shafer ownerâ€™s manual

Whether we’re chatting with guests at the winery or at a vintner dinner far from home, the question we’re always

asked is “When should I drink my Shafer wine?” For some people that moment occurs within hours of purchasing the wine. For others the right time comes months or years down the line.

The longer you cellar your wine the more character and dimension it takes on. That Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon you open today will offer evolving layers of aromas and flavors if uncorked five, 10, or 15 years in the future. For many who love wine, following this evolution from exuberant youth to smoky, nuanced age is one of wine’s chief pleasures.

This owner’s manual is designed to give background information and production details about your Shafer wines and to serve as a useful way to keep cellar notes, combining what we knew of the wines in their youth with what you’ll discover over time as you enjoy them.

Thank you for your interest in Shafer wines. We hope you enjoy savoring them over the years as much as we take joy in making them.

Best wishes,

John and Doug Shafer

S H A F E R O W N E R ’ S M A N U A L i

Table of Contents

Overview

Winemaking at Shafer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Winery Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Shafer History Timeline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

The Shafer Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Vineyard Locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Our Wines

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Red Shoulder Ranch® Chardonnay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Tasting Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Merlot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Tasting Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

One Point Five® Cabernet Sauvignon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Tasting Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Relentless® Syrah/Petite Sirah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Tasting Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Hillside Select® Cabernet Sauvignon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Tasting Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay Production Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Merlot Production Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon Production Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

i i TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S

Relentless Production Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon Production Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Tasting & Wine Pairing

When to Drink Your Wines: Optimal Drinking and Aging Recommendations

Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Merlot. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Relentless. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Hillside Select . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Wine & Food Pairing Selections

Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Merlot. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Relentless. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Hillside Select . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Enjoyment

Frequently Asked Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Stemware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Decanting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

The interior pages of this brochure are made of recycled paper with 30% post consumer waste and processed chlorine free. Both the cover/tabs and interior papers, as well as the printer used, are FSC Certified. FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certification ensures the papers used contain fiber from well-managed and responsibly harvested forests that meet strict environmental and socioeconomic standards. This brochure is 100% recyclable.

S H A F E R O W N E R ’ S M A N U A L 1

Winemaking at Shafer

The Shafer approach to vineyard cultivation and winemaking can be summed up in the title of the old Stephen Stills song, “Love The One You’re With.”

When we started making wine in the late 1970s, none of us had the opportunity to visit other great viticultural regions of the world and learn how wine was made in, say, Bordeaux, Chianti, or Southern Australia. The team of John Shafer, Doug Shafer, and Elias Fernandez was completely absorbed (they might say “overwhelmed”) in learning how to grow fruit and make wine from our little plot of earth in Napa Valley.

Shafer Vineyards, Napa Valley, Stags Leap District

OVERVIEW

2 O V E R V I E W

By the late 1980s after more than a decade focused solely on this site, we knew our soils, our climate, and our fruit and had developed approaches to making the best tasting wine that our vineyards could deliver.

Concurrently we turned to sustainable agricultural practices, such as planting cover crops between vine rows and making our own compost, which eliminates reliance on chemical fer-tilizers and avoids the use of pesticides. Cover crops create a habitat for insects in which those that blight our vines are held in check by their natural predators. Cover crops also control erosion and enrich our soils. We believe that these and other earth-friendly farming methods not only create healthier vine-yards but also lead to more enjoyable wines.

Thanks to our warm, moderate climate — with abundant sun-light during midday, chilly evenings, and foggy early morn-ings — our vineyards yield fruit that offers concentrated, lush aromas and flavors. Our love-the-one-you’re-with approach means that we let these healthy vineyards speak for themselves.

The resulting wines reflect the consistency found on these sin-gular vineyard sites — clean, rich, long aromas and flavors. Over the decades we find that these wines mature beautifully, eventually giving up those rambunctious flavors of youth for the smoky elegance and layered flavors of age.

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Winery Profile

Annual production: 30,000 cases

Varietals produced: Chardonnay, Merlot, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon

Ownership: Fully owned and operated by the Shafer family

Chairman: John Shafer

President: Doug Shafer

Winemaker: Elias Fernandez

Date winery estate purchased by Shafer family: 1972

Vintage of first wine produced: 1978

Location of winery estate: Napa Valley, Stags Leap District

Total vineyard acreage: 205

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Shafer History Timeline

1880s Napa Valley pioneers Jacob Ohl and C. H. Linderman plant vineyards on future Shafer estate.

