2000 Chardonnay Carneros Red Shoulder Ranch
Market price
Buying options
Tasting notes
The Red Shoulder Ranch vineyard has recently been replanted, so only 5,000 cases of this Chardonnay have been produced in recent vintages. It is generally a wine to drink during its first 2-3 years of life, as evidenced by the 2000 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch, which is still delicious, but not quite as exuberant and intense as it was only a year ago. It represents another abject lesson in ratings and why tasting notes are important as this wine starts off life superbly, but loses some of its vigor after two years, and needs to be drunk by the age of four. Tel. (707) 944-2877; Fax (707) 944-9454
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
Slightly leesy aromas of peach, papaya, spiced apple, lemon, lime and sage. Brisk and flavorful in the mouth, with tropical fruit and fresh herbal notes. Tactile and dense, with the musque clone and brisk acids giving the wine lovely lift. Finishes spicy and long, with little sign of the near-15% alcohol. In recent years, this has become one of the consistently best non-malolactic chardonnays of the North Coast.
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.