're more of a landlubber, there are many bus companies offering 'hop on-hop off' sightseeing to all the famous NYC neighborhoods (Chinatown and Little Italy recommended). If you're a walker, NYC is definitely for you: stroll over to the west side and walk along the 'Highline' or a few blocks more, to the waterfront. In warmer weather, stop at a local deli for a sandwich before

you walk to the water, and enjoy the comfort of a bench while watching people engage in water sports on the river.

Save money and don't bother renting a car, since our public transportation is easy to negotiate, relatively inexpensive and usually reliable. And, there's always taxis available to get you around 'the city that never sleeps.' Manhattan can be noisy and crowded, and some neighborhoods are somewhat dirty, but it's also culturally rich and exciting.

Did I neglect to mention shopping? It's true that most people now shop online, but Manhattan stores still attract tourists and residents alike with their frequent sales. The Christmas holiday time is a wonderful time to visit to see the creative window displays of many stores. Macy's always gets the holiday season going with their exciting Thanksgiving Day Parade (a must to see in person at least once in your life!).

Donna Marie Smith has lived in NYC for 40 years, and still enjoys touristy activities

Administrative Stuff!

Certified and Associate members must complete continuing education each year as described in the bylaws. The policy below sets forth details of how the requirement will be implemented. Two activities/programs will be required each year, at least one of which must be sponsored by the Guild. Qualifying Activities/Programs:

• Guild training tours (either attending or leading a tour)

• Guild educational seminars/workshops

• Guided tours of Bay Area locations by non-profit or for-profit organizations such as City Guides, San Francisco Heritage and Golden Gate National Parks

• Lectures by organizations such as the California Historical Society or the San Francisco Museum and Historical Society

• Guild General Meetings (maximum of one per year will qualify)

• Guild “good deeds,” e.g., chairing a committee, if approved by the Board

Get Involved With GuidePost

We invite all SFTGG members to participate in producing GuidePost. If you would like to submit an article, photographs, ideas or other content considerations, please contact Richard Miller at miller.richard@yahoo.com.

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS FOR THE NEXT ISSUE IS: JUNE 30, 2015.

Join The SFTGG - Become a Member

If you would like to learn more about becoming a member of the SFTGG, here’s the link: http://www.sftgg.org/become-a-member.php

SFTGG Annual Meeting – Save the Date!

The General Meeting of the SFTGG will be held on Monday, June 8, 2015, from 6 – 9 p.m. at Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption (St. Francis Hall). There will be more information to share at a later time.

Notes

Parting Shots

We would like to hear from you.

If you have any comments, ideas or suggestions and you would like to receive this publication at your business, here is how to contact us:

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GuidePost is published by the San Francisco Tour Guide Guild.

Editor: Bryan S. Smith Project Coordinator: Richard Miller

The Northern California Concierge Association hosted the eighth biennial Concierge Trade Show on Wednesday, April 1, at the San Francisco Hilton Union Square. San Francisco Tour Guide Guild (SFTGG) members Ellen Josephy and Don DeLaura are shown manning the SFTGG booth at the event. Don focused on contacts for programs. Ellen promoted Guides for Hire, while Len Holmes worked the event for new members.