May 29, 2013
Cakebread Cellars - Family, Food & Fantastic Wine
There are a handful of iconic wine names that are synonymous with Napa Valley.
A few spring to mind; Beringer, Caymus, Mondavi, Stags' Leap, Joseph Phelps, Far Niente and Chateau Montelena without doubt, among others.
There is also Cakebread Cellars, whose wine history may be shorter than the aforementioned, but not its impact.
Dennis Cakebread made a stop in Vancouver recently, to share his family's wines and talk a bit about the Cakebread history.
In 1927, his grandfather, Leo Cakebread, opened a garage in nearby Oakland, California. The garage was eventually taken over by Jack Cakebread and his wife Delores, in 1965. Having an interest in photography, Jack studied under famous photographer Ansel Adams and in 1972 was hired as a photographer for a book that was being published, titled 'The Treasury of American Wine".
While on assignment he fell in love with a ranch in Napa Valley, made an offer and the rest is history.
Jack and Delores' sons Bruce and Dennis may have grown up tinkering in their family car repair shop but they are
fully ensconced in wine these days.
In 1973 Cakebread made its first wine - a Chardonnay that they crushed in a neighbor's basement and fermented in a shed on the estate's site.
The following year they produced their first Cabernet while completing their first winery.
Over the next decade a second, modern winery was built, Bruce and Dennis both graduated from university, eventually joined Cakebread Cellars and the family's land holdings expanded.
Meanwhile, the family car repair business, Cakebread's Garage was becoming a drain on their finances.
Keeping it open when their clientele was changing, ageing and moving out of downtown Oakland was no longer a viable option.
Dennis explained that although difficult, the family decided to close Cakebread's Garage in 1989,
which ultimately freed them up to concentrate even more on their Napa winery.
In order to diversify, while still maintaining control over the the fruit they harvest to make wine, the estate continued to grow by purchasing vineyard land in: Anderson Valley, Carneros, Arroyo Creek and Howell Mountain among others over the past fifteen years.
Cakebread Cellars is well known for their ongoing efforts in the partnership between food and wine.
In 1987 Jack co-founded The American Harvest Workshop. This workshop is an annual gathering of chefs, artisan food producers, food media and gourmands. They have built a culture of food and wine, which lures people from all over the world to experience, hands on.
I was fortunate to enjoy a dinner at Cakebread in 2009.
Talented Vancouver chefs such as Rob Feenie and David Hawksworth have participated in this event, which made dining at Hawksworth, in the Hotel Georgia, the perfect venue for sampling the wines Dennis Cakebread brought with him.
The Wines
Cakebread Cellars Sauvignon Blanc, 2011
A fresh and floral wine with lovely tropical hints, mown lawn and sweet 
herbs, honey and citrus. A kiss of sweetness pops the fruit on the palate, it is lively and tangy and charming.
$47+ price will vary
above right: beet salad
right: spring pea risotto intermezzo
Cakebread Cellars Chardonnay, 2010
Pristine apple and pear fruit frolics with spiced brown butter and a hint of toffee. On the palate it's a bit more tropical but maintains it's fresh crisp palate rounded out with sweet butter.
$61+ price will vary
Cakebread Cellars Pinot Noir, 2011
From the Anderson Valley (a region Dennis is quite excited about), this Pinot Noir exhibits sunwarmed wild summer berries and cherry aromas, sweet spices and crushed flowers. The palate follows suit - sweet and sweetly spicy with very good structure, ripe dark berries and a lengthy finish. Juicy and silky.
$83+ price will vary
Cakebread Cellars Zinfandel, 2010
Sweet spicy red and black berry fruit aromas. A generous chocolaty and spicy palate. Rich and concentrated without being overblown. Nice acidity to balance and smooth ripe tannin.
$47+ price will vary
Cakebread Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, 2010
The Old World lilt to this wine will engage you with cassis, pencil shavings, leather and sweet bell peppers with a core of spiced chocolate. It is supple in texture with generous black fruits, espresso and cocoa. Cassis and blueberry trail across the finish.
$100+ price will vary
Cakebread Cellars Dancing Bear Cabernet Sauvignon, 2005
Rich, intense and concentrated - black currents, dried cherries, prune notes and decadent chocolate coffee mocha. Similar liqueur-like quality on the palate, silky and chic with sweet spice rich fruit and vanilla. The texture is glycerol - similar to an Amarone. Great length.
$137+ price will vary
 right: Mushroom and spring vegetable pasta
~Daenna Van Mulligen
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