AUBERT Sugar Shack Napa Valley Chardonnay

WA: 95

From the Auberts' home property on the western side of the Rutherford AVA, the 2020 Chardonnay Sugar Shack features intense scents of lime zest, honey and yellow peaches. Full-bodied, rich and ripe, it tightens up on the finish, adding more bright, refreshing citrus notes.

VM: 90

The 2020 Chardonnay Sugar Shack has good depth and plenty of up-front appeal, but the aromatics are a bit muted. There are no hard edges, though. Hints of apricot, tangerine oil, spice and lightly honeyed accent linger. This is another fine showing for the year.

WA: 96

Recently expanded to 2.5 acres, Sugar Shack is at the Aubert's residence, in the western hills of Rutherford. Planted to a selection from Montrachet and farmed by David Abreu, the 2021 Chardonnay Sugar Shack is a full-bodied, rich, concentrated wine laden with notes of peach and melon. It's opulent and lush but with great length and energy on the finish, plus some complex floral-herbal notes reminiscent of flower-shop greens.

VM: 95

The 2021 Chardonnay Sugar Shack offers all the natural intensity that is typical of this site, but in this vintage, married to tons of citrus and saline-driven energy. The Sugar Shack is not one of the most obvious wines in this range, but it exudes persistence, tension and class. There's real textural depth and presence here.

WA: 96

A small vineyard on the site of the Aubert's residence on the western side of Rutherford, Sugar Shack is the warmest site in the portfolio. Farmed by David Abreu's team with careful attention paid to shade cloth and irrigation, the 2022 Chardonnay Sugar Shack shows remarkable freshness given the site and vintage conditions. Crushed stone, lime and tangerine notes mark the nose, while the wine is medium to full-bodied in the mouth, lush and almost pillowy in texture, then bright and vibrant on the lingering finish.

VM: 94

The 2022 Chardonnay Sugar Shack is a powerful wine marked by more of a phenolic textural feel. Dried lemon peel, chamomile, spice and crushed rocks abound. This is an especially savory Chardonnay endowed with real palate presence and tons of class.

WS: 94

This is decidedly spicy, with gingersnap, cardamom cake and candied kumquat flavors that are bold and effusive on a big frame, plus a sleek core of acidity. There’s plenty to admire, with notes of poached pear, apricot pastry and salted caramel singing in harmony on the finish. Drink now through 2040. 817 cases made.  –MW

VN: 94-96

The 2024 Chardonnay Sugar Shack offers tons of immediacy right out of the gate. Orange confit, roasted apple, pastry notes, tropical overtones and a kiss of French oak are dialed up nicely. I imagine this will be one of the Chardonnays that drinks well on the earlier side. There is an exotic side to the Sugar Shack that is hugely appealing.