Cristaldi: The evolution of Silver Oak

In 2020, Decanter contributor Elin McCoy interviewed David Duncan – proprietor of Silver Oak, Twomey, OVID Napa Valley, and Timeless – profiling the iconic Silver Oak label.

In her feature, McCoy observed that the most recent vintages seemed, ‘less oaky and more lifted, promising a strong future direction’.

In the five years since, the Duncan family has navigated a series of significant changes across their properties and brands, including the acquisition of OVID Napa Valley, the launch of a new label, Timeless, an expansion into Oregon, and the first releases of wines crafted at their new Alexander Valley winery.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for a deep vertical of Silver Oak wines

Taking stock

In early 2025, the family made the decision to close two tasting rooms associated with the Twomey brand.

David Duncan said of the closures: ‘In response to a decline in winery visitation in California, we have made the difficult decision to adjust our operations by closing two of our three Twomey tasting rooms. All our Twomey wineries and the flagship tasting room in Healdsburg remain open.’

Over the past 14 months, I’ve had the opportunity to meet with the Duncan family on several occasions, particularly with Matt Duncan, son of proprietor Tim Duncan (David’s brother).

In doing so I’ve been able to taste through Silver Oak’s wines in a more natural setting – over meals, as they were meant to be enjoyed – rather than in the sometimes clinical environment of a professional tasting.

One such occasion, at Tim’s home in Sonoma, saw us opening bottles of 1975, 1978, and 1991 Alexander Valley Cabernets alongside the 1984, 1985, and 1991 Napa Valley Cabernets.

Every wine was alive and expressive, rich in minerality, with layers of bacon fat, truffle, and cigar box character. But the 1991 Alexander Valley and 1985 Napa Cabernet were simply extraordinary – balanced, detailed, and utterly thrilling to drink.

To me, this tasting was undeniable proof that Silver Oak’s wines are cellarworthy, meticulously crafted, and far more compelling than some critics have given them credit for.

And the future is bright.

Debut of the 2017s, land grabs, and growth

In 2020, Silver Oak was releasing its 2015 and 2016 vintages. The first Alexander Valley Cabernet produced at its new LEED Platinum-certified and Living Building-certified Alexander Valley winery was the 2017 vintage, which debuted in 2021.

As of this writing, they have released all vintages up to the 2020s.

From a winemaking perspective, David Duncan explains: ‘We were able to get granular in how we bring the fruit in. We considered every detail – how the fermentation is done, what happens when we press off the skins, the size of vessels needed from one tank to the next, how we handle malolactic fermentation, the transition to barrel, and even the barrel storage room. Everything was purposefully designed, and we only make one wine here.’

Additionally, the Duncan family has acquired more land. Today, they own just over 1,000 acres (404ha) across Napa Valley, Alexander Valley, and Oregon, with just under 800 acres planted with vineyards that are shared between Silver Oak, Twomey, and OVID.

Metamorphosis

In 2024, the family harvested their first crop from new plantings at OVID. ‘It’s taken us seven years to realise the vineyard’s potential, but it’s now in full production, and it’s spectacular,’ says Duncan.

‘What Austin Peterson has achieved there is amazing. The vineyard is pristine, down to the evenness of the shoots, canopy, and fruit crop.’

As with Silver Oak, by 2019, estate-grown fruit had expanded significantly. ‘We’ve gone from 25% estate fruit to 75% estate fruit,’ Duncan continues, though he notes they’ll never reach 100% because of ‘the incredible grower-partners we have, with amazing vineyard sites’.

Duncan also reflects on the family’s approach to ownership and growth in the years since his father, Ray – who co-founded Silver Oak with Justin Meyer – passed away.

‘My brothers and I own the wineries under one family entity. After we bought Justin out, we needed financing. When my dad passed, we had to secure funding to hold onto the winery. While we do have a financial partner with an ownership stake, we’re fully in control of our destiny.’

He adds: ‘We built the Alexander Valley winery with the intent to increase production because of demand. That growth requires capital. It’s not the romantic farmer side of the business, but it’s been a great deal for us. The Duncan family is still 100% here.’

A single vineyard wine

The Duncan family debuted a brand-new single-vineyard red wine, Timeless Napa Valley, in late 2020 with the release of the 2017 vintage.

‘As we started acquiring Pinot vineyards with Twomey in Oregon, I began thinking about our Soda Canyon estate in Napa, which we’ve owned since 1999,’ says Duncan.

‘I had the idea to create a blend entirely from Soda Canyon. We trialled it in 2017, and we loved it. We selected some of the top lots,’ he adds, noting that these lots would normally have gone into Silver Oak. ‘We also replanted 4.9ha of the vineyard, removing Merlot and planting more Cabernet.’

They produce just a few thousand cases, making it a creative outlet for the winemaking team. ‘There are no rules for the blend,’ says Duncan.

‘We put together the most exciting combination of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc from the vintage. It’s an expression of the Soda Canyon site in any given year, and we age the wine in French oak – not American oak.’

Oregon Trail

The Duncans’ exploration into Pinot Noir began with the founding of Twomey in 2002, focusing on Russian River Valley and Anderson Valley.

In 2017, they purchased the late Dick Erath’s 24.3ha vineyard in the hills west of Dundee, Oregon.

Planted in 1983, the vineyard features 14.6ha of vines rooted in well-drained, volcanic silty clay loam Jory soils. Initially bottled under the Twomey label, the Duncans introduced their first standalone wine from the site in 2022 with the debut of Prince Hill Pinot Noir.

Today, this wine is produced at a custom crush facility in McMinnville, Oregon, directed by Chris Burrough, who works on blending with Justin Hirigoyen. They make around 400–500 cases of the Dundee Pinot Noir.

In addition to Pinot Noir, they also produce a Chardonnay under the Prince Hill label, sourced from the grower-partner Carella Vineyard.

In future, there will be no more Twomey Oregon bottlings under the original label. Looking ahead, Duncan envisions building a winery on the Prince Hill estate.

Silver Oak: The evolution of a Californian icon

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