Tech Notes
Wine Details
Wine Enthusiast
Decanter
James Suckling
Wine Spectator
Wine Advocate
Jeb Dunnuck
Antonio Galloni
By Shafer Vineyards
2022 TD-9 Cabernet Sauvignon
Background
In 1973, at nearly 50 years of age, John Shafer walked away from corporate America and moved his family to a new home in Napa Valley. He'd never grown grapevines or made wine in his life. His only agricultural experience had been raising flowers in the front yard of the family home in Chicago. After purchasing the family's Napa vineyard, John inherited his first tractor, a 1950s-era TD-9 International Harvester. We named this wine after that TD-9, which he taught himself to drive and maintain, as a symbol of the spirit of risk-taking and adventure that still inspires everything we do at Shafer today. TD-9 is a rich, vibrant expression of some of our favorite Napa Valley vineyards.
Vineyard
Estate vineyards in Napa Valley's Southern Foothills, just south of Stags Leap District and other select Napa Valley sites.
Vintage
The long, sunny 2022 summer created a beautiful growing season. The fruit developed rich color and clean, elegant, pure aromas and flavors.
Tasting Notes
2022 TD-9 fills the glass with aromas and flavors of ripe red plum, lush violet, red and black cherry, rhubarb, and graphite. Balancing opulence and vibrancy, the wine offers vivid tension and is completed by bright acidity and on-point tannins. This vintage will offer evolving and ever more delicate enjoyment with time.
Wine Details
Varietal Composition: 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot, 4% Malbec, 3% Petit Verdot
Harvest Brix: 23.5-25.5 degrees
Cooperage: 18 months in 60-gallon French oak barrels (100% new, Allier and Troncais)
Alcohol: 15.30%
Release Date: September 1, 2024
Winemaker: Elias Fernandez
[Information provided by Shafer Vineyards]
Unit Size | 750.00 ML |
Varietal | Cabernet Sauvignon
|
Vintage | 2022 |
Grape | Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot |
Country | United States |
Region | North Coast |
Shafer 2022 TD9 Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley)
From: Napa Valley, Napa, California, US
Rating: 95
Price: $85
Winery: Shafer
Region: Napa
Alcohol: 15.30%
Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon
Wine Type: Red
Bottle Size: 750 ml
Issue Date: 12/31/2024
A full-bodied while refined Cabernet Sauvignon, the TD9 cuvee delivers the strength and generosity so characteristic of Shafer wine. Aromas and flavors of cassis, ripe blackberries, and freshly cracked pine fill the mouth leading into a lengthy and expressive finish of graphite and warming spices.
Reviewed By: Elaine Chukan Brown
Shafer, TD-9, Napa Valley, California, USA 2022
Tasted by: Jonathan Cristaldi (at Novato, California, 27 Feb 2025)
Drinking Window: 2025 - 2034
Points: 94
Producer: Shafer
Brand: TD-9 Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2022
Wine Type: Still
Colour: Red
Country: USA
Region: California
Appellation: Napa Valley
Sweetness: Dry
Closure: Cork
Alcohol: 15.30%
Body: Full
Oak: Oaked
Grapes: 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Malbec, 18% Merlot
Rich mulberry and raspberry fruit mingle with toasty cedarwood. Medium-bodied with a firm bed of fine-grained tannins, it delivers crunchy red fruits layered with savoury cardamom and coriander accents. As it evolves, more savoury notes of pine forest emerge, complemented by vanilla-laced cherry wood. The supple fruit is beautifully balanced by a well-integrated framework of acid tension, lending freshness and structure.
Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley TD-9 2022
Thursday, Sep 19, 2024
Score: 94
Color: Red
Country: United States
Region: California
Vintage: 2022
So full-bodied, broad and ripe-tasting. It gives a mouthful of indulgent fruit flavors on an agreeable texture. Moderate to full tannins lift dark plum, dried cherry, subtle vanilla bean and cocoa accents. Drink or hold.
Jim Gordon, Executive Editor
Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley TD-9 2022
Score: 91
Price: $85
Wine Type and Color: Red Still
Reviewed By: James Molesworth
Drinkability: Drink now through 2031
Primary Grape: Cabernet Sauvignon
Issue: April 30, 2025
Region: California / Napa / Napa Valley
This lets copious boysenberry and blackberry puree notes glide through, while melted licorice, sweet toast and warmed fruitcake accents fill in through the generous finish. A crowd-pleasing style. Drink now through 2031.
2022 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon TD-9
Rating: 91
Producer: Shafer Vineyards
Wine Region: USA, California, North Coast, Napa Valley
Variety: Cabernet Sauvignon
Color / Type / Sweetness: Red / Table / Dry
Reviewed by: Joe Czerwinski
Drink Date: 2025 - 2035
Named for the tractor acquired with the original property in 1973, Shafer's 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon TD-9 blends fruit from the estate with purchased fruit to provide an entry-level Cabernet Sauvignon. A blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot, 4% Malbec and 3% Petit Verdot, aged in 100% new French oak, it does offer plenty of vanilla and spice shadings to balance the cherry fruit. Full-bodied and velvety-textured, it offers plenty of pleasure for what amounts to a fair price within the Napa scheme of things.
Published: Oct 17, 2024
2022 Shafer Vineyards TD-9
Producer: Shafer Vineyards
Location: USA, California, North Coast, Napa Valley
Color: Red
Rating: 90
Tasting Date: 1/8/2025
Reviewed By: Jeb Dunnuck
Source: The 2022s and 2023s from Napa Valley
The 2022 TD-9 checks in as 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot, 4% Malbec, and the rest Petit Verdot. It has a juicy, lively, medium to full-bodied style to go with pretty red and black fruits, some spicy wood and floral notes, fine tannins, and a great finish.
2022 Cabernet Sauvignon TD-9
Producer: Shafer Vineyards
Place of Origin: United States, Napa Valley, Napa
Color: Red
Grape/Blend: 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot, 4% Malbec, 3% Petit Verdot
Rating: 90
Drinking Window: 2025 - 2030
From: Napa Valley's 2022 and 2023 Cabernet Sauvignons (Dec 2024)
The 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon TD-9 is a pretty wine. Crushed flowers, sweet red berry fruit and sweet spice tones are nicely lifted. This is an especially delicate, aromatic Cabernet Sauvignon that shows the lighter structure of the year.
By: Antonio Galloni on December 2024