1998 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select |
| Vintage | 1998 |  | |
| Type | Red | ||
| Producer | Shafer (web) | ||
| Variety | Cabernet Sauvignon | ||
| Designation | Hillside Select | ||
| Vineyard | n/a | ||
| Country | USA | ||
| Region | California | ||
| SubRegion | Napa Valley | ||
| Appellation | Stags Leap District | ||
| UPC Code(s) | 013528400023 |
| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Drinking window: Drink between 2005 and 2017 (based on 33 user opinions) | |
| Wine Market Journal quarterly auction price: See Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select on the Wine Market Journal. |
| Community Tasting History |
Community Tasting Notes (average and median of 94 pts. in 147 notes) | |
| Tasted by llindahl on 7/31/2021 & rated 93 points: Still a powerful wine with loads of dark fruit. Very well integrated tannins and acidity to keep it fresh. Great wine (2720 views) | |
| Tasted by jlgnml on 1/3/2021 & rated 94 points: Great spot at 22. Deep color, a bit must initially but after a 45 min decant, lots of fruit, sweet CA cab flavor, long finish. Drink (2986 views) | |
| Tasted by mattiasjansson on 10/22/2019 & rated 94 points: Shafer Hillside Select in Boston - Take II (Boston): Surprisingly fruit-forward. Fresh with hints of ground black pepper. Medium tannins. (4230 views) | |
| Tasted by SMHalps on 10/11/2019 & rated 94 points: Opened, but not decanted, at a NYC Steakhouse, for over an hour before pouring. This is still very fruit forward, it seems to taste much younger than its age. Really no change from my previous bottle a few years ago. (3833 views) | |
| Tasted by bookert on 6/25/2019 & rated 92 points: Great effort for a weaker vintage. Less concentration than expected for a Shafer but with delicate fruit that dances around the tongue (4132 views) | |
| Tasted by Labrador on 12/31/2018 & rated 92 points: This was a beautiful wine - yet surprisingly youthful - it should be decanted. It had great depth and richness made up of dark fruit. Once the air got to it, it became expressive and exhibited just that perfect hint of sweetness, that was balanced with its richness. It was mouth-coating and the finish went on and on. (2908 views) | |
| Tasted by G_H on 4/17/2018 & rated 96 points: A Capella (My place): From a supposedly lesser vintage, this beauty shined tonight. Dense, opulent with notes of creme de cassis, four-fruit-jam, cedar and tobacco. Wow! (3709 views) | |
| Tasted by Labrador on 1/7/2018 & rated 90 points: This is an incredibly big wine that we started on Friday evening and finished on Sunday while enjoying dim sum. It was double decanted through a Vinturi on Friday and was still big. It had smoothed out by Sunday. It was a balanced wine of rich dark fruit but without the expected sweetness. (2910 views) | |
| Tasted by Bcw1989 on 1/1/2018 & rated 91 points: This wine was decanted for about 1 hour prior to dinner. Seems initially very tired and worn out. Not much fruit or any tannins. Over the course of the evening this wine held its own. Fruits began to show up and evolve just before dinner. This Shafer was delightful with dinner and food definitely brought out more of the characteristics of the wine. Even several hours after dinner, this wine was still going strong. I would drink them if you have some. (2885 views) | |
| Tasted by Turneric121 on 12/26/2017 & rated 95 points: Very good. complex with a great finish (2740 views) | |
| Tasted by ssspore on 12/23/2017 & rated 97 points: Still had a nice nose, long finish, and seemed to have more tannic struts left. Should age another 5-10 years (2703 views) | |
| Tasted by Jeff Leve on 1/1/2017 & rated 92 points: Medium bodied, elegant in style, with good freshness, but lacking the level of depth, concentration and ripeness found in the best vintages. Still, this has nice character and is quite food friendly, mature and easy to drink today. (5186 views) | |
| Tasted by SMHalps on 11/12/2016 & rated 94 points: Had this with 2 wine loving friends. Opened, poured 3 half glasses and then allowed to sit for 30 minutes before drinking. We finished the bottle (along with a different red) with a steak dinner over 2 hours. This still has some youthful tasting fruit. Nice hints of vanilla on a big nose. Lots of big dark red fruits, and the tanins are pretty slight at this point. Long finish. Just a little sediment at the end. I think it was drinking great, but something was just missing to reach the outstanding mark (for me 95 points or higher). (4018 views) | |
