TNs: 2018 William & Mary Shifflett and Napa Valley Wines

Was at Rivers Marie this morning and Will had a tasting later and had his wines on hand so he poured me the lineup. Quick notes scribbled in my phone, embellished once I got home. Really looking forward to this release even more after trying these. Thanks for the early taste!



  • 2018 William & Mary Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley - USA, California, Napa Valley (9/17/2020)
    Quick AM taste with Will at Rivers Marie. Caught the label out of the corner of my eye and thought he pulled out a Scarlett! Chicken scratch notes, one off wine. Dark fruited up valley feel, black and purple with just a hint of bell pepper. Medium bodied long very grippy finish, should open and show more on day 2. Good value @$75.

  • 2018 William & Mary Proprietary Red Shifflett Ranch - USA, California, Napa Valley, Oak Knoll District (9/17/2020)
    Quick morning taste with Will at Rivers Marie. Dark berried, darker and denser than previous vintages. Jalapeño, tobacco, expressive red and black fruit. Builds on the palate and keeps going and expanding. Ripe tannins are managed well. Impressive!

  • 2018 William & Mary Cabernet Sauvignon Shifflett Ranch - USA, California, Napa Valley, Oak Knoll District (9/17/2020)
    Quick morning taste with Will at Rivers Marie. Wonderfully bright nose almost like you can smell the tartness of the acidity. Red currant, red licorice, spice, very polished, great depth, long finish. Expansive yet balanced palate with fairly ripe chalky tannins. Everything I loved about the 2014 at release but to the 3rd power. Will nailed this one, I could gulp this down in a heartbeat. Enjoy now but buy enough to age some. Beautifully done.

Posted from CellarTracker

Bragger…


Thanks B!
[thumbs-up.gif]

Thank you for posting. Quick question, bell pepper doesn’t seem to agree with my palate and sometimes comes off more green than it should. I love Will’s wines and since this is a 2nd label, how noticeable is the bell pepper and is it off putting?

Curious how this stacks up against my other $75 cab favorite.

Not off-putting in the least, just a hint. This is in no way a green wine. Buy with confidence.

I love the label on the Napa. Just beautiful. Looking forward to these.

Brian, thanks for the head’s up tasting. I knew these were going to be good.

I heard the Napa bottling has a somewhat feline streak.

Wink wink… nudge nudge!

Ever since the effusive praise of Roy Piper, I have been really eager for this release. Question for anyone familiar with the brand, it looks like I won’t have the disposable income until the end of the month (planning on acquiring 2 cases), should I be ok?

Probably, yields were good and the market isn’t what it used to be.

Will is one of the best in Napa. Reach out to him directly. I am sure he will help a brother out.

This. And for what it’s worth, I was able to buy 3 of the 2017 Shifflett back in June. I wouldn’t necessarily wait that long, but you should have a few weeks.

I’m all over on how to approach this one…3/6/9, 6/6/6, 3/3/12…decisions!

AHAH! I finally understand all your weird innuendo and insinuations: you’re saying Merrill made their wine. Got it. It’s a weird thing to keep bringing up, but okay.

Will is the winemaker.

I understand - my comment was based on being silly. Apologies if it came off as anything other than that.

No need to apologize…my statement was more for folks that may read this down the road and not be thorough enough to put the pieces of the puzzle together. If all they saw was this, it may be confusing.

So Will contacted me directly and completely took care of me…what a class act!

Exactly the challenge I’m facing. How much of each to buy. First world problem I guess…

There are a few mailing lists that I get antsy waiting for out of fear of missing the wines. This is one of them.

Really looking forward to these!

If anybody is on the fence, these are worth buying on faith.

No. That is Ray Walker’s brother’s wine.

Thanks Brian.