1922 Italian immigrant Batista Scansi re-plants during Prohibition and sells fruit to home winemakers.

1972 Shafer family purchases 209-acre property including 30 acres of Scansi’s vineyards.

1973- John Shafer plants Cabernet Sauvignon, creating small hillside vineyard 1974 blocks such as Sunspot and John’s Folly.

1977 John makes his first foray into winemaking with a batch of homemade Zinfandel from 50-year-old vines.

1978 John makes his first Shafer Vineyards wine — a precursor to Hillside Select — with Cabernet Sauvignon fruit from John’s Folly.

1979 A bitterly cold January keeps Shafer’s first Cabernet from going through malolactic fermentation. John finds the warmth the wine needs when he wraps the barrels in electric blankets.

1981 Shafer’s 1978 Cabernet is released and makes its debut at the first Napa Valley Wine Auction.

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1982 Shafer clears three acres of Zinfandel and buds over to Merlot.

1983 Doug joins the winery as winemaker. When he tastes the 1982 lot from the Sunspot vineyard block he’s so impressed he talks John into keeping it separate from the others. With the Sunspot lot Doug creates Shafer’s one and only Reserve Cabernet.

The hit TV show Falcon Crest turns a knoll near the winery into a cemetery and “buries” John’s favorite World War II pin-up girl Lana Turner. John names the site “La Vigna Lana.”

1984 Doug says the Reserve deserves a better name and creates the first Hillside Select with the 1983 vintage.

Elias Fernandez is hired as assistant winemaker three weeks prior to his graduation from U.C. Davis.

1985 Shafer releases its first Merlot, a 1983 vintage.

Shafer releases the fifth and final Zinfandel, a 1983 vintage, which is dubbed “Last Chance.”

John leads an effort to petition the government to designate Stags Leap District an American Viticultural Area (AVA).

1988 Shafer purchases 70-acre Red Shoulder Ranch in Carneros.

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6 O V E R V I E W

1988 Shafer takes first steps toward sustainable agriculture, planting cover crops and erecting hawk perches and owl nesting boxes (to encourage these raptors to lower the gopher population) in Stags Leap District and Carneros vineyards.

1989 Stags Leap District is approved as an AVA.

1991 Shafer digs an 8,000 sq. ft. wine cave.

1993 Shafer’s “electric blanket” vintage, the 1978 Cabernet, wins an international competition in Germany, outranking such wines as Chateau Margaux and Chateau Latour.

1994 Doug is named winery president, Elias is named winemaker, and John takes the role of chairman.

1995 Shafer’s first Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay, 1994 vintage, is released and is named one of the Top Ten Wines of the Year by Wine Spectator magazine.

1999 John chairs the Napa Valley Wine Auction, raising a record-breaking $5.5 million.

2001 Shafer barrels move into a new state-of-the-art barrel room.

2002 First release of Relentless, 1999 vintage, named to honor Elias’ relentless pursuit of wine quality.

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2002 Elias is named “Winemaker of the Year” by two prestigious publications: Quarterly Review of Wines and Food & Wine magazine. He is also honored at the White House as a Hispanic role model.

Shafer’s hillside vineyards are named among the Top 25 Vineyards in the World by Wine & Spirits magazine.

2003 Shafer is dubbed “one of the world’s greatest wineries” by wine critic Robert M. Parker, Jr.

Shafer’s barrel lot of 2001 Hillside Select takes the top spot at the Napa Valley Wine Auction.

2004 Shafer celebrates 25 years of winemaking.

To celebrate 25 years and to honor John Shafer, Shafer Vineyards releases a one-time bottling of 2001 Shafer 25th Sunspot Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon: 25 barrels made from 25-year-old Sunspot vines.

Shafer’s barrel lot of 2002 Hillside Select takes the top spot at the Napa Valley Wine Auction.

Shafer constructs a 128-kW solar array and becomes the first winery in Napa and Sonoma to generate 100 percent of its power needs with solar energy.

2005 An extensive winery renovation and expansion project begins.

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8 O V E R V I E W

2007 Shafer releases first vintage of One Point Five Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon. The name plays off “a generation and a half,” a term Doug and John created to describe their long-time working relationship.

Shafer’s barrel lot of 2005 Hillside Select takes the top spot at the Napa Valley Wine Auction, breaking the $100,000 mark.

The winery’s renovation project is completed, offering a new tasting area and an inviting new look.

2008 Shafer builds new 100kW solar array to power water reclamation pond and irrigation system for Hillside Estate Vineyards.

2009 Shafer celebrates the release of the 25th vintage of Merlot (the 2007 vintage).

2010 John and Doug Shafer are awarded the James Beard Foundation’s “Wine and Spirits Professionals of the Year.”

2011 Cody, Doug and Annette Shafer’s cheerful Golden Retriever, joins the winery staff and ensures that the hallways are reserved for racing.