| Tasted by shaferguy91 on 3/7/2016 & rated 93 points: Decanted 1.5 hours. Wonderful Cab from a weak vintage. (5992 views) | |
| Tasted by ebert on 4/3/2015 & rated 95 points: Beautiful cab with great dark red fruit on the nose and hints of cocoa and oak. The mouth feel is silky and full with great depth and complexity. Extremely well balanced with a luscious long finish. We tried it decanted (35-45min) and straight from the bottle and found the fresh red fruits much more appealing without decanting and tannins were fine without decanting but a bit more subtle after decanting. (7935 views) | |
| Tasted by floridawinedrkr on 1/9/2015 & rated 95 points: This was our 3rd bottle of this since November 2014. We decanted this one for 4 hours. well worth it. Not thick or heavy. Great nose, cedar, mocha, chocolate covered cherries. Very smooth and silky. A little musty but blew off in the glass after 15 min. Well integrated from start to finish. tannins fully resolved. Very smooth with 30 second finish. Drank along side 2005 Grace Family and as the Grace was a little disjointed the Shafer was much more ready to be consumed. Not as Dark or thick as the Grace Family. Shafer Hillside is a great wine and never disappoints. (8610 views) | |
| Tasted by floridawinedrkr on 11/29/2014 & rated 94 points: Opened the first bottle and decanted for 3 hours. Opened the second bottle and just popped and poured. All 4 of us thought the 2nd bottle was better than the first as the second bottle was much fuller, more body, and definitely more fruit on the finish. Excellent bottle for $200. I have never had a bad Shafer and we drink a lot of them. Even a bad bottle of Shafer is a treat. I would not decant this wine for more than 30 minutes. Its a good shafer but the 2001-2007, & 2010 are certainly better. Tasting notes: The wine is very dark and inky colored. The legs are slow. There is heavy sediment in the bottle. It smells like blackberry, strawberry jam and cherry. There is a little alcohol on the nose and slightly on the finish but not enough to over power the wine. The body is medium/full. The wine has silky smooth texture. The wine finishes medium for 20+ seconds. The wine has low acidity. (6924 views) | |
| Tasted by monk1019 on 10/2/2014 & rated 94 points: Well, consider it the best Napa Cab I've ever had. Perfect in every way!! Key word? Balance!!!!! (6723 views) | |
| Tasted by Bcw1989 on 8/31/2014 & rated 92 points: Huge wine with a dark garnet look to it. Loads of read fruit on the nose and taste was long, but most of the tannins have gone away. Did not evolve much on the glass over dinner and drinking by itself after dinner. Beginning to see a shorter cellar life with this wine, but still today, is a nice experience. (5479 views) | |
| Tasted by jackaroo on 2/14/2014 & rated 93 points: Fantastic, but not much of a future remaining. Drink up and enjoy! (5216 views) | |
| Tasted by thomaskeil on 2/10/2014 & rated 91 points: Decanted 2 hours with benefit. Reddish violet color. Nose is full of CS fruit and some tobacco, leather, vanilla/mocha, and with some etoh poking through. The palate is medium+ bodied with supporting acidity and softening tannins. More balanced than complex, either texturally or flavor profile. Etoh again pokes through on the palate just a bit. Either I'm more sensitive or the lessening of the fruit 'load' allows the heat to emerge. Good length and very nice with NY strips. (4714 views) | |
| Tasted by Agreenblatt on 2/5/2014 & rated 95 points: Let breathe for 2 hours plus. This is still a full bodied treat but will not get better with age. Drink em if you got em. Time is running out on this one. (4453 views) | |
| Tasted by Margauxguy on 1/9/2014 & rated 89 points: A touch thin, sour cranberries, some richness. Drink up (4352 views) | |
| Tasted by Frinkcorkz on 7/21/2013 & rated 95 points: Fantastic. Complex. Wish I had more. (5321 views) | |
| Tasted by Wine_lvr on 7/1/2013 & rated 90 points: Shafer Hillside Select Vertical Tasting (Switzerland): 1998 - a difficult vintage and this is no different with the Shafer Hillside Select. Quite mature in color. It has a lactic nose with hints of leather. Strong dry tannins and acidity. Unbalanced and short. Over extracted berries with no backbone. Drink now - 2018 (5513 views) | |
| Tasted by Giggs on 5/26/2013 & rated 93 points: Memorial Day Cabin Dinner; 5/25/2013-5/26/2013 (Cleveland, GA): Decanted briefly, this actual improved in the 30 minutes in the decanter from first glass to second. Tart red cherry and grenadine nose, bright acid, wet leaves on the nose. Palate has salty tobacco leaf, wild red berry/cranberry, slightly astringent, not as much depth to the fruit, which is tilted a bit too much toward the tannic cherry/plum skin rather than juicy fruit. This is mature--no reason not to drink immediately. (5197 views) | |
