Bonny Meyer

Bonny and Justin founded Silver Oak Cellars together with their financial partner, Ray Duncan in 1972. Always a labor of love, Silver Oak’s inaugural vintage was crushed that fall a week after Justin and Bonny returned from their honeymoon.

In the early years Bonny managed Silver Oak business and sales while Justin oversaw winemaking and managed burgeoning Franciscan Vineyards, purchased by the partners in 1975. A couple of years after the partners sold Franciscan, Justin left and took over primary management duties at Silver Oak. Always part of the management team, Bonny focused on PR, marketing, and package and facility design. The original Silver Oak and Meyer Family Port labels both won design awards, as did the Oakville Silver Oak winery when it was completed in 1982. Today Bonny is an active partner in Meyer Cellars and continues to focus on marketing and design.

Bonny is Principal of Meyer Family Enterprises, investor in the financial markets, commercial property, and green technologies. She is a strategic philanthropist and a community activist. She loves to sail, play guitar and sing with friends. Now and then she skis and drives fast when no one is looking.

The legend of Bonny’s Vineyard states that Bonny gazes upon and blesses her vineyard every morning and that’s what makes the wine so extraordinary. Others say the wine is a manifestation of Justin and Bonny’s love for one another. But no one really knows for sure.

Harvest Notes

The three growing seasons from 2013 to 2015 in Oakville were extremely consistent. Additionally, the weather patterns in 2013 and 2014 were very similar, with the primary difference being slightly less heat accumulation in 2014, which led to harvest about a week behind normal. The lack of spring rain in ’14 resulted in a harvest of slightly above average yield. Summer temperatures remained moderate, offering slow and measured ripening.

Tasting Notes

The 2014 Bon Bon is a joy to drink, with impressive fruit at moderate alcohol levels making the wine so much more balanced. Right out of the bottle, the nose shows ripe blackberry, currant, and huckleberry, along with a hint of eucalyptus. With a little aeration, the rich fruit palate combines with French oak to display complex notes of vanilla, caramel, cinnamon, tobacco, and a little clove. The nearly three full years the wine spent in barrel have added soft yet luxurious tannins, contributing fine structure to this ageworthy Cabernet. The wine warms the palate and is enjoyable even at this young age.

Winemaking Notes

The Cabernet fruit was hand-picked into macro bins, then sorted and de-stemmed and crushed into stainless steel tanks. Cold soaking was carried out over 24 hours, and the must was inoculated and pumped over one to three times per day, then pressed before finishing primary fermentation. Once dry, the wine was racked to barrel and inoculated for malolactic fermentation. It was racked again at the conclusion of secondary fermentation and twice more before bottling. Though it was filtered, owing to its time in barrel, fining was not necessary.