1998 Merlot

Wine Details
Place of Origin

United States

Stags Leap District, Yountville, Vaca Mountains

Napa

Color

Red

Grape/Blend

Merlot

Reviews & Tasting Notes

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Beginning with the '98 vintage, Shafer is bottling its Firebreak sangiovese considerably later. "This wine was always very tight in its early months in bottle," explained Doug Shafer, "so now we're aging it for 20 to 22 months in barrel rather than 12 or 14." Don't miss the 1997 Hillside Select cabernet, one of California few superstar reds that can actually be found in the marketplace.

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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Integer vitae aliquam odio. Aliquam purus diam, tempor et consectetur vitae, eleifend ac quam. Proin nec mauris ac odio iaculis semper. Integer posuere pharetra aliquet. Nullam tincidunt sagittis est in maximus. Donec sem orci, vulputate ac quam non, consectetur fermentum diam. In dignissim magna id orci dignissim convallis. Integer sit amet placerat dui. Aliquam pharetra ornare nulla at vulputate. Sed dictum, mi eget fringilla lacinia, nisl tortor condimentum mi, vitae ultrices quam diam ac neque. Donec hendrerit vulputate felis, fringilla varius massa.

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The 1998 growing season featured uneven ripening, according to Doug Shafer, but the cabernet sauvignon fared better than the merlot, as the crop level was lower due to shatter during the period of the flowering. The harvest was even later than that of '99, as there was no burst of heat that might have hastened ripening. Maceration times were reduced for the winery's reds, as there were a lot of green seeds in the grapes in '98.