| Tasted by Agreenblatt on 3/9/2013 & rated 96 points: This wine does not disappoint. Had with a large porterhouse and they worked together perfectly. The thick purple color, inky texture, pervasive nose, deep fruit taste, and mile long finish make every sip a journey. Can't say enough about this deep elegant fruit and mouthfeel. I only had an hour to decant but I left a glass out for 3 hours. This is great anyway you drink it. Enjoy! (5141 views) | |
| Tasted by Tmurphrey on 12/15/2012 & rated 95 points: - Brick color with medium forming legs. It's in total harmony with a full body. Silky texture with a long finish - An amazing wine, decanted for 45 minutes, drank next to a recent vintage of Opus One and this Hillside Select blew it away. Classic Napa Cab, bigger than I expected from the 98 vintage. Well rounded, plenty of fruit, soft tannins but very full bodied. Excellent wine, could go a few more years but I don't know how it could get any better. (5520 views) | |
| Tasted by rjonwine@gmail.com on 9/6/2012 & rated 94 points: Bonhams Pre-Auction Tasting (Bonhams & Butterfields, San Francisco, California): Dark red violet color; tart plum, menthol, blackberry, berry syrup nose; rich, tart plum, cassis, menthol, blackberry, berry syrup palate; has decades to go; long finish (2105 views) | |
| Tasted by AlanM68 on 9/1/2012 & rated 94 points: Showed stunningly well against a lot of 2nd and 3rd growth Bordeaux from the 80s and 90s. Impressive wine. I've ordered more. (5497 views) | |
| Tasted by buckeye76 on 7/27/2012 & rated 94 points: BLACKBERRIES AND BLACK CHERRIES IN THE NOSE AND FLAVOR WITH HINTS OF LICORICE AND CHOCOLATE. ELEGANT WINE WITH NICE COMPLEXITY AND A LONG FINISH. (1523 views) | |
| Tasted by sinebubble on 4/7/2012: Big big big. Finished it off the next day, but it could have lasted much longer. (5645 views) | |
| Tasted by AlanM68 on 4/4/2012 & rated 94 points: Still very big. And still needs a couple of hours in the decanter. Lots of black fruit, very long finish and just keeps getting more interesting as you get further down the bottle. Only one of these left in the cellar sadly. (5384 views) | |
| Tasted by St Paul on 1/20/2012 & rated 94 points: What a great wine. We had Petrus, Guigal, DRC etc on the table but 10 peoples votes made this top the tasting just before 1990 La Chapelle and La Turque from 1998. Maybe it was not really up there for me with this certain vintage but a lovely wine nevertheless. (5179 views) | |
| Tasted by iamandyc on 12/26/2011 & rated 92 points: Very disappointing given teh pedigree. Too simple for what was paid. There are $40-50 bottles of Napa cab that outshine this. Enjoyable, rich and the fruit shines but no secondary notes and finish was short. Just not worth the money. (5057 views) | |
| Tasted by rdsboca on 10/26/2011 & rated 89 points: Blind Cabs (32 East Delray Beach): Tasted Blind ( Red Bag #2): Sweet blueberry with a perfume nose with violets. Rich in the mid palate but exhibited some dustiness. Some thought Ritherford fruit. I had guessed Phelps Insignia but was wrong. Finish was a little flat but it had some vanilla and oak in the finish. As the night progressed, picked up some tobacco on the finish. Got dustier as the night went on. Fruit begab to fade quickly. (6313 views) | |
| Tasted by GA on 8/27/2011 & rated 92 points: 8/11 Strong fruit and firm tannins - simple well balanced. 92 pts. (5527 views) | |
| Tasted by DRob on 7/3/2011: For Jill's birthday, with her parents. Served with grilled bison kebabs, roasted potatoes. Rich, silky, so complex through the night. Cassis, cherries, plum, violets, plum. Touch of earthiness, but not overwhelming. Wish I had more of it! Should be good for at least another decade. (5661 views) | |
| Tasted by bflood on 6/25/2011 & rated 94 points: Tar and black licorice, inky. Great wine with huge long finish (5871 views) | |
| Tasted by rjonwine@gmail.com on 4/8/2011 & rated 92 points: WineGavel Pre-Auction Tasting: Latour, Único, Grange, d'Yquem (St. Regis Hotel, San Francisco, California): Very dark red violet color; roasted black fruit, tart plum, charcoal nose; tasty, very tight, tart black fruit, tar, charcoal palate; long finish (4794 views) | |
| Tasted by psmith on 1/8/2011: A very nice '98. Very red, well integrated and balanced. Modern but not blowsy or overly ripe. Medium bodied. Clean. Very nice. (6533 views) | |
