Reviews & Ratings

2011 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon "Hillside Select"

Winery: Shafer Vineyards

Vintage: 2011

Wine Name/Vineyard: "Hillside Select"

Wine Category: Cabernet Sauvignon

Grape blend: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon

Bottle size: 750 ml

Region: Stags Leap

State or country: CA

Price: $250

Cases produced: 2,400

KWG Score: 93.8 (based on 5 reviews)

Ken's Wine Rating: Excellent (95)

Review date: November 4, 2015

Wine Review: This might be the best 2011 California Cabernet that I tried. It is very dark ruby colored and opens with an attractive blueberry bouquet with a hint of black cherry. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied, balanced, and very smooth. The flavor profile is a delicious blueberry and black cherry blend with hints of black currant and nicely integrated gentle oak. The finish is dry and its moderate well managed tannins linger and last for quite some time. This is a spectacular wine for the vintage. I would serve it in the near term with a filet mignon. Enjoy - Ken

Winemaker Notes: After three years in barrel and another year in bottle, this Hillside Select® offers youthful vibrancy along with the promise of the riches of age. Both in the nose and in the mouth it’s brimming with mulberry and bramble fruit as well as tantalizing layers of chocolate, black truffle, tobacco, herbs, nutmeg, cinnamon and a slate-like minerality, that brings the 2008 Hillside Select to mind. The brightness of the vintage’s acidity follows all the way through to the long, lifted finish. Pair with grilled or roast lamb, duck, beef and game; dishes featuring roasted red peppers or carmelized onions; seasonings of basil, mint or rosemary; aged, full-flavor cheeses

Buy it: Use 1000 Corks to find stores that sell Shafer 2011 Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon.