2019 Chardonnay Carneros Red Shoulder Ranch
Estimated value
Buying options
Tasting notes
Always one of my favorite Chardonnays from Napa, the 2019 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch is no exception and offers a richer, concentrated, yet brilliantly balanced profile that carries classic caramelized citrus, orange, and stone fruits as well as spicy oak and brioche in the background. It’s a serious, concentrated, textured Chardonnay that does everything right. I wish there were more Chardonnay being produced in this style today.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
The 2019 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch is bright, fragrant and light on its feet. Lemon peel, tropical fruit, jasmine and mint lend striking aromatic nuance to a Chardonnay that balances the energy that is typical of this wine today with attractive, exotic accents that add wonderful nuance.
The 2019 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch gallops out with bold scents of ripe yellow apple, spiced pears and beeswax, plus hints of nutmeg, orange blossoms and cedar. Full-bodied with a lively line cutting through the dense stone fruit and spicy flavors, it finishes on a toasty oak note.
Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay is a single-vineyard estate wine that reflects its cool, marine-influenced site in Napa Valley’s Carneros District overlooking San Francisco Bay. Barrel-fermented with ambient yeast and matured for 14 months in a combination of 75% new French oak barrels and 25% stainless-steel barrels. Much fresher than this used to be! With some green streaks and real vitality. Long and satisfying. (JR)
About the producer
The site of Shafer has been around since 1880, and grapes continued to be grown here, even during prohibition. It is said that some wine was made here during that time. In 1972, John Shafer bought the property in the Stag’s Leap district, he immediately began planting the Cabernet on the hillside.