2012 University of California Press publishes Doug Shafer’s critically acclaimed memoir, A Vineyard In Napa, a look back at 40 years of life inside Napa Valley’s wine industry.

2008 Relentless is named “Wine of the Year” by Wine Spectator magazine

2014 John Shafer celebrates his 90th birthday

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The Shafer Team

John Shafer, Chairman

The lure of tending a hillside vineyard inspired John Shafer in 1972 to make a career change, leaving behind 23 years of corporate experience to begin work in a new field. And in the fields, or rather the vineyards, is exactly where he began his new career. John could be seen throughout the mid-70s riding on his tractor as he tilled and terraced the soil of his family’s new estate in the foothills of the Stags Leap Palisades.

What began as a career in grape growing quickly expanded into full-scale winemaking. In 1978, John made the winery’s first Cabernet Sauvignon and a year later construction began on the family winery. The debut wine was released in 1981 to high praise from critics and consumers alike; it set a bench-mark for future Shafer cabernets and was the forerunner of Hillside Select.

In 1985 John led a group of neighboring vintners to petition the government to designate Stags Leap as an American Vi-ticultural Area (AVA). In 1989 the group was successful and Stags Leap District was officially created.

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1 0 O V E R V I E W

In 1994, John moved from the position of president to chair-man of the board. In his new position, he focuses on long-range strategic planning as well as his interests in travel, art and philanthropy.

In 2010 both he and son Doug were invited to the James Beard Foundation Awards in New York, the “Oscars of the Food World,” where they were honored by being named “Outstand-ing Wine and Spirits Professionals.” Shafer was thrilled to join previous Napa Valley recipients: Robert Mondavi (‘91), André Tchelistcheff (‘92), and Jack and Jamie Davies (‘96).

Doug Shafer, President

Doug Shafer arrived in Napa Valley at age 17 when he moved with his fam-ily from the Chicago suburbs to a new home in the foothills of the Stags Leap Palisades.

Throughout his junior and senior years of high school he helped his father replant and then clear land for new vineyards. His love for working in the vineyards inspired him to enroll in the enology and viticulture program at the University of California, Davis.

While completing his university studies, Doug spent sum-mers working with his father in the vineyards and at Hanns Kornell and Robert Mondavi wineries. Meanwhile, his father

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S H A F E R O W N E R ’ S M A N U A L 1 1

was preparing to crush the first vintage of wine in 1978. Following graduation, Doug honed his skills as assistant winemaker at Lakespring Winery prior to becoming winemaker at Shafer in 1983.

During his ten years as winemaker, Doug created Hillside Select and forged the trademark Shafer style of quality, con-sistency, and elegance. With each vintage, he learned more and more about the natural character of the grapes from his family’s hillside vineyards, crafting wines that reflect the Stags Leap District character of rich fruit and soft tannins. During this period he also managed the estate vineyards and developed a new vineyard in the Carneros district.

In the late 1980s, Doug launched the winery in the direction of sustainable agriculture. Today the vineyards are cultivated without the use of chemical fertilizers and by avoiding insecti-cides. The winery distinguished itself as the first in the region to flip the switch to 100 percent solar power.

In 1994, Doug took over the reins as president when his father John became chairman of the board. As president, Doug over-sees the daily operations of the winery and vineyards as well as sales and marketing. He maintains a hands-on approach, working closely with his father and winemaker Elias Fernan-dez to ensure both the quality of the wines and the future of Shafer Vineyards.

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Long-term, Doug is committed to preserving Shafer as a small family winery dedicated to the production of world-class wines from its estate vineyards.

Elias Fernandez, Winemaker

Elias Fernandez knows Napa Valley vineyards from the roots up, having first-hand experience of what it’s like to work in summer heat among dusty vine rows as well as how tough it is to prune vines in the freezing winter pre-dawn light.

Both his parents were farmworkers employed in local orchards and vineyards. In junior high, Elias started working with his father, who taught him to drive tractors and train and prune grapevines. From both parents he learned the value of hard work and self-reliance.

With his mother’s encouragement Elias played trumpet from an early age and distinguished himself to such a degree that he received a Fulbright music scholarship to attend the jazz program at the University of Nevada, Reno. He was the first person in his family to attend college.

After a year in Reno Elias says something just “clicked” and he felt a tug to return to his agricultural roots. In 1981 he en-rolled at University of California, Davis to study enology, the science of winemaking.

