Shafer Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon 2018
- Vintage
- 2018
- Country
- USA
- Region
- Napa Valley,Stags Leap District
- Size
- 750ml
- Grapes
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- Rating
- JD100, JS99, WA98+, WE97, WS95
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is another perfect wine, although readers will need to have patience, as it’s still a baby. Deep purple-hued with a perfumed, vibrant bouquet of blue fruits, graphite, spring flowers, and lead pencil, it’s full-bodied, sensationally concentrated, has perfectly integrated acidity, tannin, and alcohol, not a hard edge to be found, and an incredible finish. This monumental Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is 7-8 years away from maturity and will have 40-50 years of overall longevity. - JD100
So much black licorice in this, together with tar, blackcurrants, blackberries and slate. Full-bodied, but very toned and focused, with polish and energy. Extremely fine tannins and wonderful length. All about balance and purity. Gorgeous now, but this will age for decades to come. Great finish. Better after 2026. - JS99
Made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select displays a deep garnet-purple color. It charges out of the gate with bold crème de cassis, blueberry pie and black cherry preserves notes, plus hints of smoked meats, fragrant earth and tar, with a fragrant waft of violets and Provence herbs. Full-bodied, the palate is packed with muscular black fruits, supported by a solid foundation of firm, grainy tannins and compelling freshness, finishing long with an enticing herbal lift. Drink: 2025~2050 - WA98+
Shafer’s iconic, flagship wine is richly textured and flavor packed. It starts with a minty, figgy, bay-leaf aroma before full, ripe, bold black fruits, tobacco and oak spices take over the palate, accompanied by masses of velvety tannins. Excellent depth and concentration will help it age well.- WE97
Frankly ripe but well-focused, with blackberry and creamed boysenberry notes flowing through atop the polished structure, while cocoa and black licorice frame the finish. A subtle hint of sassafras lingers at the end, adding textural nuance. This has the stuffing to age well. Drink now through 2038. - WS95
John Shafer and his family founded Shafer Vineyards, located in the Stags Leap District of the Napa Valley, in 1979. From the Shafers' first wine, a 1978 Cabernet Sauvignon, their wines have won much acclaim. Today, the Shafers farm 200 acres of vineyard in the Stags Leap District, Carneros and Oak Knoll regions. Their flagship wine, Hillside Select, is produced from selected blocks of the family's hillside vineyards and is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. They also produce Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay, Merlot, One Point Five (Cabernet Sauvignon) and Relentless (a Syrah/Petite Sirah blend), which was named #1 wine of the year by Wine Spectator's "Top 100" of 2012.