"I never would have started a winery without a vineyard, since the greatest factor in consistent wine quality is consistent grape quality. And owning your vineyards allows you to maintain consistent quality, year after year. After growing grapes for a number of years, I realized our vineyards had the potential to make outstanding wine. I'd lucked out by selecting a hillside vineyard in what would later become the Stags Leap District, and that's where our Hillside Select Cabernet still comes from today. But as great as the area is for Cabernet, we realized it wasn't the best for Chardonnay. That's when we bought some land in Carneros - our Red Shoulder Ranch." -- John Shafer