Shafer Relentless 2019 (750ml)
Product price
Description
Syrah takes the lead here, as it has in this bottling from Shafer Vineyards, with a good measure of Petite Sirah (about 11 percent in 2019) filling out the blend. The fruit comes from ridgetop and foothill sites along the Vaca Mountains, just south of the Stags Leap District line in Napa Valley, and the wine spent twenty months in new French oak. It is a serious, structured red built in a richer Napa register than Syrah's old-world cousins, though it never loses its sense of proportion.
A deep purple pour gives way to aromas of kirsch, blackberry, toasted cedar, violets, and the savory, almost charcuterie-like edge that good Syrah can develop, with cracked pepper and scrubby herbs running underneath. The palate is generous and silky, carrying real depth and intensity yet without any sense of weight, the firm, fine-grained tannins keeping everything in line. It finishes long, closing on crushed cocoa and a lift of blood-orange acidity. Still primary and tightly wound, it has the balance to reward years of cellaring.
Product Details
| Category | Wine |
| Color | Red |
| Country | USA |
| Region | California |
| Subregion | Napa Valley |
| Varietal | Shiraz and Syrah |
| Producer | Shafer Vineyards |
| Vintage | 2019 |
| Size | 750 ML |
| Subtype | Still |
Expert Reviews
Powerful and enticing aromas of Kirsch, toasted cedarwood, caramel, and scored herbs draw you into the glass, revealing even more nuances of late-summer mountain scrub brush balanced by springtime violets. Seductively silky Syrah notes of black cherry, blackberry, white pepper, and charcuterie entice the senses. It is a generous wine with a harmoniously soft palate expression balanced by firm, fine-grained tannins, finishing extremely long with crushed cocoa nibs and blood orange acidity. Syrah and Petite Sirah grapes are harvested from ridgetop and foothill sites along the Vaca Mountains, just south of the Stags Leap District AVA border, aged 20 months in 100% new Allier and Tronçais French oak. (Decanter, January 2024)
The 2019 Relentless is mostly Syrah, yet the cuvée always includes a good bit of Petite Sirah, with 11% in the 2019. A deep purple-hued blockbuster of a Syrah, it offers loads of ripe blackberries, ground pepper, sappy herbs, and violet-like aromas and flavors. One of those wines that delivers richness and intensity with no sensation of weight of heaviness, it has terrific balance, ripe tannins, and a great finish. Enjoy bottles over the coming 10-15 years. (Jeb Dunnuck, February 2023)
The 2019 Relentless is a dense, explosive wine. It possesses stunning depth and energy, a combination that works so well here. Naturally the fruit is still very primary, but the 2019 is clearly a wine of tremendous balance and harmony. I can't wait to see how it ages. A closing aromatic flourish rounds things out in style, suggesting a bright future lies ahead. (Vinous, January 2022)