2017 Chardonnay Carneros Red Shoulder Ranch
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While the reds get all the attention from this great estate, they also make a sensational Chardonnay. Their 2017 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch comes from the cooler Carneros region, located in the southern part of Napa Valley, and it offers a full-bodied, rich, powerful style that carries loads of white currant and peach fruits as well subtle floral and brioche notes. It’s a classic Napa Valley Chardonnay that blends power and freshness.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
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The 2017 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch is soft, open-knit and pliant, with lovely pineapple, passion fruit and exotic floral character. Done in a pretty laid-back style, with blocked malolactic fermentation, the 2017 is a tasty wine to drink now and over the next handful of years. The 2017 is certainly pleasant, but not an especially adventurous wine.
The 2017 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch is a little closed to begin, revealing notions of warm apricots, apple tart and poached pears plus suggestions of pie crust, crystallized ginger and marzipan. Medium to full-bodied, the palate delivers a racy line cutting through the intense flavors, finishing long and creamy.
The 2017 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch is a very beautiful wine. The warm vintage produced a Chardonnay that is a bit richer and more generous than has become the norm here in recent years, but the style of the wine is unchanged in its citrus and floral driven profile.
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.