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Some wineries make wine. A very small handful, over a generation or two, become a benchmark by which a region is measured. Shafer is one of those.
Since John Shafer planted his first vines on a steep hillside in the Stags Leap District in 1978, Shafer Vineyards has done one thing with remarkable consistency: produce some of the most age-worthy, sought-after Cabernet Sauvignon in Napa Valley. Robert Parker called Shafer “one of the world’s greatest wineries.” Wine & Spirits has named Shafer to its global top-25 list more times than any other Napa estate. And winemaker Elias Fernandez — now in his fortieth year at the cellar — has quietly amassed one of the longest unbroken records of 95+ point releases in California.
This release brings together six expressions of Shafer’s craft — from a brand-new 2023 One Point Five just landed on our shelves, to the final bottles and magnums of the legendary 2013 Hillside Select James Suckling ranked among his Top 100 Wines of 2017. In between sits the 2021 “Vintage of a Lifetime” cuvée, the 97-point Relentless Syrah, and library bottles of two consecutive Hillside Select vintages. Each one is offered while quantities last — in several cases, that means single digits.
One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon
A Generation and a Half · The Estate’s Heart Cuvée
Named for the “generation and a half” partnership between John Shafer and his son Doug, One Point Five is the estate’s heart cuvée — the wine in which Shafer’s house style is most plainly written. Predominantly Cabernet from the hillside estate plus the “Borderline” vineyard in Stags Leap District, aged in 100% new French oak, and built to drink beautifully early but reward two decades in the cellar.
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2021 · The “Vintage of a Lifetime” · Last 6 Bottles
Shafer “One Point Five” Cabernet Sauvignon 2021
Stags Leap District · Napa Valley
96 WE · 96 JD · 95 TWI · 94 VM · 94 WS · 94 JS · 93 WA
The 2021 Napa vintage is already being talked about as a once-in-a-generation harvest — a cooler, longer growing season that produced wines of extraordinary concentration and classical balance. Shafer’s 2021 One Point Five is the textbook example: lush cassis, black cherry and lavender on the nose, full body wrapped in seamlessly integrated tannins, with the kind of structure that, in winemaker Elias Fernandez’s words, “promises decades of beauty to come.”
“Lovely dark plums, blueberries and cocoa wrapped in velvety, well-integrated tannins... best from 2027–2037.” — Wine Enthusiast, 96 pts
$134.99 · Only 6 Bottles Remain
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2023 · Just Released · The Next Great Napa Vintage
Shafer “One Point Five” Cabernet Sauvignon 2023
Stags Leap District · Napa Valley
96 JD · 94 VM · 94 WA · 94 JS · 93 WS
The 2023 is the brand-new release — a vintage Jeb Dunnuck calls “another landmark year for Napa Cabernet,” and one Shafer’s team believes will reward 25+ years in the cellar. Blackberry, raspberry and black licorice unfold over bay leaf, sage, clove and dark chocolate; the tannins are ripe, polished, and built to evolve. Priced $25 below the 2021 — one of the rare moments where the new vintage represents the better value.
“A bigger, darker Cabernet... full-bodied, rich, layered, elegant mouthfeel, plenty of tannins, and a great finish. Deserves 4–5 years of bottle age and will have 25 years or more of longevity.” — Jeb Dunnuck, 96 pts
$109.99 · New Release · Limited Allocation
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Relentless
Shafer’s Syrah Tribute · A Former Wine Spectator #1 Wine of the Year
Relentless is the wine the Shafer family named for winemaker Elias Fernandez, in honor of his “relentless pursuit of quality.” A Syrah & Petite Sirah blend from the cooler southeast corridor of Napa, aged 28 months in 100% new French oak. In 2005, an earlier vintage was named Wine Spectator’s #1 Wine of the Year — one of the rare Syrahs ever to claim that distinction.
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2021 · Suckling 97 · A Cellar Statement
Shafer “Relentless” Syrah 2021
Napa Valley · 97% Syrah · 3% Petite Sirah
97 JS · 95 Decanter · 95 TWI · 95 VM · 94 JD · 93 WA
Marking Elias Fernandez’s 40th vintage at Shafer, the 2021 Relentless is a brooding, supersaturated Syrah with the depth of the Rhône and the polish of Napa. Dark blue fruit, peppery spice, grilled meat and charcoal lead to firm, gripping tannins built for the long haul. Suckling’s 97 calls it “a supersaturated, deep, almost thick wine” that needs time to fully resolve.
