"When we first got started, I would prepare lunches at home to offer to visitors who came to our ranch, " Jack's wife Dolores explained. "We would ask friends and wine trade guests to bring old clothes and boots and we'd put them to work before we all gathered in the shade to share a glass or two of wine and some food." Today, thousands of visitors each year are treated to wine tasting and if desired, a tour of the garden, vineyards, kitchens and state-of-the-art winemaking facility.

What has changed in the sales environment of the wine industry? Dennis Cakebread, Director of Sales has noticed that, "there is less talk about technical facts, like the percentage of malo-lactic or the length of time in oak, and more interest in personal anecdotes about enjoying a bottle of wine."

"We believe wine is fun, so we do fun things" said Dennis, just before leaving to go ice fishing with trade associates and consumers in Chicago. Dennis created the "Good Life Series" to build memories with consumers and give them an opportunity to appreciate healthy food and great wine with some of their favorite pastimes.

Cakebread Cellars has been at the forefront of the American healthy-eating movement since the early 1980's. "We realized that if we wanted to live to see the business grow, we'd have to eat healthier," Dolores joked. In addition to overseeing hospitality and her famous organic kitchen garden, Dolores is responsible for Cakebread Cellars' "American Harvest Workshop" - an annual four-day seminar where top chefs from around the country interact with the winemaker, local farm purveyors and media representatives to discuss wine, food and a healthy lifestyle.

Culinary Director, Brian Streeter, who assists Dolores with the workshop, observes that since the program began in 1986, there is "more of a focus on wine as an important part of the meal with an interest in creating finer dining for customers, chefs include wine selection in the menu-planning dialogue," Brian says. "They are also more interested in buying fresh foods from local farmstead and cottage producers than in previous years."