You Deserve a Cupcake

Several years ago I was opening a box of samples sent for review when I discovered an unknown wine with a unusual name. I was so surprised by the name that I found myself staring at the label rereading the brand name, Cupcake Vineyards, as I was sure that I misread it the first go around. At about the 8th or 9th read I was sure that the wine was indeed named Cupcake. I chuckled and placed the bottles on the rack with little expectations I must confess.

Cupcake. Who the hell names a Wine Cupcake? There were a lot of oddly named and packaged wines coming out that were targeted at very finite audiences (Little Black Dress come to mind…) However, being a professional I knew it was my duty to look past the cover and judge the Wine itself. Once the cork was pulled and the glasses poured it was clear that these fresh, vibrant, and very approachable Central Coast Wines with the atypical name were anything but a gimmick. In fact, these Cupcake Wines were damn good and they were being sold at prices that pleased the bargain hunter within us as well.

Once I learned I loved the Wines I had to get my head around the name. Luckily winemaker Adam Richardson summed it up perfectly. “Cupcake is a name to symbolize an affordable luxury,” explained Richardson. As soon as the name had meaning we grew to love the name Cupcake as it so cleverly conveyed their message, philosophy, and the sheer joy of drinking a wine with a gregarious nature.

After the introduction of Cupcake Chardonnay, Cabernet, and Merlot form the Central Coast in 2008 Richardson and the Cupcake team set their sites on the world. If they could deliver affordable luxury from one of California’s hottest wine regions why not bring the Cupcake values to other great wine regions? Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand’s Marlborough appellation was the first Cupcake import with many more to follow. Riesling from the Mosel (Germany) along with Prosecco from Italy, Shiraz from Barossa Valley (Australia), and Malbec form Mendoza (Argentina) soon made their way to American wine retailers and restaurants.

Cupcake has since surpassed a bakers dozen of Wines from many of the world’s greatest Wine regions with more to come. Richardson is busy searching the world for Wines that he says, “are typical of their respective regions and can be tweaked to meet the Cupcake style.”

Richardson, a native of Australia, has recently planted his own vineyard in the shadow of Australia’s Grampians Range. This unique microclimate is known for producing bold and complex wines. His solo project, the A.T. Richardson Chockstone series of wines was recently named one of the top ten new Wineries in Australia by famed Wine writer James Halliday. Congrats to Adam and best of luck in the future. Just be sure to keep supplying us with these tasty Cupcake wines for many years to come.