Profile of Small Town Living-Cinnamon Twisp in Twisp, WA
Small town living isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but for some, it’s a way of life. I wrote this profile of a transplant who has lived in the Methow Valley in Washington for 32 years. Originally published in the Methow Valley News, I am sharing it here as a window into the life of a rural community. Methow Valley has faced several major wildfires in the last 8 years.
Cinnamon Twisp Bakery, one of the defining businesses on Glover Street, is up for sale. The bakery celebrated 29 years of service on May 5. Owner Katie Bristol says the time is right for her to pursue the next chapter of her life, even if her love of baking hasn’t changed.
“I’m a baker to the core,” she said.
A staple in the community, Bristol has made it a priority to support businesses in the valley. She uses wholegrain flours grown and milled by Winthrop-based Bluebird Grain Farms. The honey, fruit, vegetables and coffee are all from local businesses. The bakery’s walls provide a space for local artists to showcase their work. The bakery is so local, it doesn’t even have its own website.
Instead of a computer mouse, it’s the door hinges that get a workout, but not long before the last customer leaves for the day, the ovens take over. A prep baker comes in at 2 pm to bake cookies, pies, brownies, cupcakes, and eclairs. There is a slight overlap when the bread baker walks in at 10 pm, joined by the pastry baker at 3 am. The bread baker leaves just as the opening shift arrives at 6 am, followed by reinforcements at 7 am and 8 am. The ovens finally take a breather at 10 am, but it’s a 24/5 operation, one that suits Bristol’s talents.
“I’m organized, I’m orderly, I’m systematic,” said Bristol. “I feel like that provides consistency to my business and to my customers that indicates they can rely on me.”
In between the rhythms of the day, there have been moments that stood out- a customer learning she was going to be a grandmother, a young couple requesting a giant cinnamon twisp as their wedding cake, another couple ordering braided challah bread to share with 50 wedding guests. Recently, said Bristol, three generations of the same family stopped in separately in the span of an hour, a reminder of what her business has become.
Even when the bakery is closed, there is pressure on those door hinges. During the interview, a steady stream of people peeked through the glass doors, hoping to find the bakery open. Starting May 1, the bakery will be open on Mondays and seven days a week in the summer, when high schoolers and college students are off from school.
“Business at the bakery has never been better,” said Bristol.
The bakery averages 15–22 employees, depending on the season, a third of which are full time. From the beginning, Bristol sets high standards.
“I’ve a strong work ethic. I have high standards for my products. I have high standards for myself and for my employees. I’m organized. I definitely put work first.”
“Some of the kids I hire, it’s their first job. I’m their first job experience. It’s challenging, it’s rewarding. Sometimes, 10 years later, they come back and say, it was the best job they ever had.”
Cinnamon Twisp offers traditional, vegan, and gluten free pastries as well as soups, salads and sandwiches (from homemade bread of course.) Over 29 years, Bristol and her team have developed over 200 unique recipes, but they are most known for their cinnamon twisps.
“The twisp has just become a regional icon of tastiness. It sort of represents what people think of when coming to the Methow Valley. Part of what’s on their list is to get a cinnamon twisp.”
Although the play on words is obvious, the business’ name had to beat out other contenders.
“We did a lot of brainstorming about names and Cinnamon Twisp won,” said Bristol. “Then we had to come up with the cinnamon twisp. We invented the cinnamon twisp based on adaptations of other recipes. Other bakeries were incredibly generous with recipes and information.”
“I put a lot of time and energy into presentation, how a product or pastry looks,” she added. “I like to create edible art. I like the visual as well as culinary aspect of baking.”
Bristol said she learned to bake from her mother. In college, she experimented with new recipes on her housemates, who were eager to oblige. Growing up in Connecticut, Bristol studied biology in Portland and moved to the valley in 1991 to do forestry work for the Wilderness Society.
“At that point, baking was just a hobby and it was something I enjoyed. I really imagined my work future was in biology or forestry.”
That changed when she rented a kitchen in the senior center and baked goods for the Farmers Market in Twisp. Bristol recognized an opportunity based on the support she received.
“It was immensely fulfilling to nourish and provide members of the community with handcrafted goods,” she said. At the time, there was no other bakery in Twisp, just “bars and churches,” Bristol recalled. The closest bakery was the Duck Brand in Winthrop, now Jupiter.
Bristol and four business partners moved operations to a building adjacent to their current location in 1994. The space couldn’t accommodate both a kitchen and a dining room and only had space for 2 tables. The bakery moved to its current location in 2007, which doubled their square footage and has capacity for 35 diners.
By 2016, Bristol bought out her last remaining business partner. Now, she says, is a good time for her to hand the reigns to someone else.
“I really want my successor to be successful. I’m at the top of my game and I’m ready to pass the baton, or pass the pizza peel to the next baker because I truly feel everything is in place for success.”
There have been difficult times. In 2014, in the midst of losing a cabin in the Carlton Complex Fire, Bristol continued to operate her business. While the town was partially evacuated and without power for almost two weeks, the owners of the Methow Valley Inn allowed Cinnamon Twisp to use their kitchen with propane ovens. Head pastry chef Joanne Hamilton, who has been with the bakery 20 years, baked by head lamp and lantern.
“We set up a table in front of the bakery on Glover Street and provided coffee and pastries, by donation only, to community members, some of whom had just lost everything they owned,” said Bristol. “It was an honor to comfort them and offer connection and compassion.”
The donations were given to the head baker at the time who had lost her family home in the fire. Bristol continues to donate bread and pastries to Jamie’s Place, Room One, and the Cove.
During COVID, Bristol didn’t lay anyone off and said she survived financially with a PPP loan.
“It was a principle, that my staff stands by me every day, that I was going to stand by them. At a difficult time, there was no way I was going to make their lives harder.”
“I would love to find a local family, a local group of friends that would want to take it over with the same spirit of community,” said Bristol. “If it ends up being someone outside the community, not local, I’m fine with that…. I’m committed to finding the right person, but I’m not exclusive.”
Bristol said she plans to stay in the valley and have more time and flexibility in her life for activities such as hiking, camping, gardening, and pottery. She also wants to rebuild her cabin. Looking back on her career, Bristol said she is proud of her business’ longevity.
“The fact that I made it 29 years, I’m very proud of that. That speaks to a level of dedication and a certain amount of grit. I’m proud of my quality, my standards, my customer service. I’m very proud of my cinnamon twisp. It’s my trademark pastry. It’s beautiful, it’s delicious. It’s the original recipe. It’s where it all started. It’s what keeps us going. It’s what we’re known for.”
“Have I reached all of my goals? Never, but do I feel satisfied with what I have achieved? Yes. I’m very proud of the business. I still have goals to achieve.”
