Website & Blog

Welcome to Winery Chefs website and blog. The idea for Winery Chefs has been in development for many years. While I was the chef for the Robert Mondavi Winery and Cakebread Cellars, I learned that the role of a winery chef was much different than most chefs. My job was to help sell the wine and that I was an extension of the marketing department. It’s never about the food, its about the wine and food and promoting the brand. Realizing the role I played for these wineries, I started my own business Winery Chefs to provide culinary services to the wine industry. This website highlights the services we can provide to wineries that may not have the benefit of a fulltime chef and culinary department. Winery Chefs is more than just events. We are about creating experiences and collateral marketing material that set these experiences apart from the competition. I have found that food in combination with all the other elements found in wine country make the perfect median to sell wine. Take a look at what Winery Chefs has to offer.

The blog is a place where I can share my work and my life. This is a place where anyone can come for ideas about pairing wine food. You can find recipes, suggestions on pairing wine with food, menus, travel, stories, experiences and links to other blogs with similar interest.

The blog has another important role; it’s to promote the profession. There are many talented chefs who work at wineries in Napa Valley, Sonoma, and wine regions around the world. They are often overlooked just because the nature of their job is to promote the wines and wineries where they work. I hope through this website I can help bring attention to my peers who work very hard creating perfect pairings.

Enjoy the blog, interact with the blog, and connect others with Winery Chefs. This is a place for anyone who has a passion for wine and food.

I would like to thank the many people who helped me with the creative process of building this website. Brendan Murhpy at Camaleo Web Intelligence, Julia Allen at Folia Design, the very talented photographer Kristen Loken Anstey, copy editor Kimberly Noyes, and my biggest supporter, my wife, Virginia Jordan Haake.

Cheers!

Richard E. Haake