Shafer Hillside Select Napa Cabernet 2017 750ml

“Shafer’s flagship wine, and one of the world’s greatest Cabernet Sauvignons, is the Hillside Select, which comes from the rocky, volcanic soils on hillsides above the winery. Vineyard production is small, and the wine is an incredible example of Cabernet Sauvignon.” 95 pts, RP

“The 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is an insanely beautiful wine. The aromatics alone are pure seduction. Juicy, red berry fruit, crushed flower, cinnamon, blood orange and spice give the 2017 quite a bit of complexity, but it is the wine’s textural finesse and impeccable balance that elevate it to its place among the very finest wines of the year. Stylistically, the 2017 is a bit more red-toned in profile. Texturally, it is a bit lighter and less opulent than the norm, but that is not a bad thing. The 2017 has always been stellar from barrel, but the from-bottle tasting is the proof in the pudding. It’s a tour de force from Proprietor Doug Shafer and Winemaker Elias Fernandez.” 97 pts, AG

“Moving to the two recent vintages from barrel, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select offers a sweeter perfume and style that’s not far from the 2015. Lots of sweet red and blue fruits, toasted spices, and flower notes as well as subtle background oak all flow to a full-bodied, pure, beautifully balanced Cabernet that has silky tannins and more elegance and finesse than most in the vintage. Given its perfumed, already complex style, I suspect it will offer plenty of pleasure in its youth, yet it certainly has the structure for a long life as well. 95 pts, JD