December 20th has come and gone. Empty Silver Dew Cab and North Carolina’s Duplin Winery Scuppernong bottles that provided traditional “tastes” have been tossed randomly in an old bushel basket waiting for disposal in Daufuskie’s “trash retainment area”and remnants of opened Fuskie oyster shells picturesquely lay piled against the base of a large palmetto tree. The first ever wine tasting and oyster roast at the Winery made famous by Papy Burn and Pat Conroy is history….and Papy would have been proud.
You see Papy, the first licensed vintner of wine in South Carolina never made a penny selling the fruit wines he produced. But his beloved Silver Winery finally, after fifty eight (58) years produced income. That specific time came just after noon when Maree Hanson, a Melrose homeowner and dear Friend, said “Joe…I would like to buy a bottle of Silver Dew Cab….and a bottle of Duplin Scupp too. I was waiting patiently for that moment and began to screech and holler proclaiming to the small assembled mass that “History was made…History was Made”. As you might imagine they thought old LCJoe had finally gone off his proverbial rocker but nodded in quiet approval as I explained how Papy would have so loved to see this special exact moment in time.
So my lovely Bride broke out the camera to capture pics of “the moment” , that would be passed down to future Silver Dew Winery owners and lovers of Daufuskie history. But it seemed that Maree “imagined” she was having a bad hair day….would have none of that….and opted instead to have her other half, Pat, the fine Canadian Gentleman that he is, share in the Kodak moment. And share we did as portrayed in the included pic with Pat’s stylish new punked hair doo standing tall and old LCJoe’s hat kind of kaddywhompis and tilted in disarray.
Yes, the day is over and as the discarded wine bottles make their way across Calibogue Sound to Beaufort County's landfill a new day dawns. A day when once again folks from around the world can traverse "the curve in the road" so elequently depicted by Pat Conroy in "The Water is Wide" and get a "taste of The Dew". Once again they can be cordially greeted, sit by the fire and feast on succelent Daufuskie oysters. Once again they can come together with visitors and "locals" alike and share in what is truly known as "The Spirit of Daufuskie....Papy surely would have been proud.
See ya on the high tide.
LowCountry Joe
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