Wine Each Week ~ Shafer 2018 Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay

For a quarter of a century one of the quintessential Chardonnays of the Napa Valley has been Shafer’s Red Shoulder Ranch, located on 68 prime acres near San Pablo Bay and named for the red shouldered hawks that claim the spot as home. The area here is cool, sometimes downright cold, and often breezy, at times utterly windy. Perfect for Chardonnay. Like other vintages before this one, the 2018 shows a beautiful viscosity, with notes of lemon verbena, lime kefir, vanilla, papaya, butterscotch, hints of sandalwood and a mild acidity. The creaminess comes from lees aging, since there is no malo-lactic fermentation. It was then aged in both French Oak and stainless steel. In the early 1990s when Shafer was first making Chardonnay, they used American oak, and they also grew the Chard in the Stag’s Leap District, way too hot for Chardonnay. They have perfected their Carneros Chardonnay and what’s in the bottle is truly an ideal wine, one that celebrates the clarity of California Chardonnay.

ORIGIN: Carneros, California.

ALCOHOL: 14.9%

PRICE: $52 (750ML)

SCORE: 91 POINTS

SHAFER

Wine Each Week: Eighty Four Wines 2017 Gamay Noir

Gamay Noir is a lightweight. Typically this wine (it’s not Pinot Noir) is used for Beaujolais Nouveau a much lighter style of red wine. Gamay Noir is like the stepbrother to Pinot Noir, often more affordable, more fruit driven with softer tannins and acidity and less “Pinot” than Pinot Noir. But in the hands of Doug Shafer and Elias Fernandez of Napa’s iconic Shafer Vineyards, it blossoms into a deeper-lighter red wine. Adding to that - this is the first vintage they made. Pretty damn impressive for a first effort. Just 180 cases were made, a mere 2,160 bottles (minus one for me), so this will disappear soon and if you adore Pinot, then Gamay should be your next consideration. This offers notes of red raspberry, mild strawberry, pomegranate, black cherry, with subtle notes of rose hips, floral accents and what I can only describe as a garden full of wild flowers, supported by delicate sweet vanilla. It’s a lighter, brighter Pinot just in time for your summer red wine drinking.

ORIGIN: Carneros District, Napa Valley, California

ALCOHOL: 14.9%

PRICE: $35/ 750ML

SCORE: 90 POINTS

Eighty Four Wines