| Tasted by mcneil7 on 1/3/2011 & rated 95 points: Big bold beautiful wine, inky dark with a powerful nose of bing cherry, espresso and chocolate some blueberry notes. Taste is bold with good fruit, balance and some tannins a linger that goes on and on. This wine will age for years. (6668 views) | |
| Tasted by Giggs on 12/26/2010 & rated 94 points: Beautiful red-garnet color, with a wonderful nose sharing youthful and mature aspects. Black cherry; cassis; grenadine; damp earth, grass seed, and underbrush; and faint tinges of vanilla. Palate is well integrated and polished, with red currants and cranberry. The substandard vintage comes through on the edges of the finish, which are slightly tart and green, lacking the concentration and ripeness that the earlier palate seems to foreshadow. Still, with more air the wine gains power in early and middle palate, picking up texture and some darker plum and berry nuances. (6610 views) | |
| Tasted by mcneil7 on 12/25/2010 & rated 94 points: Big wine loads of dark fruit, with oak, and chocolate and spices. Taste is big fruit, tannins but still smooth. (6611 views) | |
| Tasted by stanford88 on 8/21/2010 & rated 94 points: great nose of dark fruits - violets/blackberries/dark cherry. Definitely in its prime. Dark purple. Thick and almost like a syrah. Good central palate focus. The whole experience was present with mid-palate enjoyment and a long finish. I felt the wine was too singular with significant fruit. I expected stronger secondary flavors. A good CA cab but I was hoping for more. (7231 views) | |
| Tasted by keithgg on 8/6/2010 & rated 93 points: Holding up well. (7160 views) | |
| Tasted by srkool on 5/17/2010 & rated 92 points: Wonderful deep nose with hints of blackberry, ash and mild tar scent. Wine was thicker in taste than most other cabs with deep flavor and tremendous punch and 45+ seconds of lasting taste. However, it still felt a bit hot which i figured was mostly due to the high alcohol level. I did decant for 2 1/2 hours and drank over another 3 hours. Even over this period, the Shafer was still somewhat hot upon entry and I did not find this enjoyable. I was expecting it smooth out over time but this did not happen. As a result, i was a bit disappointed and awarded it a 92 which may be a bit generous. (7473 views) | |
| Tasted by Phin on 5/8/2010 & rated 96 points: From 6 liter bottle, decanted 4 hours. Totally smoking. Black fruits, tannins well alive. Great body, crushed rocks, bitter chocolate. Not as sweet as other Hillside vintages. Long finish. In this format, tons of life left. (8126 views) | |
| Tasted by Dr. Pato on 5/3/2010 & rated 91 points: Nose is still nice but lacking fruit concentration. El Nino washout. (7508 views) | |
| Tasted by stoll on 4/7/2010 & rated 95 points: This wine flat out rocked. Had with prime rib, alongside an '01 Insignia. Blew the Insignia away. Goes to show you how great Shafer really is considering '98 was a screwy year and how strong '01 was. This was one of those wines where I kept thinking that the money spent was well worth it. (7651 views) | |
| Tasted by novicedave on 12/31/2009 & rated 93 points: Opened bottle for an hour and ran this through the Vinturi. Nose was full of blackberry. The palate was velvety smooth and luscious. Good structure with well integrated tannins that lift up the fruit, but doesn't overpower. 30+ second finish and kept me coming back. If this is an "off" vintage, I can't wait to try some of my other Hillside Selects. Drinking incredibly well. (7876 views) | |
| Tasted by notdilbert on 10/9/2009: Beautiful nose of eucalyptus and spice. No part of this huge nose is overwhelming. It smells like it will be delicious. I can't imagine what this wine tasted like upon release to have aged to this point of perfection. Sweet red berries and tannins that still stick to teeth and lips. Very well balanced now and I would be confused if I had to call this one blind. If you've got one I say open it. (8286 views) | |
| Tasted by Hollowleg on 9/10/2009 & rated 95 points: Decanted for many hours & drank over three days. WOTN, up against '04 Sea Smoke Southing, '04 Caymus Special Selection & '04 Waypoint. An unreal line up. Day one, started to display an earthy, coffee fruit aroma, which evolved into a citrus fruit, but more specifically orange peel. Fruit was a bit muted by a dusty, dry finish. Day two, citrus aroma's in full force, very unique to say the least. Day three, citrus has dissipated, coffee came to the fore. Paired well with filet steaks. Tannins have fully integrated & the flavors linger. I still can taste it an hour later. I'll have to get another bottle one of these days. (8319 views) | |
