Enjoy a glass of fine wine and soak in the soothing cadences of the trout-rich Taylor River from the spacious lawn at Wilder on the Taylor, a working ranch dating back to 1910. Peek into the four restored historic cabins that border the lawn, lounge in the safari-style Founder’s Porch, recline in hammocks along the river, try your hand at horseshoes and enjoy great company by a crackling fire. This preservation-oriented, 2,100-acre ranch community, well-known for the picturesque hay meadow at the intersection of County Road 742 and Jack’s Cabin Cutoff between Crested Butte and Almont, features 26 homesteads, five miles of private fishing waters and access to extensive onsite and nearby trails.
Goose Sorensen, an avid fisherman and Chef / Owner of Solera in Denver since 2001, returns by popular demand for a night of superb dining at Wilder on the Taylor. Naming his restaurant after the process of aging wine, beer and brandy, Sorensen uses time-honored techniques like slow roasting and braising to create simple dishes that are rich in flavor. Sorenson honed his expertise working with talented chefs and restaurateurs in Wyoming, Colorado and New York and has the unique distinction of being the first chef from Wyoming to cook at the famous James Beard House.
Dennis Cakebread pours and explains fine wines from his family’s vineyards – Cakebread Cellars of Napa Valley, California and Mullan Road Cellars of Walla Walla, Washington. With over 40 harvests and the second generation of the family now running the winery, Cakebread Cellars has become one of the most successful and respected wineries in America, renowned for its world-class vineyards, wines and hospitality. Since its founding in 1973, Cakebread Cellars has established an enduring commitment to quality through the implementation of innovative winegrowing strategies and technologies. Their vineyard programs are a dynamic mix of the traditional – such as the use of the traditional French practice “sur lie,” producing a very rich, creamy style of Chardonnay – and the modern - including new techniques for generating and conserving energy. Cakebread Cellars and its vineyards are green-certified, its fruit farmed either organically or sustainably. Their belief that life’s occasions are elevated by good people, good food and good wine flows through everything they do. Dennis has recently ventured these same values to outside of the Napa Valley with the Cakebread family’s newest endeavor - Mullan Road Cellars.