Wine Labs · Market intelligence
Cakebread Cabernet Sauvignon: Vintages, Blends and Prices in 2026
Cakebread Napa Valley Cabernet: published blends, oak and winemakers, plus live prices from 2,993 shops, 355 auction sales and 1,065 restaurant lists.
Cakebread Cellars Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is the main red of the Cakebread family winery in Rutherford. It is a blend from several parts of the valley, not a single vineyard, and it is easy to find: 2,993 sellers had it on offer on November 4, 2026.
Below is what the winery has published about the wine and its vintages, and what it sells for today in shops, at auction and on restaurant lists. Blend and cellar figures come from the winery's own tech sheets. The prices come from Wine Labs data collected on November 4, 2026.
Cakebread Cabernet Sauvignon at a glance
| Producer | Cakebread Cellars, Rutherford, Napa Valley |
| Founders | Jack and Dolores Cakebread, 1973 |
| Owners | The Cakebread family |
| First Cabernet vintage | 1974, released in 1976 |
| Grapes | Cabernet Sauvignon with Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and, in recent years, small amounts of Syrah |
| Winery price | $75 for the 2022 |
| Typical shop price | $93 (median of 2,993 sellers) |
| Typical auction price | $58 a bottle, buyer's premium included (355 sales) |
How Cakebread began
Jack and Dolores Cakebread made an offer on a 22-acre ranch in Rutherford in 1972, and the owners accepted. They founded the winery in 1973. The first Cakebread Cabernet Sauvignon was the 1974, released in 1976 (Cakebread history).
The family bought more land over the next four decades: Dancing Bear Ranch on Howell Mountain in 1998, Maple Lane in Calistoga in 2003, and Suscol Springs Ranch in southeast Napa in 2004, among others (Cakebread history). The winery now lists 17 estate vineyards on 1,600 acres in Napa and Anderson Valleys, with more than 700 acres planted (Cakebread vineyards).
Who makes the wine
Bruce Cakebread joined the family business full-time as winemaker in 1979 after studying at UC Davis, and became president in 2002. Julianne Laks, assistant winemaker since 1986, became winemaker in 2002. Stephanie Jacobs, who joined as an enologist in 2004, became head winemaker in 2017. The winery calls her only its fourth winemaker. Niki Williams joined in 2023 as director of winemaking (Cakebread history), and the 2022 tech sheet names her as winemaker.
Where the fruit comes from
The winery blends this Cabernet from several parts of Napa Valley. Rutherford and Oakville give the core of the wine, with fruit from warmer Calistoga in the north and from the cooler southern edge of the Suscol watershed (2022 tech sheet). The fruit comes from Cakebread's own ranches and from family-owned vineyards (2015 tech sheet). In 2013, 56% of it was estate grown (2013 tech sheet).
Cakebread Cabernet vintages and blends
We found tech sheets on the winery's site for five vintages of this wine. In those, Cabernet Sauvignon has made up 83% to 90% of the blend, with the top figure in 2022. Syrah first appears in the 2018 sheet.
Share of each grape, from Cakebread's tech sheets. Other: Syrah, Malbec and Petite Sirah.
| Vintage | Cabernet Sauvignon | Merlot | Cabernet Franc | Petit Verdot | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 83% | 9% | 5% | 3% | 0% |
| 2014 | 87% | 4% | 6% | 3% | 0% |
| 2015 | 85% | 5% | 5% | 5% | 0% |
| 2018 | 88.2% | 6.2% | 0.5% | 3% | 2.1% |
| 2022 | 90% | 5% | 1% | 2% | 2% |
| Vintage | Blend | Barrels | Alcohol | Winemaker | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot | 18 months, French oak, 60% new | 14.7% | Julianne Laks | Tech sheet |
| 2014 | 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot | 18 months, French oak, 59% new | 14.9% | Julianne Laks | Tech sheet |
| 2015 | 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot, 5% Cabernet Franc | 18 months, French oak, 57% new | 14.9% | Julianne Laks | Tech sheet |
| 2018 | 88.2% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6.2% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot, 1.1% Syrah, 0.5% Malbec, 0.5% Cabernet Franc, 0.5% Petite Sirah | 17 months, French oak, 55% new | 14.8% | Stephanie Jacobs | Tech sheet |
| 2022 | 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot, 2% Syrah, 1% Cabernet Franc | 17 months, French oak | 14.5% | Niki Williams | Tech sheet |
The oak is all French, and the time in barrel has come down from 18 months to 17. The share of new barrels fell from 60% in 2013 to 55% in 2018. The 2022 sheet gives two figures for new oak, 48% in one place and 52% in another, so we leave it out of the table. The alcohol has stayed between 14.5% and 14.9%.
From 2013 to 2015 the sheets describe the same method: each lot was fermented in stainless steel and aged six months in barrel on its own, then blended in April and aged another 12 months before bottling (2014 tech sheet).
What Cakebread Cabernet costs today
On November 4, 2026, 2,993 sellers had the wine on offer in a 750 ml bottle. Almost all are in the US (2,900 sellers), followed by Canada (21) and Singapore (18). Half of all offers sit between $85 and $103, and the median is $93. The winery lists the 2022 at $75 on its own shop.