| Tasted by Fatty Cat on 7/13/2009 & rated 95 points: Mid Jul 2009 at Brook‘s steakhouse (Denver vicinity): decanted; purple ink; intense vanilla and cedar plus some cherry and blackberry aromas/flavors; blackberry juice on the palate; strongly adstringent and tannic; full body; very long finish. Very young Cabernet Sauvignon went perfectly along with a charcoal grilled filet mignon. 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14.9% alcohol. Sadly Brook‘s closed down in 2015/2016. (1129 views) | |
| Tasted by rjsbxtr on 7/8/2009 & rated 93 points: velvet mouth, plenty of fruit and tannins to hold longer but no point. enjoy now (8622 views) | |
| Tasted by JJL on 6/23/2009 & rated 92 points: I had this once before a few years ago, but never would have guessed this was a SHS. Served with the '90 Pignan, two very different styled wines and my personal preference is for the Pignan. Still we all enjoyed it. Needed a long decant to mellow out to drinking condition. (8484 views) | |
| Tasted by brigcampbell on 6/14/2009 & rated 91 points: First Hillside for me thanks to Marty. Light fruit and oak. Very well balance wine. Tannins still showing after a day long decant. (8168 views) | |
| Tasted by txfireman on 5/4/2009 & rated 95 points: Nose is unreal. Bold...unreal. Dark cherry to sight. Suttle oak hints of vanilla. The complexity of the wine is almost mind blowing. (7956 views) | |
| Tasted by thomaskeil on 3/23/2009 & rated 93 points: Decanted 2 hours. Violet red. Really expressive nose of piney cassis, dark berries, tar and a touch of cedar and vanilla. Rich palate with creamy layered fruit and soft tannins. Great persistence and a pleasure to drink. This wine is in a very good place right now. (7912 views) | |
| Tasted by reichken on 3/19/2009 & rated 94 points: very dark thick wine. nose of dark sweet fruits, touch of mint. in the mouth this wine is very young still, dark sweet red and black fruits, silky smooth tanins, the wine had a creaminess to it that made it very pleasant to drink. my WOTN but a very young example and should be even better 5-10 years from now (7922 views) | |
| Tasted by tacman on 2/21/2009 & rated 92 points: Dark purple, almost opaque. Nose is black cherry and plum, with just a hint of green pepper. Great viscous feel in the mouth. Flavour of blueberries, chocolate, with nicely balanced, soft tannins. (7653 views) | |
| Tasted by dbg on 1/31/2009: Purple core, dark red at rim. Medium-intensity nose of cassis, herb/veggie, tar, and cedar. Medium-full body, fruit, veggies, and tar carry through to palate, nice balance, thinner and less lush/layered than the best Hillsides with more veggies than most, medium finish with some tannins still present. Should hold for at least 5 more years. Excellent. (7247 views) | |
| Tasted by JeffGMorris on 1/10/2009 & rated 91 points: Dinner at home with Mom & Steve & Barb. Drinking quite well despite the fact that we did not decant at all. Medium+ bodied and full of berry scents and flavors. Not at the level of the amazing '97 but still excellent. 50+13+12+8+8 = 91 (6708 views) | |
| Tasted by mappleton on 12/12/2008: I can't get over it. The most recent in a line of truly wonderful 98 cal cabs. Do I like the unheralded less ripe vintages even more than the famous years? Not sure I like them more, but this wine has wonderful rich tanins and a vibrant finish. Dark, peppery, and full of life. Wonderful (4314 views) | |
| Tasted by shaferguy91 on 11/9/2008 & rated 92 points: Decanted 1.5 hours. (6828 views) | |
| Tasted by cos82 on 7/12/2008 & rated 93 points: Opened 2 hours, but not decanted. Nice dark purple plum with no sign of maturity. Fine nose of cassis and blueberry.Sweet initial pour of black currant, cassis and purple plum. Evolved to add charcoal and earth. Balanced with a long finish. Very enjoyable. (6805 views) | |
| Tasted by Paul Lin on 5/16/2008 & rated 92 points: This note is based upon the wine being open for 4 hours. Refined and luxuriant notes of black currant, plums, fig paste, cool mint, and a touch of cedar. Full-bodied and seamless on the palate, with well-integrated tannins and nice touch of currant and wet soil to complete the finish. A really lovely wine. 92-93 points. (6767 views) | |
| Tasted by dbg on 4/7/2008: nice fruit, integrated oak, still some tannins, richness, bit less ripe than other years but still excellent (5905 views) | |
