| OAKLAND: Every time
Michael Dashe talks about where his winery is, he is greeted
with looks of puzzlement and disbelief.
"The look on people's faces when you tell them," Dashe said
with a chuckle.
The address: 55 Fourth St., Oakland.
"I guarantee you, we are the largest and the finest winery
in Oakland," Dashe said, still laughing.
He's right. But that's because Dashe Cellars, owned by
Michael and Anne Dashe, and co-tenants JC Cellars, owned by
Alexandra and Jeff Cohn, operate the only winery in the city.
The winery, opened in October near Jack London Square, has
all the tools of a traditional Napa wine making operation —
minus the bucolic vineyard out back.
There's oak barrels, grape crates, a crusher, a press and
about a dozen stainless-steel tanks filled with grape juice as
it ferments into wine.
The two wineries have a limited menu. Dashe Cellars offers
a cabernet sauvignon, a merlot and several zinfandels. JC
Cellars makes sirah, a petite sirah, a viognier and
zinfandel.Their bottles sell for between $20 to $125,
depending on the year and the make.
The four met several years ago when they were all making
wine out of Alameda's award winning Rosenblum Cellars.
Jeff Cohn, along with his wife Alexandra, was the assistant
wine maker at Rosenblum Cellars. A few years later he was
promoted to wine maker and given permission to make his own
wine on the side.
Meanwhile, Michael Dashe and his wife Anne were fulfilling
a life-long dream, leasing space from Rosenblum for Dashe
Cellars.
When Rosenblum wanted to expand, however, there was no more
room for the Dashes. So, they set off last year in search of a
new home.
Emeryville almost became the new winery's home, but a deal
to purchase a warehouse there fell through the cracks at the
last minute.
Then the red 16,000-square-foot warehouse on the fringe of
Jack London Square became available and the two
couples
jumped at the chance.
"That was the goal, we all wanted our own place," Cohn
said. "This is a good place for us."
To make the warehouse winery-ready, the couples had to pour
about $400,000 into the building.
"Wine making can be a dirty business," Michael Dashe said.
Though the winery is relatively quiet these days, once
August arrives the operation will be at full force.
The couples do all the work themselves, except pick the
grapes.
At harvest, they rent a 25-foot flatbed truck and drive
tons of grapes from Napa to Oakland. The grapes are cleaned,
de-stemmed, crushed and eventually fermented into wine.
Dashe Cellars, with help from assistant winemaker Matt
Smith, expects to produce about 9,000 cases of wine; JC
Cellars expects to make 2,600 cases a year.
Although apprehensive about having Oakland on their labels,
both couples said they are pleased to be in the city.
"People here are so excited when you say you have a winery
in Oakland. It is a good community," Anne Dashe said. "The
image of Oakland is changing and we want to be part of that."
The two couples are now thinking, maybe dreaming, of
challenging the traditional Napa wine tour with an East Bay
version.
"You have to start somewhere," Cohn said.
"We hope to be a catalyst," Mike Dashe added.
Dashe Cellars and JC Cellars will have a summer open house
June 12, from noon to 5 p.m. Visit www.jccellars.com or
dashecellars.com for more information. | 
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