Winemaker Notes
This 25th vintage of Shafer's Chardonnay offers abundant, exotic aromas and flavors of citrus blossom, apricot, pineapple, grapefruit zest, and honeydew melon all held together with seamless structure, elegant balance, and energy that comes from pure, clean acidity.
Professional Ratings
-
Jeb Dunnuck
Tasted out of bottle, the 2018 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch is beautifully done, with a vibrant yet rich style carrying notes of buttered lemon, orange blossom, white flowers, and toasted bread. With bright acidity, terrific overall balance, and a great finish, this is classic Napa Valley Chardonnay to enjoy over the coming 5-7 years. I wouldn't be surprised to see it keep even longer as well.
-
Wine Enthusiast
This robust, full-bodied white holds its weight and pedigree remarkably well, offering an intensely flavored, richly layered experience that seamlessly provides freshness along the way. Apple, cinnamon and nutmeg are complemented by toasted oak and lasting structure.
-
Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: I won't deny that I have an emotional connection with the Shafer wines, but I do. I was there when the winery launched its first Cabernet with the 1978 vintage. As the years went on, and my wine horizons grew, I drifted away from the Napa Valley from time to time. In recent years, I have re-discovered my early days and found myself back. The 2018 Shafer Red Shoulder Chardonnay is an outstanding effort. TASTING NOTES: This wine is focused, driven, and complete. Enjoy its beautiful aromas and flavors of core fruits and minerality with a plate of Dungeness crab and wild greens. (Tasted: February 13, 2020, San Francisco, CA)
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2018 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch bursts from the glass with oak-laced apple pie, peach preserves and ripe pineapple scents plus hints of allspice, candied ginger and praline. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has a gorgeous satiny texture and loads of stone fruit and tropical fruit layers, finishing on a lingering spicy note.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
Known for elegant wines that combine power and finesse, Carneros is set in the rolling hills that straddle the southernmost parts of both Sonoma and Napa counties. The cooling winds from the abutting San Pablo Bay, combined with lots of midday California sunshine, create an ideal environment for producing wines with a perfect balance of crisp acidity and well-ripened fruit.
This cooler pocket of California lends itself to growing Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah. Carneros is an important source of sparkling wines made in the style of Champagne as well.