Silver Oak Wine (10 Best Cabernet Sauvignon Bottles, Winemaking)

The Silver Oak wine estate has been crafting delicious American oak-aged Cabernet Sauvignon wines in California for over 40 years. 

How is Silver Oak wine made? Which are the best bottles to buy in 2023?

Let’s explore Silver Oak wine in detail - its history, California vineyards, and winemaking practices. We’ll also show you the top 10 Silver Oak wines to buy in 2023, and an easy way to build a wine collection.

A Quick Intro to Silver Oak Winery

The Silver Oak winery was founded by Ray Duncan and winemaker Justin Meyer in 1972. Today, it’s operated by Ray's sons, David and Tim Duncan. The Wine Spectator magazine refers to it as “one of California's most successful wineries.”

Silver Oak has two wineries in California. One is in Oakville - in the heart of the Napa Valley wine country. The other winery is situated in Alexander Valley, north of Healdsburg in Sonoma County.

It produces nearly 100,000 cases of two Cabernet Sauvignon varietal wines - one from Napa Valley and the other from Alexander Valley.

• The Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is terroir-driven, with a pulpy ripeness, and tobacco and spice notes.
• The Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has chewy tannins and brushy aromas of sage and thyme. 

Besides Cabernet Sauvignon, it also grows some red Bordeaux varietals such as Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir, and Petit Verdot.

Head winemaker Nate Weis ages the wines exclusively in American oak barrels to add exotic flavors (as opposed to most leading California winemakers who use French oak barrels.)

Let’s now take a look at the wine estate’s past.

A Brief History of the Silver Oak Wine Estate

The Silver Oak winery was established by two friends, Ray Duncan and winemaker Justin Meyer, in a Napa Valley dairy barn, in 1972. Its first wine was the 1972 North Coast Cabernet Sauvignon.

Since its founding, Silver Oak has only employed three winemakers - Justin Meyer, Daniel Baron, and the current winemaker Nate Weis.

In 1999, the Duncan Family established Twomey Cellars to craft wines from new Bordeaux varietals like Pinot Noir and Merlot. Twomey Cellars has wineries in Healdsburg (Sonoma County), Dundee (Yates County), Calistoga (Napa County), and Anderson Valley (Mendocino County).

In 2000, Silver Oak partnered with barrel producer A&K Cooperage, for the supply of American Oak Barrels.

The winter of 2006 brought two devastating challenges.

A flood from the Napa River hit the Oakville winery in January, and in February, a deadly fire ruined the dairy barn. But, the Duncan Family came out strong and rebuilt their Napa Valley winery.

In 2017, the Duncan family acquired the Ovid Napa Valley winery. They signed an agreement with the San Francisco Giants baseball team and became their first official wine partner.

Now that you know all about Silver Oak Cellars, let’s explore their vineyards.

The Thriving Vineyards of Silver Oak Wine Estate

Silver Oak Cellars produces Cabernet Sauvignon red wine from two appellations - Napa Valley and Alexander Valley.

1. Napa Valley Vineyard 

The Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon grapes come from the Soda Canyon Ranch Vineyard, the Jump Rock Vineyard, and a partner grower, the Navone Vineyard. 

The Soda Canyon Ranch is Silver Oak’s most prominent vineyard with diverse volcanic soils - ranging from shallow, rocky deposits to more clay-bearing, fertile soils.

The vineyard is planted with Cabernet Sauvignon with traces of other red Bordeaux varietals like Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Merlot, Pinot Noir, and Petit Verdot.

2. Alexander Valley Vineyard

The Alexander Valley soils are more gravel and sandy loam. This mineral-rich, high-quality soil is well-drained and helps grow succulent Cabernet Sauvignon grapes.

The Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon grapes come from the Alexander Valley estate, Red Tail, Crazy Creek, Miraval, and Big River vineyards.

In addition to growing Cabernet Sauvignon, the Crazy Creek and Big River vineyards are also planted with the Petit Verdot varietal.

Let’s see how Silver Oak wine is produced.

How Is Silver Oak Wine Made?

Silver Oak Cellars produces low-alcohol wines of crisp acidity and structured tannins.

Here’s how they craft these wines:

• The wines are fermented in stainless steel tanks that are 7-25 tons in size.
• The wines are blended before being barreled. A series of blending permutations is done usually in December every year and lasts for about 6 weeks.
• Silver Oak wines are aged for about 25 months in American oak barrels.
• Silver Oak's Alexander Valley Cabernet spends an additional 14 months in the bottle before release. Meanwhile, its Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon spends about 20 months in the bottle.