1 2 O V E R V I E W

Three weeks before graduation, in 1984, he was hired as assis-tant winemaker at Shafer Vineyards working with Doug Sha-fer. The winery was then just five years old. Those first ten years were some of the toughest of his career, learning often by trial and error the intricacies of growing grapes, making wine, and operating a cellar.

For several years Elias shared co-winemaker duties with Doug Shafer. Then in 1994 Doug became winery president and Elias took on the winemaker title with all of its duties.

In 2002 both Quarterly Review of Wines and Food & Wine magazine named Elias “Winemaker of the Year.” Shafer Vine-yards was selected as one of the “25 Great Vineyards in the World” by Wine & Spirits magazine.

On October 2, 2002 he accepted a prestigious “Hall of Fame” award from the Hispanic Scholarship Fund in Washington D.C. and attended a White House reception hosted by the President of the United States.

Elias continues to enjoy the challenges of each vintage, work-ing relentlessly to ensure the highest quality in all of Shafer’s wines.


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Vineyard Locations

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RIDGEBACK & SCHOOL BUS

Size: 42 acres

Location: Napa Valley

Varieties planted: Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot

HILLSIDE ESTATE VINEYARDS

Size: 54 acres

Location: Stags Leap District

Variety planted: Cabernet Sauvignon

RED SHOULDER RANCH

Size: 66 acres

Location: Los Carneros

Variety planted: Chardonnay

LA MESA

Size: 18 acres

Location: Napa Valley

Varieties planted: Syrah, Petite Sirah

BORDERLINE

Size: 25 acres

Location: Stags Leap District

Variety planted: Cabernet Sauvignon


Shafer Vineyards Wines

From a modest beginning of 1,000 cases in 1978, Shafer Vine-yards has grown slowly until reaching its present size of 30,000 cases of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay, and Syrah. Today Shafer wines are available in major markets nationwide and in top restaurants and hotels internationally.

“… one of the world’s greatest wineries.” — Robert M. Parker, Jr. OUR WINES

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Red Shoulder Ranch® ChardonnayCarneros Chardonnay

Shafer’s Red Shoulder Ranch vineyard lies within sight of the northern rim of San Francisco Bay. The marine-influenced climate in Napa Valley’s southernmost growing area, Carne-ros, offers a long, cool growing season that’s ideal for develop-ing Chardonnay’s spectrum of floral and tropical aromas and flavors as well as its natural acidity.

The cellar team takes a largely hands-off approach for pro-ducing this wine. We use only the yeast that thrives naturally in the vineyard for fermentation and, in order to enjoy the variety’s true acidity, we do not put the wine through malo-lactic fermentation. Instead we ferment the wine in individual 60-gallon barrels (75 percent are oak, 25 percent stainless steel) and we stir the lees once a week during its 14 months of aging to give the wine a creamy mouthfeel.

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Tasting Notes


OUR WINES

RedShoulderRanchVideo In the early 1990s Shafer discovered a bounty of rich, exotic aromas and flavors in fruit from its Red Shoulder Ranch, a rolling vineyard in the Carneros growing region within sight of San Francisco Bay. Learn more by watching the Chardonnay video on our website at ShaferVineyards.com.

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MerlotNapa Valley Merlot

While this wine is officially designated with the Napa Valley appellation, its fruit is sourced from within just a three mile radius of the winery in the Valley’s cooler southern end. Much of the fruit for our Merlot comes from a hilly Shafer-owned vineyard we’ve informally dubbed “School Bus,” located about a quarter mile due south of Stags Leap District. The remainder is cultivated within two miles of our winery by growers we’ve worked with closely for decades.

Since first planting this variety in 1981 we’ve learned that Merlot is a finicky grape — a bit too much rain or a touch of frost early in the season can easily result in less than ideal fruit. Years of experience have taught us to tend these vines with care. Early on each season our vineyard team culls any less developed fruit, leaving only the best-of-the-best on the vine. This ensures that the wine ex-hibits lush, ripe, mouth-filling flavors that are true to varietal character.

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Tasting Notes


OUR WINES

MerlotVideo Since planting our first Merlot vines in 1981, the Shafer vineyard and winemaking team has learned a lot about cultivating this fruit and producing this wine. It’s been an exciting journey which we want to share with you. Learn more by watching the Merlot video on our website at ShaferVineyards.com.

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One Point Five®Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon

Only a handful of Cabernet Sauvignons in the world are des-ignated as Stags Leap District wines thanks to the appellation’s small size. It takes only about four minutes to drive the length of the District, passing through its 1,300 planted acres.

