The Taste with Doug Shafer – a Podcast About Wine, Food, and Friends

Please join us in celebrating the podcast's 100th episode! For this milestone we thought it was finally time to bring on our most-requested guest, Doug Shafer.Today, Doug talks about how his father, John Shafer, went from flying B-24 bombers in World War II to buying a vineyard in Napa Valley in late 1972. He talks about how as a 17-year-old he made the adjustment from living in Chicago to life in very rural Napa Valley, and he reveals the early steps and missteps involved in establishing Shafer Vineyards.We bring in surprise questions and stories from Doug's brother, Brad, and his longtime partner in winemaking, Elias Fernandez, as well as a series of thoughtful listener questions.The episode covers a 50-year-span of the Napa Valley story that Doug speaks to from lived experience, weaving it all together with insights, insider storytelling, and a sense of humor.Don't miss an episode we've been looking forward to making for a long time!

Todd Ricard's one-of-a-kind journey to Napa Valley winemaking started in rural Ohio and took him through a stint as an Army satellite operator in Japan. He discovered wine while later stationed near Paso Robles. What started as a way to celebrate weekends quickly turned into a vision for a career.On the Central Coast, he not only pursued a viticulture degree at Cal Poly but also got his hands deeply purple in cellars of all sizes, learning the craft of winemaking.Today, Todd and his team are producing some of the Valley's most high-profile blends at The Prisoner Wine Company, located just a few miles south of our studio. As director of winemaking, he oversees a wide-ranging portfolio of wines including Corrections, Unshackled, and the newest label, Grail.We had a great hour with Todd — don't miss this one!Learn more at: The Prisoner Wine Company

Davie Piña grew up in a long Napa Valley tradition of vineyards and winemaking. He and his brothers ran one of the Valley's first vineyard management companies, helping to drive the enormous changes in Napa's reputation from the 1960s to today. They eventually launched their own family winery, Piña Napa Valley.Davie's family first arrived in Napa in 1850, the same year California became a state. One of his great-grandfathers, Lafayette Stice, was a winemaker at Inglenook in the early 1900s. His sprawling family here includes first-cousin Chuck Wagner, whose family founded and still operates Caymus Vineyards.His stories of vineyard work include how grape growers in the scrappy '60s and '70s would game the system to eek more income out of a profession that offered very slender profit margins. He talks in this episode from personal experience of the joys of working alongside his brothers and being part of Napa's transformation from a rural farming community into a world-class wine region.It's a great ride – enjoy!Learn more:Pina Vineyard ManagementPina Napa Valley

Meghan Zobeck grew up in a Colorado cow town, graduated valedictorian of her senior class, studied for a career in medicine, and after college pivoted to a high-energy job with the Denver Broncos, negotiating player contracts — not your average pathway to Napa Valley winemaking.Her professional career took a new turn while on a getaway to California's Central Coast. Here for the first time Meghan saw vineyards and winemaking up close, which sparked a lasting interest.In this episode we learn about her early home winemaking projects and her first steps in the industry that eventually led to a career in wine in Napa Valley, where she was recently named the director of winemaking at Opus One.It's an amazing journey with one of Napa's brightest lights that we think you'll absolutely enjoy!To learn more visit:Opus OneCamp Wapiyapi (a place close to Meghan's heart)

It's hard to believe that we recently lost Tom Rinaldi. He had a big impact on Napa wine and beyond that was a great friend and a fantastic human being.Tom grew up in San Francisco, where he experienced the Summer of Love —think Janis Joplin and the Grateful Dead. He tasted wine in Napa Valley on motorcycle trips here starting when he was 16.Later, he signed up for the Navy before entering UC Davis where he studied winemaking — and the rest is history. He essentially invented Napa Valley Merlot as we know it today.He was winemaker for Round Hill, Duckhorn, Provenance, Pellet Estate, and others. In this episode we recorded in August of 2020, during those early months of Covid, his sense of adventure was intact and he looked forward to many more vintages to come. We'll miss him.