America's "Super Tuscan" from Shafer By Darryl Beeson, Cellar Master, The Mansion on Turtle Creek Here is the rundown on this week's wine find, Firebreak by Shafer Vineyards: Varietal: Sangiovese (80%), Cabernet Sauvignon (20%) Appellation: Stags Leap District, Napa Style: Medium bodied red Price: $29 Rating: 90 "Where there's smoke_" says Doug Shafer, son of winery founder John Shafer, "Firebreak is both a wine and a vineyard named after a wildfire scorched the hill above the winery (where the vineyard is now planted), revealing a site reminiscent of the rocky vineyards of Tuscany." The family took this cue, planting Sangiovese and some Cabernet Sauvignon, which today serves as a natural deterrent to fire. Firebreak, the wine, is primarily Sangiovese, and characteristically offers spicy, mildly tart flavors. The additional Cabernet Sauvignon provides the backbone, so to speak, making this wine a formidable match to, no pun intended, foods that have felt the grill's flame. There are chalky, earthy flavors to the wine perhaps because of the rocky placement of the vineyard. Try Shafer Firebreak with pizza or tomato splashed pasta. Recent revolution in Italy's Tuscany region resulted in so-called "Super Tuscan" wines made of Chianti's Sangiovese, laced with Cabernet Sauvignon. Shafer Firebreak could be America's "Super Tuscan". Starting Shafer Vineyards in 1972, John Shafer left a 23-year career in the publishing industry to write the book on intensely flavored red wines. Son Doug Shafer, and since 1990, Elias Fernandez make these true to form Stags Leap District wines. Realize that the family had to rip out outdated vineyards on the property dating back to the 1920's. To offer prospective on just how rocky and difficult the property is, consider that the near thirty years of expansion to their 209-acre estate has yielded only 50 acres of vineyards. This family embraces an arduous challenge. Other fine wines from Shafer include the Merlot. This is not your usual soft, jammy Merlot. Instead, Shafer redefined the grape in an attitudinal way. This is a Merlot that thinks it is a Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon. Stags Leap, as a district, produces some of the most concentrated and assertive red wines in all of Napa. Aged in French oak barrels for 18 months, look for intense flavors of plum and black cherry. This should not read that Shafer only excels in big, flavorful red wines. Their white wine contender would be the Red Shoulder Ranch (Carneros District) Chardonnay with massive oak structure balanced lusciously with tropical fruit flavors. "Some of the tropical flavors come from the 20% American oak," says Doug Shafer, lamenting, "this would be a twin to Hillside, if I could." Hillside refers to the benchmark, and highly rationed Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon wine. Known as "Hillside Select", it is truly a derivative of a maniacal selection process resulting in an almost impossible to find, collector's wine. Should fate present you with a bottle, expect rich chocolate, blackberry and currant flavors, enveloped in a wrap of velvet. Shafer Vineyard wines are very difficult to find in wine shops. Finer restaurants have showcased their wines for decades, regretfully leaving little for the shelves. If you can't find a bottle at retail, then seek on your restaurant's wine list. For more great "Wine Guy" suggestions, click here Darryl Beeson, in addition to his duties overseeing the Wine Spectator "Grand Award" wine cellar at the Mansion on Turtle Creek, can be heard weekly as the "Wine Guy", in Dallas, on the James Beard Award nominated KRLD-CBS RADIO1080 "Restaurant Show with Jim White", Sundays from noon until 2pm; and in Denver, on ABC RADIO630-KHOW 's "The Gabby Gourmet" program, Saturdays in the 2:00 PM hour. Do you have any questions, comments or suggestions? Email: jwdineline@aol.com Copyright © 1998 Inter Active Media Solutions. All Rights Reserved. The interactive components of this site require that you use a current browser version of Explorer; be sure to maximize your window out so you can see the entire page. This page was created by Inter Active Media Solutions.