Since the early 1980s Shafer has produced two Cabernets from Stags Leap District, and One Point Five continues that pedigreed tradition. The fruit is predominantly sourced from our Hillside Estate Vineyards surrounding the winery as well as a 25-acre Shafer-owned vineyard located two miles from the winery called “Borderline,” which sits inside the southern border of Stags Leap District.

The name One Point Five is meant to convey the importance of the family part-nership at the core of Shafer Vineyards. A familiar family business story is the second-generation tale, where a parent hands an established enterprise over to a son or daughter. Here though, John and Doug Shafer have worked to-gether for so long, they describe their partnership as a generation-and-a-half, from which we coined the name One Point Five.

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Tasting Notes


OUR WINES

OnePointFiveVideo Perhaps the most-asked question at Shafer is “What does One Point Five mean?” In our short video John and Doug Shafer reveal the story behind the name and the inspiration behind the wine. Learn more by watching the One Point Five video on our website at ShaferVineyards.com.

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Relentless®Napa Valley Syrah/Petite Sirah

Relentless is born on a remote ridgetop vineyard in the rugged southern foothills of Napa Valley’s Vaca Mountain range. The wine is a proprietary blend of Syrah and Petite Sirah. While Syrah has historically been the dominant varietal, the blend changes a bit each year as we select only the best-of the-best fruit of the vintage to create the finished wine.

The soul of the wine comes from its namesake, Shafer’s long-time winemaker, Elias Fernandez. Before the first vintage was bottled in 1999 and before the first label was printed, the Sha-fer family wanted this wine to honor Elias for the key attribute they believed put him in a class all his own — his relentless pursuit of quality in winemaking.

In the first vintages of this wine the Petite Sirah dominated with its purple-midnight color and solid black-fruit, smoke, and black pepper flavors. In the more recent vintages the Syrah has moved into the forefront with its flavors of spice and meatiness, bringing a touch of elegance to this otherwise bold, flam-boyant wine.

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RelentlessVideo Shafer’s bold blend of Syrah and Petite Sirah was named to honor winemaker Elias Fernandez and his relentless pursuit of quality. Learn more by watching the Relentless video on our website at ShaferVineyards.com.

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Hillside Select®Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon

Shafer’s signature wine, Hillside Select, is sourced from the slopes of an amphitheater-like structure of thin soil and rock surrounding the winery. Thanks to a series of knolls and out-croppings some vineyard blocks benefit from southeastern sunlight, while others receive southern or western exposures.

Each summer afternoon cool breezes from San Francisco Bay (located about 18 miles to the south) channel into our box canyon. The consistent see-saw of daytime heat and evening chill retains acidity within deeply ripened fruit, resulting in a wine of exquisite balance.

Meanwhile, the rock-choked site offers little more than 18 to 22 inches of volca-nic soil which lays atop a layer of weath-ered bedrock below. With the hillside’s quick runoff and the lack of plant nu-trients, the struggling vines produce less than half the fruit tonnage per acre as a typical Napa Valley vine-yard. The clusters are small, made up of blueberry-sized grapes that when crushed offer rich flavor, soft texture, and smooth, elegant tannins.

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HillsideSelectVideo John Shafer gives the backstory on the development of Hillside Select from the 1970s to today. Also, see a video series on our website, ShaferVineyards.com, on how we work throughout each vintage to produce our signature Cabernet Sauvignon.

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Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay Production Notes

Our only white wine is sourced from a single Shafer-owned vineyard that lies within sight of the northernmost reach of San Francisco Bay.

Appellation Napa Valley, Los Carneros

Acres 66

GrapeVariety Chardonnay

GPSLocation 38º14’44.92”N, 122 º21’14.36”W

Elevation 126 to 243 ft

SoilType Diablo clay and silty clay

SoilDepth 16 - 30 inches

Varietal 100% ChardonnayComposition

BrixatHarvest 22.5° - 25.0°

Cooperage 14 months in 75% new 60-gallon French oak barrels (Allier, Vosage) and 25% in stainless steel barrels

Fermentation Fermented in the barrel with wild yeast. 0% malolactic fermentation

Bottle 3 months in the bottle prior to release

CaseProduction Approximately 6,000 - 7,000

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Merlot Production Notes

Shafer grows its own Merlot fruit at a vineyard called “School Bus” and sources the remainder from nearby growers who we’ve partnered with for decades.

Appellation Napa Valley (located near the southern boundary of Stags Leap District in the foothills of the Vaca Mountains)

Acres 11

GrapeVariety Merlot



SoilType Silty loam


Varietal The blend changes somewhat each vintage. Typically 75 to 85% MerlotComposition with varying percentages of Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Petite Verdot


Cooperage 20 months in 60-gallon French oak barrels, 75% new (Allier, Vosage & Tronçais)



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One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon Production Notes

One Point Five is sourced predominantly from two Stags Leap District vineyards: our Hillside Estate Vineyards and the Borderline Vineyard, which Shafer also owns, located about two miles south of the winery.