“Grilled meat, charcoal and dried blackberries... full body and firm, gripping tannins that need time to resolve. Best from 2030.” — James Suckling, 97 pts
$99.97 · Limited Availability
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Hillside Select — The Library
Napa’s Benchmark Cabernet · Three Vintages, Including the Final 2013s
Hillside Select is the flagship. 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, sourced exclusively from a handful of small hillside blocks tucked into the rocky amphitheatre that surrounds the Shafer winery. Tiny berries, scant yields, and 32 months in 100% new French oak produce a wine that has held a near-perpetual residency in the upper 90s for four decades. We were able to gather three vintages on the floor right now — including the final standard and magnum bottles of the iconic 2013, James Suckling’s 99-point Top 100 release.
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2019 · Five Critics at 98+ · Last 12 Bottles
Shafer “Hillside Select” Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
Stags Leap District · Napa Valley
98+ WA · 98+ JD · 98+ TWI · 98 JS · 98 VM · 94 WS
A magical 2019 vintage, called by Vinous “one of the most elegant Hillside Selects I have ever tasted.” Black raspberries, violets, camphor and crushed flowers on the nose; full-bodied but not massive on the palate, with ultra-fine tannins and the kind of seamless mouthfeel that is the Hillside hallmark. A 30- to 40-year wine from one of Napa’s most decorated cellars.
“Truly impressive California vin de garde... full-bodied, super-ripe, rich, dense and concentrated... finishes long and firm.” — Wine Advocate, 98+ pts
$349.97 · Last 12 Bottles
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2017 · 35th Anniversary Vintage · Last 5 Bottles
Shafer “Hillside Select” Cabernet Sauvignon 2017
Stags Leap District · Napa Valley
98+ WA · 98 JS · 98 JD · 97 VM
Shafer’s 35th vintage of Hillside Select, called by Jeb Dunnuck “in the running for the wine of the vintage” in 2017. Blueberry pie, crème de cassis, black cherry compote, cedar and clove oil — with the ripe, velvety tannins and lively freshness that Lisa Perrotti-Brown declared “an absolute triumph.” Now eight years on, it’s entering its first window of true peak drinking.
“Offers more depth, opulence, and purity than just about every other wine out there... a long-lived bottle of Napa Cabernet.” — Jeb Dunnuck, 98 pts
$324.97 · Final 5 Bottles
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2013 · JS 99 · Suckling Top 100 of 2017 · Final Bottle
Shafer “Hillside Select” Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
Stags Leap District · Napa Valley · 750 mL
99 JS · 98+ RP · 98 JD · 98 WE · 97 VM · 94 WS
The 2013 is, by most measures, the modern reference vintage for Hillside Select. James Suckling ranked it #16 among his Top 100 Domestic Wines of 2017 with 99 points. Parker called it “massively concentrated but incredibly elegant and poised... a wine of great energy and vibrancy, built like a skyscraper, set for an incredibly long life.” Twelve years on, it is entering exactly the window the critics promised. One bottle remains on the floor.
“Wonderful floral aromas with perfumed roses plus hints of blackcurrants and spearmint... so impressive with tar, iron and spices.” — James Suckling, 99 pts
$449.98 · Just One Bottle Left
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2013 · 1.5L Magnum · Final 2 Magnums
Shafer “Hillside Select” 2013 — 1.5L Magnum
Stags Leap District · Napa Valley · The Format Built for the Cellar
99 JS · 98+ RP · 98 JD · 98 WE · 97 VM
The same 99-point James Suckling Top 100 wine, in the format collectors actually want: the 1.5L magnum. Magnums age more slowly, more gracefully, and more evenly than 750s — making this the single most cellar-worthy iteration of one of the most decorated Hillside Selects of the past two decades. Two are left in the building.
“Fabulous potential of 30–50 years... built like a skyscraper... try not to consume a bottle for at least another 4–5 years and then watch the magic unfold.” — Robert Parker, 98+ pts
$949.98 · Only 2 Magnums Remain
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A Note on Allocation
Six wines. Twenty-six bottles total.
When they’re gone, they’re gone.
Shafer Hillside Select has been highly allocated in every vintage since the early 1990s. Library bottles — especially in formats this scarce — do not come back. If a particular vintage matters to you, today is the day to claim it.
Browse the Full Shafer Collection
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Questions on a vintage, a format, or a multi-bottle order? Reply directly to this note — we’re always happy to talk Shafer.
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