| Tasted by gotapex on 3/18/2008 & rated 94 points: Beautifully integrated. Not as full bodied as many SHSS, but still bold and rich. Dark cherry, cassis, a bit of vanilla, and just a hint of spice. Drinking very well right now. (6848 views) | |
| Tasted by ERoss on 1/17/2008 & rated 88 points: 1990s Shafer Hillside Select Vertical (The Cellar Master's Lair (Somers, CT)): In another lineup, this could have been WOTN, and clearly showed the winemaking chops of Shafer in a difficult year. Slightly muted strawberry, black cherry, and toasty vanilla oak aromatics. Impressively endowed structure, still some youthful aspects (bright tannins), but clearly evolving towards middle age. [Group placement 6/8] (7612 views) | |
| Tasted by Bressler on 12/30/2007 & rated 90 points: this bottle had a bitter finish which detracted from the drinking pleasure. hope it was the bottle.. (6796 views) | |
| Tasted by dbg on 9/17/2007: excellent, pretty ripe fruit, medium body, bit of veggie but not too much, medium finish, good balance, some oak, better integrated than last bottle (4577 views) | |
| Tasted by noppakit s. on 9/15/2007 & rated 95 points: My 3rd time of testing this wine. 1st compares with Mouton 2002, it's a little bit more delicious. 2nd with Mouton, it's a same level and this time...almost 10 wines included Lafite 1989, Bond Vecina 2000, Guigal La Landonne 1992, Palmer 1999 etc. Hillside 1998 is still Rock 'n' Roll to me. Most compact, full-bodied and very very delicious. If anyone doesn't like this wine, shouldn't drink wine anymore. Once my friend introduces the 1995 to me compares with Mouton 1995. It's much much better then I plan to get 6 bottles of 1998 and it never makes me disappointed. Great California Wine !!! (6359 views) | |
| Tasted by jeff nowak on 9/14/2007 & rated 90 points: 14.9% alcohol. this wine is past it's prime. drink up while there is still some fruit to maybe justify it's original price. a good wine for the vintage, but, ultimately weak. (6114 views) | |
| Tasted by phenricsson on 6/22/2007 & rated 93 points: Rough and tough. Very concentrated flavors but a touch lean. Impressive with a huge aftertaste but not very ingratiating. (5239 views) | |
| Tasted by Hank Gillespie on 6/2/2007: The Wine Summit: Shafer Hillside Select - Saturday, June 2, 2007 - 10:45 A.M. (The Post Hotel in Lake Louise, AB): Again a dark dense ruby, very thin rim; penetrating berry on the nose – all black currants; well structured wine – acidty and tannins holding the fruit on the frame; excellent fruit – pure – mostly blackberry, but it’s not as persistent as the previous wine; attractive finish, but not as lengthy. Couldn’t decide whether this wine is holding back or whether the vintage didn’t allow the depth as with other wines here. (7247 views) | |
| Tasted by rjonwine@gmail.com on 5/17/2007 & rated 93 points: Black fruit and cassis nose; concentrated rich plum and black fruit palate with depth; medium-plus finish 93+ pts. (959 views) | |
| Tasted by Eric on 5/10/2007: Dinner at Sitka and Spruce (Seattle, WA): Was this my favorite because I brought it? Just classic Napa Cabernet, loaded with cassis, hints of olive and stem, drinking gloriously well and an enormous success for a very difficult vintage. If you have 'em and haven't tried yet, time to start popping in my opinion. I don't know how much gas this has in the tank, but it is a classy, classy Cab to enjoy now. (6768 views) | |
| Tasted by zazoo on 5/8/2007 & rated 96 points: Wow, Very impressed. Probably the best 98 California wine I have ever had. Wish I had more. (6286 views) | |
| Tasted by wineismylife on 4/15/2007 & rated 92 points: WIML92? Tasted April 15, 2007 at an offline. No formal note. Purple color in the glass, clear hue throughout. Nose and palate of dark fruits such as black cherries, plums, melted licorice and a little underlying herbaceousness. Medium acidity and tannins, medium to full bodied. Drink now or hold over the short to medium term. (5938 views) | |
| Tasted by dbg on 2/11/2007: very good-excellent, pretty ripe fruit, medium body, bit of veggie but not overwhelming, medium finish, good balance, some oak, may actually integrate and improve with time, as it got better with some air (3402 views) | |
| Tasted by Nanda on 1/11/2007 & rated 93 points: Shafer Hillside Select Vertical (Zealous - Chicago, IL): Deep ruby with an intriuging nose of black currants, sweet herbs, cedar and tar. Big and concentrated palate. Green herbs infuse the fruits. Well-balanced and in a great place at this age. Showing some of the complexity of the '85 with weight / body of the mid-90's bottles. Clearly not a long termer, but outstanding today. 5+14+17+7=93 (7507 views) | |
