Crafting Copper Blog

Cedar Gables Inn is a great bed and breakfast experience

My wife and I had the opportunity to spend a wonderful weekend in Napa, CA at the Cedar Gables Inn B&B.  The intimacy of our hosts Ken & Susie Pope made us and all the guests of the Inn indulgently comfortable.   The intensely charming bedrooms are full of antique furniture, fine linen and art work along with all of the other rooms at the Inn.  The favorite meeting spot is downstairs in the lounge where wine and beer are served along with fine cheeses in the late afternoon to welcome new arrivals and those returning from their daily excursions.  The social atmosphere is relaxed and allows you to introduce yourselves to guests from all over the world.   With your revitalizing sleep, you awake to the wonderful smells of food preparing for the gourmet breakfast held each morning.  These delicious breakfasts are prepared each morning by Susie; she used to run a culinary school in Los Gatos for SurLaTable.

We are most fortunate for having visited this fantastic retreat.

I was approached last year by Ken to assist with their kitchen renovation project.  Ken & Susie discussed their intentions for their kitchen design with me and I was happy to supply them with one of our copper range hoods, a copper apron sink and a copper prep sink.

Ken & Susie also host cooking classes with distinguished chefs from the Napa region in their new kitchen. You will be able to experience cooking and preparing food with our great copper fixtures!

I can’t wait to try out a class and visit the Cedar Gables Inn again!

Throughout history copper has been used to take advantage of its antimicrobial benefits. Copper vessels were used to keep drinking water pure in ancient Egypt. Copper has also been used in medical treatments to ward of infection and speed healing.

Copper has the ability to kill bacteria such as E. Coli in hours compared to surviving for months on stainless steel surfaces. Using copper as a countertop material or food preparation surface could help reduce the risk of food poisoning from bacteria such as E. Coli.

Copper kitchen countertop with integrated sink

With the use of copper as a counter surface; not only does one benefit from these bacteria killing properties, but one also benefits from the beauty and natural warmth that copper countertops offer.

A weakness of copper as a food preparation surface is that it is affected by acids like lemon juice; that will discolor the surface patina. Copper countertops should then be evaluated like a porous stone material such as soapstone and thought of as a living material; changing with use. The surfaces can be protected with a food grade wax such as beeswax or orange wax, but this would lessen the ability of the copper to protect against these harmful bacteria.