1997 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select - RP100 (HG)
"The 1997 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is prodigious stuff. This was a perfect performance by a magnificent wine that is young yet so concentrated and long. It will last for at least two decades."
- Hedonist's Gazette - Wine Advocate
2001 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select - RP100
"The 2001 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is the first of these back-to-back perfect wines from Shafer that, at age 13, is still a baby, but, wow, what an amazing wine. A fabulous growing season produced a wine with inky/purple black color, stunning crème de cassis notes, with additional hints of lead pencil shavings, spring flowers, cedar wood and forest floor. It is full-bodied, sensationally concentrated, with a seamless integration of acidity, tannin, wood and alcohol. This is a great, monumental Napa Cabernet Sauvignon that is still an infant, at age 13, going on 14. This has got at least three decades of life left in it, and probably won't hit its peak for another 5-7 years." - Wine Advocate
2003 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select - RP95
"The 2003 is a singular style of wine, but by no means wimpy or undernourished. The 2003 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select has a dense, purple color, notes of creosote, graphite, blackberry and cassis fruit, charcoal and scorched earth. It has a full-bodied mouthfeel and excellent purity, while some rather noticeable tannins kick in on the finish. This wine seems to be moving from adolescence to that early mature stage, where I would expect it to hold for at least another 10-15 or more years. Clearly not one of the superstars in what was a rather astonishing qualitative lineup, but it's outrageously good Cabernet Sauvignon, and I expect myself, as well as any of my readers, would drink this 24/7." - Wine Advocate
2004 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select - RP99
"This vintage shocked me when I did my retrospective earlier this year, and the 2004 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select acquitted itself brilliantly in the vertical of Hillside Selects. It was a hot year, a relatively early harvest and there were worries that the heat had stressed the grapes, and there would be a lack of physiological ripeness and nuance. Those worries have not manifested themselves in this great Cabernet Sauvignon. Inky/purple-colored with notes of blueberry, blackberry, cassis, spring flowers, and a touch of toast, the wine is opulent, voluptuous and full-bodied with sweet tannin, just enough acidity to provide freshness, vibrancy and delineation, and a spectacular finish that goes on 40+ seconds. This is a killer, a showy and flamboyant style of Hillside Select that's already drinking beautifully and should continue to do so for another 15-20 years." - Wine Advocate
2007 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select - RP100
"One of the perfect wines from Shafer is the 2007 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. Think it over - in the first decade of the 21st century, Shafer scored three perfect scores and two 99s - that's about as high a praise as I can give any producer in the world. Opaque purple in color, the 2007 has a stunning nose of sweet crème de cassis, black cherries, licorice, and toasty oak, a multilayered, full-throttle personality, and a texture that builds and builds. Great purity, fabulous fruit intensity and a richness without heaviness characterize this massive, prodigious effort from Shafer. It's still very young, despite this vintage, which seems to be maturing precociously. I don't believe this wine will hit its stride for at least another 5-10 years and drink well for at least 2-3 decades." - Wine Advocate
