2024 Shafer Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay Napa Valley
Shafer’s 2024 Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay is a vibrant expression of its Carneros origins—lush, layered, and impeccably balanced. This luminous Chardonnay fills the glass with elegant aromas of citrus blossom, honeysuckle, and exotic spice. Flinty minerality and bright honeydew melon add lift, while vibrant acidity and lithe structure create a sense of purity and poise. Beautifully balanced, it delivers energy, freshness, and lasting finesse. Claim your bottle today.
“Year in year out, [Shafer] is one of the superstar wineries, not only in Napa Valley and all of California, but in the entire world...Today, this is a winery that does everything about as perfect as can be. They have kept their feet, heads and egos grounded, and continue to kick proverbial ass with every vintage.” – Parker In 1972 John Shafer departed his 23 year career in publishing and moved to the Napa Valley to pursue a second career in wine. Fortuitously, he found a 210 acre parcel in the Stags Leap District and set up shop. His first task at hand was that of replanting the vineyards, some of which dated back to the 1920s. The Shafer family crushed their first Cabernet in 1978 and began building their winery the next year. Needless to say, that first release became not only a benchmark but a legend in its own right. Eventually they expanded their beautiful hillside acreage and in 1983, John's son, Doug Shafer, became winemaker after graduating from U.C. Davis with a degree in enology and viticulture. Since then, Doug has stepped up to becoming the company's president and has passed the winemaking reins over to Elias Fernandez. From their somewhat modest beginnings, Shafer has blossomed into a world-class estate that is nationally and internationally renowned.
James Suckling
This has a lovely core of fruit with aromas of nectarines, grilled lemons and flint. The midweight, textural palate shows balanced acidity, finishing with a slight phenolic grip. Moving out of the cooler 2023 bottling, this is far more generous and open. Drink or hold.
Wine Advocate
For fans of Chardonnay without malolactic fermentation, Shafer's 2024 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch remains a standard-bearer. Ripe pineapple, pear and honeysuckle mark the nose, while the full-bodied palate is loaded with opulent mango fruit that's expansive and lush but brought back into focus on the crisp citrus-and-green-apple finish.
Wine Spectator
Bold and intense, mingling a laser beam of acidity with flavors of ripe, salted melon, mandarin orange, mango puree and apricot at the core. A whiff of fennel pollen, tarragon and dried lemongrass adds aromatic intrigue. Drink now.
Jeb Dunnuck
Based on multiple clones and aged in 30% new French oak with no malolactic fermentation, the 2024 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch was bottled in July and offers tons of tropical fruits, honeysuckle, sweet lemon, and tangerine notes. It's medium-bodied, pure, and nicely balanced, with the fresh, fruity style of the vintage. Drink 2025-2037.