Per 750 ml bottle, US dollars, November 2026.
| Channel | Price | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Auction | $58 | Median of 355 sales, buyer's premium included |
| Winery, 2022 release | $75 | cakebread.com list price |
| Shops | $93 | Median of 2,993 sellers, all vintages |
| Restaurants | $167 | Median of 1,065 wine lists |
These four prices don't measure the same thing. The winery price is for the current release. Shop prices mix recent and older vintages. Auction prices are what one lot sold for, with the buyer's premium but before shipping, tax and storage. A restaurant price includes service.
By vintage, shops ask a median of $87 for the 2021 and $88 for the 2022, which together have 277 sellers. At auction, both vintages sold for a median of $53. Older vintages cost more in shops, $103 for the 2010 and $120 for the 2014, but not at auction, where both sold for $61.
Medians per 750 ml. Vintages with at least five shop sellers and five auction sales.
| Vintage | Shop median | Auction median |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | $90 | $66 |
| 2010 | $103 | $61 |
| 2014 | $120 | $61 |
| 2016 | $90 | $57 |
| 2017 | $96 | $60 |
| 2018 | $90 | $66 |
| 2021 | $87 | $53 |
| 2022 | $88 | $53 |
| Vintage | Shop sellers | Shop median | Auction sales | Auction median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 6 | $90 | 14 | $66 |
| 2010 | 6 | $103 | 7 | $61 |
| 2014 | 5 | $120 | 15 | $61 |
| 2016 | 91 | $90 | 11 | $57 |
| 2017 | 25 | $96 | 22 | $60 |
| 2018 | 27 | $90 | 11 | $66 |
| 2021 | 123 | $87 | 31 | $53 |
| 2022 | 154 | $88 | 21 | $53 |
Per-vintage shop figures leave out stores whose listings do not state a reliable vintage. We quote a median only when at least five sellers or five sales stand behind it.
At auction
We have 355 sales with a recorded price, at 25 auction houses, from March 2003 to November 2026. Spectrum and Winebid (78 lots each) and K&L Wines (53) account for the most. Most sales are recent: 2025 alone had 105. The oldest vintages in our data go back to the 1974, and the 1978 has nine sales at a median of $85.
Prices have been flat. Since 2020 the yearly median has stayed between $56 and $62.
All vintages, per 750 ml, buyer's premium included. 2026 runs to November 1.
| Year | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | $53 | 7 sales |
| 2019 | $66 | 7 sales |
| 2020 | $60 | 17 sales |
| 2021 | $62 | 30 sales |
| 2022 | $60 | 31 sales |
| 2023 | $61 | 25 sales |
| 2024 | $61 | 36 sales |
| 2025 | $57 | 105 sales |
| 2026 | $56 | 67 sales |
| Year of sale | Sales | Median |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 7 | $53 |
| 2019 | 7 | $66 |
| 2020 | 17 | $60 |
| 2021 | 30 | $62 |
| 2022 | 31 | $60 |
| 2023 | 25 | $61 |
| 2024 | 36 | $61 |
| 2025 | 105 | $57 |
| 2026 | 67 | $56 |
On restaurant lists
Cakebread Cabernet is on 1,065 restaurant wine lists in our data, collected between January 2025 and November 2026. Almost all of the lists with a known country are in the US. The median list price is $167 a bottle, and half the lists price it between $130 and $198.
Cabernet in the Cakebread range
Cakebread makes a wide range of whites and reds. These are the wines with the most sellers in our data, all vintages together.
| Wine | Shop sellers | Shop median |
|---|---|---|
| Cakebread Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley | 2,993 | $93 |
| Cakebread Chardonnay, Napa Valley | 2,969 | $50 |
| Cakebread Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley | 2,414 | $37 |
| Cakebread Merlot, Napa Valley | 998 | $76 |
| Cakebread Two Creeks Vineyards Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley | 955 | $60 |
| Cakebread Reserve Chardonnay, Carneros | 485 | $78 |
| Cakebread Benchland Select Cabernet Sauvignon | 404 | $155 |
| Cakebread Dancing Bear Ranch, Howell Mountain | 159 | $219 |
Buying Cakebread Cabernet
The winery sells current and older releases directly, and its wine club ships four times a year, with a Cabernet Club among the options. Members get a discount on wine and can buy library wines year-round, subject to availability. Older vintages also come up at auction, usually for less than shops ask.
See all Cakebread wines on the Cakebread Cellars producer page. See live prices and auction history in Wine Labs market data.
Data methodology: Wine Labs data, November 4, 2026, for "Cakebread Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley". Shop prices are live 750 ml offers from online merchants and wine shops, one price per seller per vintage (the lowest), with each chain counted once, and with multi-bottle packs and the winery's own shop left out. Auction prices are sold lots with a recorded result, buyer's premium included, per 750 ml bottle, with mixed lots and flagged outliers left out. Restaurant prices are one bottle price per restaurant. All prices in US dollars. Blends and cellar details are from Cakebread's tech sheets, linked above.