Hillside Estate Vineyard Stats

Appellation Napa Valley, Stags Leap District

Acres 54

GrapeVariety Cabernet Sauvignon



SoilType Volcanic


Borderline Vineyard Stats


Acres 25


Elevation 64 - 80 ft

SoilType Loam

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SoilDepth 3 to 4 feet

Varietal The blend changes somewhat each vintage. Typically 98-99% CabernetComposition Sauvignon, 1-2% Petit Verdot


Cooperage 20 months in 100% new 60-gallon French oak (Allier & Vosage)



Borderline Vineyard, Stags Leap District

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Relentless Production Notes

Relentless is a proprietary blend of the noble grape Syrah and its more rustic cousin Petite Sirah. This combination creates a wine that’s powerful and rich with a lasting finish.

Appellation Napa Valley (located less than 100 feet from the southern boundary of Stags Leap District in the foothills of the Vaca Mountains)

Acres 30

GrapeVariety Syrah, Petite Sirah

GPSLocation 38 º22’59.19N, 122 º17’59.01W

Elevation 355 - 420 ft

SoilType Gravelly clay loam


Varietal The blend changes somewhat each vintage. Typically 90 - 95% Syrah, Composition 5 - 10% Petite Sirah


Cooperage 30 months in 100% new 60-gallon French oak barrels (Allier & Tronçais)



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Hillside Select Production Notes

Hillside Select is a wine of a place, sourced solely from the Cabernet Sauvignon planted on the arid, rocky slopes that surround the winery.


Acres 54

GrapeVariety Cabernet Sauvignon

GPSLocation 38°25’13.52”N, 122°19’31.28”W


SoilType Volcanic


FruitSelection Our Hillside Estate Vineyards are comprised of 14 vineyard blocks that receive varying degrees of sun exposure throughout the year as well as differing exposure to fog and radiant heat from the towering, rocky palisades that serve as a backdrop to our property. These vineyard blocks range in size from one to nine acres and include names such as Sunspot, Venado Ilegal, John’s Folly, Rattler, Hitching Post, La Vigna Lana, and others. In addition, these blocks are planted to varying root-stocks and to a handful of genetic subsets, called clones, of Cabernet Sauvignon. Each year our vineyard team harvests the fruit from these blocks separately; we ferment them separately and then select which hillside blocks will go into that vintage’s wine — thus the name Hillside Select.

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Varietal 100% Cabernet SauvignonComposition

Brixat 24.0° - 26.0°Harvest

Cooperage 32 months in 100% new 60-gallon French oak barrels (Allier & Tronçais)



Shafer Vineyards seen from Sunspot vineyard block


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When to Drink Your Wines

Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay

Most of us at the winery find this wine peaks beau-tifully one to two years after release. Within three to five years following release, the wine achieves the darker colors and flavors of older white wines such as butterscotch, bread, and almonds.

OptimalDrinking Release - 5 years

LengthofAging 6 - 8 years

Merlot

For those who enjoy rich red wine in its youth there’s no time like the present. However, this is a Merlot that gains pleasurable dimensions of aro-mas and flavors with another eight to ten years of attentive cellaring.



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One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon

Our 30 years of experience with Stags Leap Dis-trict Cabernet Sauvignon indicates that this wine will take on the beauties of age in the eight- to ten-year range.

At the same time, waiting that length of time would mean missing out on the deep well of dark, rich fla-vors present when the bottle is released. Given that, we suggest enjoying this wine through various stages of its life.



Relentless Syrah

Relentless spends two-and-a-half years maturing in new French oak and another eight months in the bottle prior to release. The best time to drink is dependent on your preference. Many of our cus-tomers say they open a bottle soon after release and then wait to open other bottles for a year or longer, enjoying how the flavors knit together and evolve over time.



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Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon

Shafer releases Hillside Select four years after its vintage date. Once we make it available, when to drink is based solely on your own preference.

We typically find that in the first two or three years after its release the wine is aromati-cally vibrant and offers juicy, mouth-filling flavors of cas-sis, black cherry, blackberry, dark chocolate, warm toast, tobacco, and dark spice. This can be followed by a “qui-et phase” of a year or two in which aromas and flavors seem more restrained. By year ten we see a wine that still retains some of the fruit of youth, while taking on delicate, layered nuances of age.



