Wines From My Cellar & Others
Shafer Vineyards, a family winery, has been producing top quality wines since the 1970s. Anyone who knows wines knows of Shafer Vineyards and their great portfolio of wines. I have been fortunate to be on the Shafer wine’s mailing lists (which allows me to purchase wines directly from the winery) for a number of years and have several of their wines in my cellar.
The 2002 Shafer Cabernet was a blend of 97% Cabernet Sauvignon and the other 3% a balance of Cabernet Franc and Merlot. Upon release, the wine was scored by Wine Spectator at 91 points and 89 points by Stephen Tanzer of International Wine Cellar. In June 2012, Robert Parker rated the wine at 95 points, which seemed a little high to me.
I opened the wine and decanted it for about an hour before pouring my first glass. I did detect a little sediment in the bottle and poured the wine into the decanter through a strainer. Actually, I have made this a habit when decanting wines and advise you do the same. I suggest using a strainer when decanting any wines six years or older.
The 2002 Shafer Cabernet’s color was a deep ruby red. The nose was classic – full of fruit and a little oak. The wine was well-balanced on the palate and the tannins were still noticeable on the finish, which was of good length.
Shafer wines are available mainly from internet marketers and perhaps through your local wine shop. If you want to buy Shafer wines directly from the winery, you will need to sign up for one of the Shafer mailing lists. If you aren’t familiar with this procedure, go to Shafer’s website and click on “Mailing List Sign-Ups” in the drop down list under the “Wines” heading.
As always, if you have tried these wines or been to the winery, please share your thoughts with us.
Cheers.
