The medium straw/green-hued 1999 Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch exhibits an exotic, leesy, smoky, tropical fruit-scented bouquet, zesty acidity, and copious spicy rich fruit in the long, full-bodied finish. Although it is vibrant and youthful, I prefer drinking these wines during their first 3-4 years of life. There are 7,000 cases of the non-malolactic Chardonnay Red Shoulder Ranch. The fruit is picked extremely ripe, given indigenous yeast fermentation, and aging on its lees for 15 months in a combination of American and French oak. This has been a blockbuster, knock-out effort that is completely different from other non-malolactic California Chardonnays. It possesses good acidity, but tremendous power and richness. Tel. (707) 944-2877; Fax (707) 944-9454

A pear, apple-orange and earth bouquet sets the stage for a palate chockful of pineapple, pear and lemon flavor. Toast notes offset and vibrant acidity uplifts the fruit nicely. The finish is long and tart-sweet with complex leesy, earthy notes. Medium-bodied and restrained, this complex wine shows depth. Give it six months to a year to unfold.——W.E.(7/1/2001)—— 89