2008 Premiere Napa Valley Auction Shafer Vineyards Sunspot Vnyd Cabernet Sauvignon, 1.5ltr

Premiere Napa Valley is an annual barrel tasting and wine auction open only to the wine and beverage trade. Held each February in St. Helena, Calif., the auction is sponsored by Napa Valley Vintners, a professional association of 250 Napa Valley wineries. Proceeds from the auction support the organization’s educational and other programs. The auction is an important event in the wine industry because members make special cuvées for the auction. Winemakers make a barrel or less of their auction cuvées. Premiere Napa Valley wines, which are Cabernet Sauvignons or other red varietals, are not widely available to the public. Restaurateurs and retailers who purchase these cuvées market them as the “best of the best.” As part of our commitment to bringing rare and fine wines to our customers, WineBid.com participates in the Premiere Napa Valley auction and each year purchases a cuvée which we offer exclusively through our auctions.

Stags Leap District AVA in southern Napa Valley has a storied history. It is home to Stag’s Leap Cellars, whose 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon won the famous Judgment of Paris blind tasting that included several of Bordeaux’s most exalted First Growths. Vineyards were started in area in the late 19th century, but the district’s rise in prestige started in the late 1960s when Nathan Fay planted Cabernet Sauvignon. Fay later sold his estate to Warren Winiarski, founder of Stag’s Leap Cellars. The district was given its own AVA designation in 1989, and today there are 1,400 vineyard acres. The AVA is especially notable because it was the first in the U.S. to be granted AVA status based on terroir. Its distinctive soils is a mix of volcanic soils, river sediment and loamy clay-like soil. Because the soils don’t retain water well, vineyards in Stag’s Leap tend to grow fruit with great intensity and flavor. Cabernet Sauvignon accounts for 95% of the grapes planted in Stags Leap.

One of the most widely grown grape varieties, it can be found in nearly every wine growing region. A cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc. It’s a hardy vine that produces a full-bodied wine with high tannins and great aging potential.

Located in the Stags Leap district of Napa Valley, Shafer Vineyards is one of the valley’s most enduring success stories. Founded in 1972 by John Shafer – who left a corporate life in Chicago to grow grapes in Napa Valley – the winery was run by John with help from his son Doug for many years. The winery’s first Cabernet Sauvignons were made in 1978 and in 1994 Doug Shafer took over as president, with John ascending to Chairman of the Board. Elias Fernandez, now one of the valley’s most admired winemakers, joined Shafer as an assistant winemaker in 1984 became head winemaker 10 years later. The partnership between John and Doug Shafer and Fernandez is one of the oldest in the valley, and is generally thought to be one of the keys to Shafer’s success.