The winery’s practice of blending before barreling ensures that the American oak integrates slowly with the wine. This streamlines the winemaking process and distinguishes its wine from any other California Cabernet.

Silver Oak also prioritizes sustainability. For example, it treats about 4700 gallons of water every day using a membrane bioreactor - a wastewater treatment device.

The Oakville winery became the first commercial winery to earn Platinum Certification for efficient energy use.

Silver Oak’s Alexander Valley winery also has the same certification in the "new construction" category. This new winery uses zero-toxic materials, filtered air, and solar panels.

Now,how about finding the perfect Silver Oak bottle to pair with your steak?

Best Silver Oak Wines to Buy in 2023 (Including Tasting Notes, Pricing)

Here are the top 10 bottles of Silver Oak Wine that deserve your attention:

1. 1980 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA

This Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet has a brick-red color and a nose of cherries and black olives. It has a medium body with a tart finish.

Price of the 1980 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA: $420

2. 1984 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA

This Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has a tawny red color and an unusual coconut, tropical fruit, and caramel nose. This medium-bodied wine has a bright tart finish.

Price of the 1984 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA: $296

3. 1994 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA

This red wine has a ruby-red color with a rich, exotic nose of iris flowers, dried blackberry, and chocolate. It has tasting notes of complex spices, and it offers an incredibly long finish.

It’s composed mainly of Cabernet Sauvignon with some traces of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. With proper cellaring, you could enjoy this wine through 2023.

Price of the 1994 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA: $173

4. 2007 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA

This wine is dark ruby-red with an enticing nose of cassis, dark chocolate, cedar, violets, blueberries, and chewy tannins. It has traces of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and the Petit Verdot varietal.

With proper cellaring, you should enjoy this wine through 2034.

Price of the 2007 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA: $167

5. 2006 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA

This Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet has a ruby-red color and a nose of red apple, allspice, raspberry, and cinnamon. It has chewy tannins and notes of Asian spices. 

It has traces of Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. With proper cellaring, you should continue enjoying this wine through 2025.

Price of the 2006 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA: $164

6. 1975 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, USA

This Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon has a ruby-red color with some browning. It has a fading blackberry and roasting meat flavor. It has a light body with blackberry and nutmeg in its elegant, long finish.

Price of the 1975 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, USA: $245

7. 1979 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, USA

This red wine has a medium ruby color with brick-red edges. It has an extraordinarily fresh nose of candied apples, an enticing nose of cassis, and notes of savory spices. It brings an expression of bright fruit to the palate and offers a long, smooth finish.

Price of the 1979 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, USA: $238

8. 1985 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, USA

The 1985 Alexander Valley Cabernet has a ruby-red color and brick-red edges. This wine has ample acidity and offers a flavor of tarragon to the mid-palate. It has a sweet texture and a seamless, long finish.

Price of the 1985 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, USA: $166

9. 1987 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, USA

This Alexander Valley Cabernet has a bright red color with some browning on its edges. It’s characterized by aromas of wild strawberries and bread dough. It offers lively acidity to the mid-palate and a moderate finish.

Price of the 1987 Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon, Alexander Valley, USA: $160

10. 1991 Silver Oak Bonny's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA

This wine has a vibrant ruby-red color with an enticing nose of bing cherry and red pepper. It’s medium to light-bodied and offers a medium-length finish.

Price of the 1991 Silver Oak Bonny's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA: $265

If you’d like to indulge in these fine wines, you can visit any Silver Oak tasting room. If you’re a Duncan Family club member, you can even receive discounts on wine tasting using your club card number!

Does Silver Oak Wine Age Well?

With proper cellaring, you can drink Silver Oak wines for up to 20-25 years. Silver Oak wine is a perfect wine to drink young as well. 

But, if you’re looking for a long-term investment, it might not be the ideal choice.

You might want to look into investment-worthy alternatives like the Dom Perignon, Château Lafite Rothschild, Chateau Pontet Canet and other brands.

But, how do you select the finest wines from around the world? Also, how would you ensure its authenticity and store them perfectly, so it gains its best expression?

Here’s an easy way out.

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Expand Your Collection With a Fine, Rare Wine

A bottle of Silver Oak wine can be a brilliant choice for your next brunch or home party. If you’re a wine enthusiast who loves exploring wine and food pairing ideas, this wine is for you! 

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