#For honor steel farming 2019 full#

Tasting the вЂ94 Chardonnay barrel lots in the spring of 1995 Doug Shafer, winery president, and Elias Fernandez, winemaker, were very pleased at the depth of fruit in the wine - so much fruit that the Chardonnay called for further barrel aging beyond the typical eight months. After a lengthy, painstaking period of development and planting, they harvested their first fruit in 1994. In 1988 John and Doug Shafer discovered a new home for Chardonnay in the Carneros region of Napa Valley and purchased the property, naming it Red Shoulder Ranch. While the response to those first wines was positive, the Shafer team believed they could do better. In the early days of Shafer Vineyards, the wineryвЂ™s Chardonnay was grown on the Shafer property in Stags Leap District. The crisp, enticing acidity of this Chardonnay speaks to the fact that the wine does not go through malolactic fermentation.

#For honor steel farming 2019 full#

The maturing Chardonnay is kept on the lees a full 15 months, the lees stirred weekly to add a creamy richness to the wine. Seventy-five percent of the barrels are new French oak, 25% are stainless steel. At harvest, the grapes are 100% whole cluster pressed, and the juice is fermented entirely on wild yeast in individual 60-gallon barrels.

The vineyard is planted to five clones of Chardonnay, chosen for their small clusters, low yields, and for the rich, alluring flavors and textures each brings to the finished wine. The local hawks and kestrels reward us for this by keeping the population of vine-damaging gophers naturally under control so no rodent poisons are ever needed, keeping our vines and soils healthy. WeвЂ™ve made their hunting a bit easier by erecting tall perches throughout the property. The vineyard is named to honor the Red-shouldered Hawks who, along with other birds of prey, play a vital role in our sustainable farming practices. Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay is a wine that bears the elegant imprint of its vineyard home вЂ“ 68 acres that roll across the pastoral hill country of Los Carneros, a place where Napa Valley meets the northernmost rim of San Francisco Bay.Д¬ooled by the marine breezes off the Bay, the region has a long, steady growing season well-suited to growing superior quality Chardonnay.