Take a trip through Napa’s Oakville region and you will find idyllic landscapes, acclaimed tasting rooms and some of the finest cabernet sauvignon available. Checking each of those boxes is B Cellars, a Napa winery whose artfully crafted wines, breathtaking estate and seasonally driven food pairings have established it as one of the valley’s premier destinations.
The winery was established after a chance encounter between founders Jim Borsack and Duffy Keys, who met at a barbecue 20 years ago. While neither was experienced in the art of winemaking, together the Southern California natives had backgrounds in hospitality and luxury goods, sharing a keen interest in the wine industry. The duo remained in touch and joined forces to create B Cellars in 2002. Adding second-generation winemaker Kirk Venge to the team, they produced their first vintage the following year and acquired the Napa property in 2012.
The winery primarily produces blends–even their single-varietal wines are blends of multiple vineyards. The B Cellars portfolio evolves each year, boasting unique wines sourced from 30 vineyards across Sonoma and Napa Counties.
Among those are the historic vineyards of esteemed grower Andy Beckstoffer. B Cellars has a longstanding relationship with Beckstoffer, who helped establish Napa’s prestige in the wine industry, owning and managing over 3,600 acres of renowned vineyards. B Cellars is one of the few wineries producing single vineyard cabernet sauvignons from each of these prized vineyards, including the Dr. Crane and To Kalon Vineyards.
Tastings at B Cellars are accompanied by small plates that vary each month, always reflecting the seasonality of ingredients, and chosen to highlight the current wines available. Menus feature produce grown on the property from herb gardens, stone fruit orchards and edible flowerbeds. Estate chickens ensure that kitchen food scraps never go to waste, and their eggs are used in breads, crackers and other menu items.
The first bite on the tasting at the time of my visit is an apple fritter with Dungeness crab, sage and Cajun aioli. It’s paired with a 2022 Blend 23–their only white blend—a viognier that touches the palate with its fragrant bouquet of honeysuckle and peach and bright green apple.
After a stroll through the property and a peek into the 15,000-square-foot wine cave, I head back to the hospitality room for more pairings. The next sample is the 2021 Manzana Vineyard Pinot Noir, which offers a bright acidity, soft earthiness and flavors of red fruits like cherry and pomegranate. Served alongside is a chicken empanada with toasted coriander crema and pico de gallo. Guests will leave each tasting with a recipe card, and this empanada is the one I’ll be attempting to recreate at home.
Eight chefs work efficiently in the open kitchen to prepare food by the minute. Executive Chef Derick Kuntz crafts each menu item to reflect the accompanying wine’s characteristics to ensure the optimal food pairing experience.
Like many of the region’s wineries, sustainability has become a central commitment for the estate, extending far beyond farming practices. Duffy Keys champions the sustainability efforts of the property, which was designed with conservation in mind. Native plants that aid in pollination sprawl across the grounds, while rainwater is collected and reused in the vineyards. B Cellars has also partnered with ECologi, an environmental committee that plants a tree for every order placed, and have eliminated all plastic from their packaging materials.
The second dish, a pork cassoulet with Italian butterbeans, escarole and root vegetables, is paired with their 2020 Hudson Vineyard Syrah. The cassoulet is hearty and comforting, pairing beautifully with the wine’s spiced notes of coriander and cardamom.
Next is a chermoula-marinated lamb skewer served alongside date and pistachio lentils. Two local 2019 cabernet sauvignons accompany this dish—the Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and the Star Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon—to compare. The rich, spiced lamb is the perfect match for these bold reds. The Napa Valley cab tastes of black cherry, plum and cassis, with a touch of espresso to finish. The Star Vineyard offers some similar dark fruit flavors, with a long, textured finish.
There’s much to be savored at the B Cellars estate in Oakville. Twenty years after their serendipitous introduction at a casual barbecue, Borsack and Keys have realized their ambitious goal of building B Cellars into an A-plus winery.
Did You Know?
The B Cellars logo–a lowercase b with a degrees symbol–represents the Brix value in winemaking. Brix is the sugar quantity in wine at the time of bottling, which determines the wine’s alcohol content, and is measured in “degrees Brix.” Each of the winery’s coveted blends is named after the brix level of that wine, ranging from 23 to 26.
At a Glance
B Cellars
703 Oakville Cross Rd, Napa, CA 94558
Tasting Fee: $125 per person
Reservations: Required
Picnics: No
Pets: Yes, on a leash
One thought on “B Cellars”
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