John Lindblom photos The water tower at Silver Oak Cellars has become the winery’s icon and a brand logo as well. For good reason. The tower is the only building at Silver Oak that was unaffected by a fire that destroyed all other structures in 2006. The tower was moved 12 feet during the winery’s reconstruction.
Silver Oak Cabernet, Alexander Valley, is my favorite wine. I know, being from the Napa Valley you would think I would be partial to the local stuff, but who can account for taste.
What caught my eye when reading about Silver Oaks’ rebuilding after their devastating fire in last Thursday’s edition of the St. Helena Star’s article by John Lindblom was the history of Coffeyvile, Kansas, the town were Silver Oak got the stone used to rebuild their winery.
The four-inch thick stone used for the replacement building — though Duncan is reluctant to call it that — came from Coffeyville, Kansas, a town that wild-west history buffs will recognize as the place where the Dalton gang met its Waterloo. Four of five Daltons were shot dead by the Coffeyville townspeople there in 1892 to foil their ingenious attempt to rob two banks at the same time. The fifth Dalton, despite having 23 bullet holes in him, survived and eventually became a California real estate agent and actor.
I guess in order to be a successful real estate agent in this market, we might have to resort to a life not so becoming these days. Maybe today it will be the reserve, we all will have to consider another path, hopefully not one as notorious as the fifth Dalton. Though this is fortunately not so in my case, I do know of quite a few people who are getting out of the business and several agents who are hurting. As I used to say many years ago, keep the faith, for this too shall pass.
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