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HillsideSelectTastingNotes Please visit our website for full tasting notes on Hillside Select, along with “drink when” recommendations: Visit http://www.shafervineyards.com/hillside/tasting_notes.html.


Selected Wine & Food Pairings

Here’s a sample of dishes that have matched nicely with various vintag-es of Shafer wines. While we can’t provide recipes, the descriptions alone provide delicious hints as to the ingredients that enhance both what’s in the glass and on the plate.

Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay

Braised Alaskan King Crab with Ver Jus and Vanilla CraftSteak, Las Vegas

Lobster Tartare on Sour Crisp, Avruga Caviar Cream and Vanilla Tarragon Jelly Four Seasons Hotel, Singapore

“Oysters and Pearls” – “Sabayon” of Pear Tapioca and Island Creek Oysters and Sterling White Sturgeon Caviar Per Se, New York City

Seared Day Boat Scallop – Garnished with a Truffled White Cauliflower, Finished with a Chardonnay Citrus Nage Robb Report “Car of the Year” dinner at Shafer Vineyards with Chef Peter Hall

Cloverdale Rabbit in Three Preparations – Rillette, Roasted, and Boudin Blanc Four Seasons Hotel, San Francisco

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Citrus Marinated Scallop & Lobster Carpaccio Tribeca Grill, New York City

Seared Stonington Scallop with Arugula and Shaved Fennel Shelter Harbor Golf Club, Charlestown, RI

Serrano Ham Wrapped Asparagus with Fresh Herb and Orange Blossom Honey Mustard M Waterfront Grille, Naples, FL

Merlot

Salad of Heirloom Potatoes – Romaine Lettuce, Young Beets, Garden Dill and Kendall Farm’s Crème Fraîche Per Se, New York City

Seared Wild Striped Bass, Leek ragout, Roasted Fennel, Pine Street Bacon, Extra Virgin Olive Oil Murphy’s, Atlanta

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Wine&FoodIdeas Be sure to check out the Wine & Food section of the Shafer website for a selection of delicious seasonal recipes from author and chef Annette Shafer, which she and her husband Doug Shafer enjoy sharing with family and friends. Annette offers ideas for entire meals – from appetizers through desserts – that are focused on the intrinsic goodness of fresh, seasonal ingredients. Check back throughout the year as we continue to add new recipes and savory ideas! Visit http://shafervineyards.com/foodwine/index.php.

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Braised Artichoke Marinated a la Barigoule with Air-dried Duck Breast Four Seasons Hotel, Singapore

Game Bird and Morel Mushroom Terrine with Wild Mushroom Cappuccino Chez Victor, Quebec City, Canada

Duo of Four Story Farm Pularde “Demi-Deuil” – Poached Breast with Savoy Cabbage & Black Truffle Stuffed Leg with Chestnut, Albufera SauceDaniel, New York City

Oregon Lobster Mushroom Agnolotti with Micro Arugula, Maine Lobster Sauce and White Corn Emulsion Trump National Golf Club, Los Angeles

Grilled Shrimp with Roasted Red Pepper Beurre Blanc Sauce Mortons Steakhouse, Singapore

One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon

Braised Quail in Superior Stock on a bed of Green Tea Noodles and Wolfberries American Club, Singapore

Petite Beef Tenderloin with Truffle Grits, Spinach, Mousseron Mushrooms, and Natural Beef Jus Aureole, New York City

Roasted Pork Loin Mole Tarbell’s, Scottsdale, AZ


Spice-Rubbed Pan-Seared Bison Loin with Pomegranate Demi-Glace Shelter Harbor Golf Club, Charlestown, RI

Tomato and Red Wine Braised Beef Short Ribs over Manchego Mashed Potatoes and Grilled Baby Fennel Salum Restaurant, Dallas

Roasted Lamb Loin with Butternut Squash Polenta, Lavender, and Red Veal Reduction The Coronado Club, Houston

Relentless Syrah

Slow-baked Cumin-rubbed Pork Cheeks with Corn Mashed Potato and Mushroom Persillade Four Seasons Hotel, Singapore

Pappardelle con Ragu d’Agnello – Ribbon Cut Pasta with Grilled Lamb, Mirepoix, Tomatoes, and Rosemary Barolo Grill, Denver

Roasted Tai Snapper – Forrest Mushroom Ragout, Truffle Braised Celery Four Seasons Hotel, San Francisco

Herb Crusted Seared Colorado Lamb Loin Salad with Red Oak, Frisee, Lola Rosa, Tat Soi Greens, Hydroponic Mache, Cypress Grove Purple Haze Goat Cheese, Basil Oil, Bing Cherry Puree Trump National Golf Club, Los Angeles

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Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon

