Review: Shafer 2011 One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District, Napa Valley

Shafer 2011 One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon Stags Leap District Napa Valley ($80) There are sketchy vintages, even in California. The funny thing about great wineries, though, is that great wineries tend to make really good wines in those weird vintages. It has to do with their skill in farming, blending, and just about every other way they have of working through life's little challenges. The Shafer team really showed their mettle in this wine. It does have some of the up-front fruit and plushness that you expect from Shafer with beautifully ripe red currant and boysenberry aromas and perfectly integrated oak lending hints of anise and vanilla to precise, focused fruit flavors. It's a crowd pleaser, too. While some Shafer wines err on the side of sweetness and generosity, this cooler-vintage edition seems brilliant to me. A really well-executed wine, and one of numerous examples from an admittedly spotty vintage. (Score 93)