Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon One Point Five Stags Leap District 2022

The 2022 vintage of Shafer’s signature One Point Five Cabernet Sauvignon is here – from the Borderline estate vineyard in Stags Leap District, along with a handful of select pristine Napa sites – with 95 points and flawlessly marrying elegance, liveliness, and complexity. 

Vineyards is one of Napa’s most-loved and historic wineries. The people behind it (Doug Shafer, of course, and the humble and unbelievably talented winemaker extraordinaire Elias Fernandez, among others) are salt-of-the-earth folks who simply make the most impressive wines year after year, that is so allocated we never get but a few bottles.

Doug’s father, John, purchased the estate in 1973 and harvested the fruit for their first wine in 1978 – releasing it for sale in 1981. Just two years later, Doug joined the team as the winemaker at the time, coming alongside his father and learning the ropes of the wine business together, to rapidly mounting success and critical applause. They call their story not a typical second-generation winery, where one family member hands down the business to their kin after decades of running it – but, instead, a “generation and a half.” A father and son, working side by side – inspiring the name of this very wine, One Point Five.

Grown in the sunny, warm vintage of 2022, this Cabernet Sauvignon – blended with 3% Petite Verdot, 3% Merlot, and 2% Malbec – experienced an ideal growing season, with richly colored fruit containing full, elegant, robust, and pure aromas and flavors. Aging for 18 months in 100% new French oak gives it a lush warmth of vanilla and cedar with chalky baking spices interspersed throughout. A tantalizing core of black cherries, blackberry jam, and juicy plums is wrapped up in notes of dark roast coffee, dried herbs, creme de cassis, and dusty earth, polished off with ripe tannins and a generous finish. This is everything we’ve come to expect from the pedigreed and passionate Shafer Vineyards, with loads of power to age for decades to come. 

PAIRING IDEAS: Yes, yes – steak would be an obvious choice – but let’s go a little crazy and whip up a lemongrass beef Banh Mi. The fresh veggies, the soft yet crusty baguette, and the tangy beef will all meld gorgeously with this rich and robust Napa Cab for a serene summer meal.