page_title: Daniel Baron
section_title: Winemaking and philosophy
hierarchical_section_title: Daniel Baron / Winemaking and philosophy
caption_attribution_description: English: Daniel Baron, Winemaker of Silver Oak and Twomey Cellars.
context_page_description: Daniel Baron is an American winemaker. He is best known for his work with the Duncan family-owned Silver Oak Cellars and Twomey Cellars, and is Director of Winemaking for both. Originally a field worker for John Rolleri at Chateau Montelena, he gained experience in the Bordeaux region of France and was mentored by the likes of grape geneticist Professor Harold Olmo, and winemakers Jean-Claude Berrouet and Justin Meyer. He became general manager of Christian Moueix's Dominus Estate in the 1980s. He became winemaker for Silver Oak, an exclusive Cabernet Sauvignon producer, in 1994, and was trained by Justin Meyer to follow in his footsteps as Silver Oak's winemaker before Meyer’s retirement in 2001. In 1999, Baron was instrumental in persuading the Duncans to establish Twomey to pursue Merlot, Pinot noir, and Sauvignon blanc after discovering high quality Merlot grapes on Silver Oak’s Soda Canyon Ranch Vineyard. He has served on boards such as the American Society of Enology and Viticulture and the Napa Valley Wine Technical Group.
context_section_description: Baron has been outspoken on the influence of terroir, the emphasis on vineyard selection, fruit maturity, and other factors in creating Silver Oak's distinct style. Baron's Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon is typically aged for about 24-25 months exclusively in American oak barrels, following in the tradition of Justin Meyer. He ages Twomey's Merlot typically for 18 months in French oak barrels, and six times during the aging process the wine is racked from barrel to barrel, something known as soutirage traditionnel. Soutirage is the method of moving wine from one barrel to another using gravity rather than a pump, which can be disruptive to a wine. This process softens tannins, clarifies the wine and enhances aromatic qualities.
  Baron, who describes bottling as a "traumatic time for wine", has said, "To me, wine has always been more than something to drink. My family’s love and appreciation of good food, the time I’ve spent in France and the many mentors I've had along the way have led me to an appreciation of the role wine plays in daily life as well as history and culture. To me, creating wine is one of the ways people preserve civilization." Baron has also said, "Even after years of experience, every vintage feels like a childbirth-if we remembered how much it hurt, we might never do it again. And wines are much like our children. Their personality is there from day one, and we can track it through, know its essence even if its behavior at any particular moment is off. You get a feel from all of this of where the fruit has been and where it’s going. You have to remember this when you think about judging wines. They're alive and changing moment to moment; they have good days and bad; they show well in a particular glass or with particular food. Judging a wine at any particular moment in its life is like giving a kid a letter grade based on his behavior in the supermarket."
caption: Baron walking through the vineyards at Silver Oak's Oakville winery
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