| Tasted by mgaetzi on 12/26/2006 & rated 95 points: Wow, full bodied, cassis, chocolate and herbs. One of the better cabernets I have had! (6507 views) | |
| Tasted by keithgg on 12/23/2006 & rated 92 points: Excellent for the vintage and still drinking well. Very lush and velvety; silky chocolate notes. (6245 views) | |
| Tasted by budman on 9/16/2006 & rated 94 points: Awesome! Dark fruits, licorice, with a deep, strong mouthfeel, and an endless finish!! (6555 views) | |
| Tasted by jhngo on 9/13/2006 & rated 93 points: Big bold rich and still very alive. It is aging beautifully! (6428 views) | |
| Tasted by gorm on 8/14/2006 & rated 96 points: Very dark and a bit muddy (clearly unfiltered). Fine tears. Very spicy and extremely balanced nose. A bit held back on the fruit and sweetness at first, but that all starts to evolve with time in the glass. Very impressive in the mouth. Very focused and sweet, licquer like. Mature and well-integrated. A bit like the 1997 Dominus , but more intense and complex. My guess: left bank Bordeaux 2003. Rating: 95-96 (5280 views) | |
| Tasted by jhngo on 2/24/2006 & rated 93 points: It has been a while since I had this wine. Big full dark berry nose. Good full round dark fruit on the palate. It sat right on your tongue and coated your mouth with rich cassis and a bit of earth. Finish was lengthy and smooth. What this lacked was a purity of fruit that was not as defined as other vintages. Still an excellent wine... and presents a good value since most have written it off! (7141 views) | |
| Tasted by Tejano on 12/10/2005 & rated 91 points: I brought this to a vertical tasting from '90 to '01. While it did not show as well as the others, it did have a surprising rich and rounded fruit texture that helped, and actually over time endeared itself to a few of us. By no means on par with some of the other vintages, it seemed to be an overachiever for the vintage that may or may not yield a stellar experience with time, but non the less a pleasing wine. (6917 views) | |
| Tasted by jwgauthier on 12/7/2005 & rated 89 points: This wine was not showing as well as it did on previous occasions for me. Slight herbal flavors and not as smooth as I remember. (7406 views) | |
| Tasted by tanglenet on 10/14/2005: Tasted at Beltramo's with Doug Shafer in attendence. Per Beltramo's the wine was poured into the glasses about 1 hour prior to tasting. All vintages (1995-2001) appeared to me to be the same color due to the lighting which was a red purple color. Similar nose to the 1996, dry cherry with a peanut butter (?) and coffee taste and a short finish. This and the 2001 were my favorite wines of the evening, excluding the 01 Sunspot which was gorgeous. Perhaps because this is an early drinker compared to other vintages? (7396 views) | |
| Tasted by Russell Faulkner on 10/10/2005 & rated 95 points: Very intense fruit nose, more ruby than purple, on palate the ore intense sweet fruit is reflected, more balanced with the cedar and wood flavours. Very big wine, not at all confected or overripe, could do with some more time to integrate perhaps. (7233 views) | |
| Tasted by Quinn_cab on 4/28/2005 & rated 92 points: Decanted 30 minutes prior to drinking. Terrific nose of cherries, chocolate and cola. Medium bodied and quite elegant with dark fruit flavors dominating in the mouth. Very nice finish that stays focused for 30 seconds plus. I can't imagine this wine is going to improve much with additional time in bottle...seems to be at its peak now. (7671 views) | |
| Tasted by tconcilio on 3/14/2005 & rated 91 points: NYC Shafer Weekend; 3/14/2005-3/15/2005 (New York City): One of the best Cali Cabs in a very tough 98 vintage. Big and bold, chocolate with a slight taste of black cherry. Mild tannins, nort built for the long term. Ready with only slight aeration. At its peak, good for 5-7 years. (8187 views) | |
| Tasted by PaulH on 3/13/2005 & rated 92 points: Shafer Hillside Select Dinner (Manresa Restaurant, Los Gatos, California USA): Elias regards this as the Napa wine of the vintage. He says this wine is the one of which he is most proud because he was able to make a good wine from bad materials. 1998 had terrible weather during flowering, a heat wave with an unprecedented 117 degree day, and finished up coming in at only 3/4 ton per acre. This wine is a lighter, fruity style of Hillside showing good balance and structure. It is drinking well now. (12210 views) | |
