Hard times lead to beautiful palms. Not everything that came out of the Great Depression was bad. There are many stories of grace in the face of adversity. One of the most enduring is still growing at Seppeltsfield.

The depression hit the wine industry the same as everywhere else, and when it arrived at Seppeltsfield, Benno Seppelt, eccentric and humanitarian that he was, did not sack a soul. Benno’s employees retained their jobs and were offered food and shelter. 

A good turn deserves another, so the workers set about beautifying the Seppelt grounds. It’s called landscaping now. Vineyard workers and cellar hands propagated thousands of date palms from the seeds of two parent trees near the homestead. They planted them and there they still stand – 2000 of them. The date palms are the first thing visitors to Seppeltsfield notice: huge and healthy – a monument to a good deed done long ago. But as Benno probably would have said – if you’re going to do something, do it to last.

  back to The House of Seppelt | back to top