Go to main content

Justin Meyer was a Napa Valley vintner who founded Silver Oak Cellars in 1972 along with Ray Duncan. Born in 1938 in Bakersfield, California, he attended a high school run by the Christian Brothers and left his hometown to join the order in 1957. Following his novitiate at Mont La Salle and education at St. Mary’s College, he taught high school in Sacramento for two years before taking over for Brother Timothy at the Christian Brothers winery in 1964, during which time he studied enology at the University of California, Davis. He then left the order in 1972 to join with Ray Duncan and establish Silver Oak Cellars, specializing in Cabernet wines. In this interview, Meyer discusses his monastic life at Mont La Salle, his education in enology and wine making, negotiating with Cesar Chavez for the Christian Brothers, agricultural and business operations at Silver Oak Cellars, and his book “Plain Talk about Fine Wine.” This interview is part of a group of interviews documenting the California wine industry.

Title
Justin Meyer and Silver Oak Cellars: Focus on Cabernet Sauvignon
Creator
Meyer, Justin, interviewee
Hicke, Carole, interviewer
Published
Berkeley, CA, Regional Oral History Office, 2000
Link to Content
View on Calisphere
Full Collection Name
Food and Agriculture Oral Histories Individual Interviews
Subject (Topic)
Natural Resources, Land Use, and the Environment
Type
Text
Format
Oral histories.
Archive
The Bancroft Library Oral History Center
Note
Meyer, Justin. "Justin Meyer and Silver Oak Cellars: Focus on Cabernet Sauvignon." Interview by Carole Hicke in 1999. Oral History Center, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, 2000.
Interview date(s) 1999
Usage Statement
Researchers may make free and open use of the UC Berkeley Library’s digitized public domain materials. However, some materials in our online collections may be protected by U.S. copyright law (Title 17, U.S.C.). Use or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use (Title 17, U.S.C. § 107) requires permission from the copyright owners. The use or reproduction of some materials may also be restricted by terms of University of California gift or purchase agreements, privacy and publicity rights, or trademark law. Responsibility for determining rights status and permissibility of any use or reproduction rests exclusively with the researcher. To learn more or make inquiries, please see our permissions policies (https://www.lib.berkeley.edu/visit/bancroft/oral-history-center/projects?section=permissions).
Linked Resources
Project website
View library catalog record
Collection

Metric
From
To
Interval
Export
Download Full History
Accessibility Request
Download
Add to Basket