| Tasted by Siggy on 1/4/2005 & rated 88 points: Purple, with slight bricking at the rim. Big nose of underbrush and black fruits; the palate was more restrained, showing licorice and cassis fruit. Fairly high acid, medium body, oaky, lots of extract and glycerin. Hollowed out a bit on the midpalate, and the finish turned drying. A well made wine, and a good effort in a bad vintage, but there just isn't enough fruit or complexity. Drink now before it dries out further. (7365 views) | |
| Tasted by otisabdul on 11/5/2004 & rated 92 points: 2004 WS Wine Experience: Shafer HSS Vertical (Hyatt Regency, Chicago): Laube said: “1998 was a tough vintage in Napa, and this wine really shows the talents of the winemaker (Elias Fernandez)”. The yield was only ¾ ton per acre. Elias directed the vineyard workers to pick off green grapes in the clusters to help achieve uniformity. Doug said he was not too pleased by the costs incurred, but realized it was worth it once he tasted it. This is a dark, almost brooding wine. A pleasing mentholated nose, with rich delicious fruit and a polished texture. Drink over the next five years. (9266 views) | |
| Tasted by winefool on 11/1/2004 & rated 93 points: WS CWE 04 - Shafer Hillside Vertical (Marquis Marriott): Medium dark red. Medium aroma of clean reddish fruit. Very nice fruit with the chocolate there. A bit more acidic. 93+ pts. CWE 11/04 (6164 views) | |
| Tasted by rjonwine@gmail.com on 10/30/2004 & rated 94 points: Licorice, black fruit nose; concentrated, black fruit, licorice, chocolate palate; medium-plus finish (837 views) | |
| Tasted by Joe Belmaati on 8/12/2004 & rated 92 points: Inky purple colour. Scents of dry leaves, crème de cassis, and cranberry. Large bodied, smooth and chewy in the mouth. Quite dense and concentrated with good weight and balance. Not too complex but very seductive and stylish if not elegant. Smooth finish without edges. 92 points (8350 views) | |
| Tasted by OneLastSyrah on 6/3/2003: Rareshides tasting at Maguire's: Sweet rich red and black fruit. Cedar with a touch of licorice. Very nice. (3011 views) | |
| Tasted by Joe Belmaati on 6/1/2003 & rated 94 points: Purple in the glass. Great scents of vanilla pudding and liquer. Bark and black currants. Powerful and concentrated. A love the structure here, and the power is backed up by heaps of sweet fruit. The flavours come together in a slightly perfumey fashion. Just a touch hot on the finish. (8090 views) | |
| Tasted by La Cave d'Argent on 12/13/2002 & rated 92 points: Consumed at dinner at Aux Delices. Wine provided by Rob Norberg. Opaque black with violet rim. Intense nose of currants, oak, black cherry and vanilla. Full-bodied and with ample sweet tannins on the palate, the flavors follow the nose. Long, smooth finish. Drinking well now. (3473 views) | |
| Tasted by OneLastSyrah on 11/2/2002: ($160) The nose betrays a touch of the vintage in a way - sort of a green minty quality. Sweet, bit Port-like? With mint. Rich with nice concentration. Seemed a bit singular and one dimensional after all the other wines and spicy wild boar sausage pasta. 14.9% Alcohol. (3038 views) |
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ShaferProducer websiteJohn 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. Cabernet SauvignonCabernet Sauvignon is probably the most famous red wine grape variety on Earth. It is rivaled in this regard only by its Bordeaux stablemate Merlot, and its opposite number in Burgundy, Pinot Noir. From its origins in Bordeaux, Cabernet has successfully spread to almost every winegrowing country in the world. It is now the key grape variety in many first-rate New World wine regions, most notably Napa Valley, Coonawarra and Maipo Valley. Wherever they come from, Cabernet Sauvignon wines always seem to demonstrate a handful of common character traits: deep color, good tannin structure, moderate acidity and aromas of blackcurrant, tomato leaf, dark spices and cedarwood.Used as frequently in blends as in varietal wines, Cabernet Sauvignon has a large number of common blending partners. Apart from the obvious Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the most prevalent of these are Malbec, Petit Verdot and Carmenere (the ingredients of a classic Bordeaux Blend), Shiraz (in Australia's favorite blend) and in Spain and South America, a Cabernet – Tempranillo blend is now commonplace. Even the bold Tannat-based wines of Madiran are now generally softened with Cabernet Sauvignon USAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-PetersonNapa ValleyNapa Valley Wineries and Wine (Napa Valley Vintners)Stags Leap DistrictStags Leap District |