An Elegant Summer Wine With A Wild Past; Shafer Vineyards 2000 Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay.

Business & Food/Wine Editors

NAPA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 5, 2002

Shafer Vineyards offers Chardonnay lovers a summer wine that comes by its balance and intensity thanks to something wild -- the yeast that thrive naturally in the winery's Carneros vineyard.

"This is winemaking the way it was done for thousands of years," says Doug Shafer, president, Shafer Vineyards. "By using native yeast, avoiding malolactic fermentation, and giving some extra attention, we're striving to bottle the pure aroma and character of Chardonnay."

Red Shoulder Ranch, Shafer's single-vineyard Chardonnay, is fermented in the barrel using only the native yeast rather than inoculating the wine with cultured yeast from a supplier.

"Native yeast gives the wine a slower, longer fermentation," says winemaker Elias Fernandez. "And for that reason it can be a risky endeavor -- the more you lengthen fermentation, the more things can go wrong. Doing this with any success requires more care and personal attention during those critical early days in the wine's life."

Shafer and Fernandez have evolved a Chardonnay house style, which, unlike many California reserve quality Chardonnays, does not undergo malolactic fermentation. The result is an established style that maximizes the Chardonnay fruit quality and maintains a crisp acidity.

"To achieve a creamy texture we pick our fruit with balance in mind - greater maturity gives us more expansive flavor and fuller aromas. Then, in addition to using the native yeast, we ferment in French and American oak barrels for an extended period, 14 months, and we stir the lees weekly," says Shafer. "The extra time involved is more than made up for with the finish and mouthfeel we're achieving."

As for pairing Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay with food, Shafer offers a wide range based on personal preference.

"We've enjoyed this wine with some very memorable meals of oven-baked poultry, pork, and sea bass," Shafer says. "A couple of years ago at a White House dinner they paired it with tea-smoked pheasant."

Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay derives its name from the red shouldered hawks that perch in the vineyards and keep the gopher population under control. Suggested retail price is $37.