SUSTAINABLE PLEASURE & BOB SCORES 100%

A NEW KID IN THE APPELLATION

The great looking design by San Luis Obispo

architect Heidi Gibson is the tasting room of

the new Shale Oak winery.

It's on a turn on Oakdale Road that just a 

couple of years ago was acreage for sale.

When ever I passed it I would tell Lana

"There's a great spot for a new winery."

New indeed!  And forward thinking.

As the Shale Oak philosophy states

"Sustainability in every facet."  They talk of

"holistic stewardship" of the vineyards.

Those are concepts and practices that 

are dear to Paso Robles wine growers and

drinkers.

Visible are the rain harvesting and water run-off

reclamation systems.

Their LEED certification is pending. Shale Oak

employs solar photovoltaic panels.

Regional natives are being used in landscaping.

Their beautiful tasting room looks out at vineyards

and Red Soles, a great "mom & pop" winery of distinction and elegant charm.

The winemaker, Kevin Riley, is known in the area

for a quality product. We left with a couple of bottles

and look forward to future visits and purchases.

Products from re-cycled, local and "green"

sources are sold.  We like the "ethos" of Shale Oak

and the commitment to doing it properly.

Even at that, I probably would not have posted

like this, had it not been for that "dream" that

always occurred as I drove by, usually on the 

way to Pipestone, another sustainable, organic

and top quality Paso wine.

Shale Oak promises to be a great addition to 

California's best appellation.

UPDATE FROM BOB

Frequent readers of LightBreezes have followed Bob Foster's 

progress in living with leukemia. As he undergoes pre-treatment

for a bone marrow transplant he is keeping busy.  He and 

I have begun preliminary work on a film treatment and

he's "tested" his brain cells.

I passed the "Amateur Extra Class" license exam today with a grade of 
100%. By upgrading my license to the highest level of Ham radio, I  
fulfilled a promise I once made to my father.

In 1964, Dad purchased a "BC-348-Q" WW 2 shortwave radio receiver for 
me. It cost $45, a lot of money for us at the time. The fact the radio 
came from a B-17 aircraft made it seem magical. Dad bought the radio 
only after I sincerely - as sincerely as a 14-year old boy can be - 
promised to one day earn the highest grade of Ham license. The old "348" 
opened the world to me. Many a night I sat, headphones clamped to my 
ears, listening to voices from Europe, Africa and South America. 
Interest in becoming a Ham would come and go. Slowly, I learned the 
Morse code. By age 20, I earned a "Novice" Ham license. By age 30, I was 
a "General Class" operator. Today, 47 1/2 years later, I fulfilled my 
promise to my father.  I am now an "Extra Class" operator. Thank you, Jesus.

Oh, Dad died last summer. I sure wish I could have called him today with 
the news.

--Foster

See you down the trail.