Forest Mushroom “Tortellini” – Rainbow Swiss Chard Ribs and Leaves with “Sauce aux Champignons” Per Se, New York City

Mesquite Wood Grilled Elk Striploin, Summer Black Truffle Potato Puree, Carmelized Shallots, and Hydroponic Watercress Trump National Golf Club, Los Angeles

Brasato de Carne – Braised Beef with Balsamic Shallots and Fried PolentaBarolo Grill, Denver

Duo of Kobe Beef: Braised Short Ribs and Fricassee of Mushroom, Aged Striploin and Spring Beans Tribeca Grill, New York City

Pan Roasted Bison with Pumpkin Foie Gras Ravioli, Horseradish Glazed Blackberries, and Lemon Zest Sautéed Spinach The Old Stone Farm House, St. Thomas

Char-grilled Lamb Cutlets with Garlic Roasted Kipfler Potatoes and Braised Golden Shallots J.W. Marriott Hotel, Hong Kong

Braised Whole Abalone with Cheese Sauce Lotte Hotel, Seoul, South Korea

Stuffed Chicken Breast with Endive Brisee and Apricot Chutney Shilla Hotel, Seoul, South Korea


Shafer FAQs

Q. To properly store my wines, should I purchase a temperature-controlled storage unit?

A. Yes, unless you have access to a clean, dry underground area, such as a basement, where temperatures are a consis-tent 55-58 degrees. (Sorry, your hall closet is not a good option for long-term aging.) Not only will a good storage unit provide the proper temperature, it will also ensure the right humidity level (60 to 80 percent) to keep your corks from drying out.

Q. What’s the best way to remove an older cork?

A. The safest bet is to use a two-pronged wine opener known as an Ah-So. With practice, using this opener will give optimal results with a fragile cork. Be aware that the Hillside Select corks are longer than normal, requiring extra care when re-moving them from the bottle to avoid breakage.

Q. Does Shafer’s sustainable agriculture make a difference in my wine glass?

A. We believe it does. Over many years of earth-friendly vine-yard cultivation we’ve seen an increase in macronutrients in the crushed fruit, such as nitrogen and amino acids. This change results in cleaner fermentations and purer varietal flavors.

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Q. If I’m planning to drink an older wine, how can I minimize the amount of sediment in my glass?

A. If you’ve stored the bottle on its side (recommended for long-term cellaring) then the best first step is to let the bottle stand upright for 24 hours prior to opening it. This will give the sediment time to settle to the bottom of the bottle. After uncorking the bottle, you may want to decant by carefully pouring the wine into a glass vessel to separate the wine from the bulk of the sediment. With practice you can also decant by pouring directly into the glass.

Q. Is it dangerous to drink the sediment at the bottom of the bottle?

A. No. Sediment is a portion of the color and tannins that have settled out of the liquid over time.

Q. What’s the best temperature at which to serve an older red wine?

A. Room temperature is not typically ideal. At the winery, we try to serve red wines at a temperature of between 65º and 68º Fahrenheit.

Q. How many pours do you get from a 750ml bottle?

A. A full pour is usually about four to five ounces. You can count on six pours per bottle. Tasting sized pours are one to two ounces and you can get ten to 12 pours of that ap-proximate volume.

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Stemware

Although there is an extremely wide selection of sizes, shapes and colors of stemware manufactured most do not properly enhance the flavor characteristics of the wine. Studies have shown that each varietal benefits from a specific shaped glass and the glass should be clear rather than colored to appreciate and assess the wine’s color. At the winery Shafer uses stemware produced by Riedel.

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CabernetSauvignonMerlotHeight:

8.875”/225mm

SyrahHeight:

9.25”/236mm

ChardonnayHeight:

7.75”/198mm

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Decanting

Wine lovers often use the term decant-ing interchangeably with aeration, when in truth they’re markedly different steps. Aeration is a method of bringing your wine into contact with oxygen. Most of-ten people like to pour a young, tannic red wine out of the bottle into a separate vessel exposing it to a lot of oxygen, es-sentially speeding up the aging process.

Because aeration has the potential to rob the wine of its full range of aromas and flavors, at winery tastings we prefer to al-low the wine to change and evolve over time in the glass.

Decanting, on the other hand, is when you gently pour an older wine into another vessel for the purpose of separating the wine from the sediment that has collected in the bottle.

Most people prefer not to find dark flakes and grains swirling around in their wine.

At the winery, with an older wine, we prefer to pour the wine gently from the original bottle directly into the glass, and skip the middle step of using a decanter.

The chances of losing delicate aromas in an older vintage wine increase with each additional step you put it through.

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