Shafer News

Hillside Select – a Wine of a Place

Hillside Select comes from a collection of rugged, arid vineyard blocks that surround our winery. We’ve been fortunate to make Cabernet Sauvignon from these rocky, roughhewn hillsides in Stags Leap District since 1978. Year after year this 100% Cabernet Sauvignon is a dramatic expression of this ideal site.

Remembering John Shafer: 1924 – 2019

John Shafer loved people, loved his work, his family, and lived an incredible life. We wanted to share this video that will give you a glimpse of his very rich life and how grateful he was for every day of it.

For Us, One Point Five Means Family and Home

One Point Five is a Cabernet Sauvignon that celebrates two things close to our hearts. The name refers to John and Doug Shafer’s 35 year father-and-son partnership. It also honors Stags Leap District, a place we’ve called home since 1973.

When you open a bottle of One Point Five we hope you enjoy it with people you care about!

Video: Red Shoulder Ranch® Chardonnay

Our Chardonnay vineyard, called Red Shoulder Ranch, is located at the very southern end of Napa Valley, where the land meets the Bay. It’s an area of long, sunny spring and summer days that produces wines of exceptional color, aroma, and flavor.

We meticulously grow the fruit and produce the wine so that with every drop you’ll enjoy the purity and beauty of this glorious vineyard site.

Video: Introducing Our New Wine TD-9, An Adventurous Red Blend

TD-9 celebrates a bold move. In 1973 John Shafer went from taking morning commuter trains in Chicago to teaching himself to drive an old TD-9 tractor in our Napa Valley vineyard. He’d never grown grapes or made wine in his life. That spirit of risk-taking and adventure continues to inspire everything we do at Shafer Vineyards today. We hope you enjoy this new blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Malbec.

Video: Replanting a Vineyard — Three Years in Two Minutes

In 2013 we pulled out aging Cabernet vines from a vineyard block called Lower Sunspot and started the process of replanting. Here, in two minutes, you can see the three-year process from setting up new trellis systems to planting rootstock to harvesting the vines’ first fruit.

Lower Sunspot is typically one of our vineyard blocks that goes into producing Hillside Select. We’re glad to have it back!

Video: Making a Shafer Barrel

In this new video we invite you to discover what goes into making a Shafer wine barrel. Go with winemaker Elias Fernandez as he visits Demptos Napa Cooperage, one of several barrel-makers we working with, as he keeps an eye on the whole process – from selecting the staves, toasting the interior of the barrel, sealing, and finishing, to delivery to the winery.

VIDEO: Wi-Fi Winemaking -- NBC Bay Area Features Shafer Technology

Apps are joining barrels, bottles, and tanks as basic winemaking tools. In this news story our winemaker, Elias Fernandez, offers a tour of our latest technology in the vineyard and cellar.

VIDEO: Celebrating 20 years of Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay

In our new video Doug Shafer takes you to the vineyard where it all begins to show where the beauty in the bottle comes from.

VIDEO: Discover Stags Leap District – An American Wine Treasure

Doug Shafer offers a quick then-and-now video tour of Stags Leap District, home of Shafer Vineyards.

VIDEO: Shafer From Above

Enjoy stunning views of Shafer Vineyards and our surrounding hillsides from the air.

Seasons at Shafer

Video: Shafer in Spring

Spring is the season when the vintage first comes to life – tiny buds appear on vines that have been dormant all winter offering the first glimpse of what’s to come. In the cellar we are busy bottling and in the vineyard we are setting the stage for an exciting new growing season!

Video: Shafer in Summer

The summer months at Shafer mean lots of intensive, meticulous vineyard work. Our team is busy tying shoots, leafing, cutting away fruit that’s not on track for ideal ripeness, and much more. In the winery we’re bringing in new barrels for the 2018 vintage and prepping the cellar for harvest.

Video: Shafer in Autumn

The fruit is coming in fast, the crush pad is revved up, and the newly fermenting wine is looking, smelling, and tasting fantastic. Enjoy a quick look behind the scenes of Autumn's harvest with this quick video!.

Video: Shafer in Winter

The vines take a break and our team enjoys a slower pace after the velocity of harvest. Even though it’s quiet, winter is an important time of year when the soil fills up with winter rain, we do a lot of prep work in the cellar and in the vineyards, and the vines themselves rejuvenate for the vintage to come. We thought you might enjoy a quick look behind the scenes.