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Kistler
Kistler 2018 Cuvee Catheleen Chardonnay, Sonoma Valley
$ 225.00
Kistler 2018 Cuvee Cathleen Chardonnay - rare new release.
97+ Points Robert Parker: "The Kistler 2018 Chardonnay Cuvée Cathleen opens slowly on the nose, with toast, iodine and flint to begin, segueing to aromas of apple pie, quince paste, honeycomb, hazelnuts, pastry and loads upon loads of floral nuances. Medium-bodied, it explodes in the mouth, uber silky and packing in more flavor than seems possible, which lingers and is then refreshed by tangy acidity and rocky minerality, finishing extraordinarily long with continually developing flavors. Unbelievable!"
..the single-vineyard wines all represent much smaller quantities of wine. There have been several noticeable changes in the Kistler wines over the last few years, as they are certainly picking the Pinot Noir at an earlier date and going for less extraction, more fragrance and delicacy. The Chardonnays are still powerful wines but they have backed off the new oak to about 40%. (About 10 years ago, it was around 60%.) Other than that they are still potent and rich Chardonnays that are meant to be drunk in their first 4-6 years of life. It is my experience that aging Kistler wine has not been generally as successful as I would have hoped.."
Kistler 2018 Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay, Carneros
$ 149.99
Kistler 2018 Hyde Vineyard Chardonnay - rare new release.
95+ Points Robert Parker: "The Kistler 2018 Chardonnay Hyde Vineyard opens with gunflint and iodine aromas at this stage, with gentler layers of white peach, citrus peel, honey and nuts. In the mouth, it’s medium-bodied and uber silky, with toasty, nutty character, seamless freshness and a long, flinty finish."
...Kistler Vineyards remains one of the absolute benchmark producers of great Sonoma Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, sitting right up there with the highest quality examples of these grapes from throughout the world. While the wines come from as wide a range of top terroirs as Sonoma can provide, interestingly nearly all of the Chardonnays are produced from a proprietary selection of Wente clones taken from a Larry Hyde block in the early 1980s. The exception is the Kistler Vineyard, which contains some original Martin Ray Mount Eden clonal material. This can be found in the straight Kistler Vineyard Chardonnay bottling, as opposed to the Cuvee Cathleen, which is mainly Wente selection. All the vineyard-designate Chardonnays are produced in precisely the same manner, meaning the differences between them are almost exclusively down to the differences in terroir. And as readers will see from my notes, the differences are striking."
Kistler 2018 Kistler Vineyard Chardonnay, Sonoma Valley
$ 199.99
Kistler 2018 Kistler Vineyard Chardonnay - rare new release.
98 Points Robert Parker: "The Kistler 2018 Chardonnay Kistler Vineyard is one of the crown jewels of the Kistler portfolio in 2018. It has open-knit scents of toast, quince, iodine, roasted almonds, perfumed white peaches and honeycomb with loads of white flower perfume and a flinty streak. The palate is medium-bodied and intensely concentrated, giving up layer after layer of nuanced fruits. It has a rocky streak and energetic acidic spine, finishing unbelievably long—the flavors just go on and on. This may be the best wine from Kistler I've ever tasted."
...the single-vineyard wines all represent much smaller quantities of wine. There have been several noticeable changes in the Kistler wines over the last few years, as they are certainly picking the Pinot Noir at an earlier date and going for less extraction, more fragrance and delicacy. The Chardonnays are still powerful wines but they have backed off the new oak to about 40%. (About 10 years ago, it was around 60%.) Other than that they are still potent and rich Chardonnays that are meant to be drunk in their first 4-6 years of life. It is my experience that aging Kistler wine has not been generally as successful as I would have hoped.."
Kistler 2018 Laguna Ridge Vineyard Chardonnay, Russian River Valley MAGNUM (1.5L)
$ 345.00
*Rare 1.5L MAGNUM bottle*
Limited single-vineyard Kistler Chardonnay now available.
95 Points Robert Parker: "The Kistler 2018 Chardonnay Laguna Ridge Vineyard is only bottled in magnum. It has delicate aromas of flint, saline and roasted almonds with wafts of floral perfume over a core of toasty peaches plus hints of quince paste and beeswax. Medium-bodied, it slowly gains amplitude in the mouth, beginning minerally and transforming to toasty, iodine-tinged fruits. It has very fresh, uplifting acidity and finishes incredibly long with shifting flavor layers.
...Kistler Vineyards remains one of the absolute benchmark producers of great Sonoma Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, sitting right up there with the highest quality examples of these grapes from throughout the world. While the wines come from as wide a range of top terroirs as Sonoma can provide, interestingly nearly all of the Chardonnays are produced from a proprietary selection of Wente clones taken from a Larry Hyde block in the early 1980s. The exception is the Kistler Vineyard, which contains some original Martin Ray Mount Eden clonal material. This can be found in the straight Kistler Vineyard Chardonnay bottling, as opposed to the Cuvee Cathleen, which is mainly Wente selection. All the vineyard-designate Chardonnays are produced in precisely the same manner, meaning the differences between them are almost exclusively down to the differences in terroir. And as readers will see from my notes, the differences are striking."
Kistler 2018 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
$ 74.99
Very Limited Kistler Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir.
Kistler Pinot Noirs are produced from field selections originally brought in from Burgundy. Those selections have been propagated in Kistler's vineyards, selected for specific qualities and refined into proprietary materials over the last twenty years. Yields are seldom above 2 tons per acre which is less than most Grand Cru Burgundy.
Our goal in crafting our Pinot Noirs is to capture the elusive Pinot character expressed in each of our exceptional coastal sites. We strive to produce elegant, harmonious wines which are impressive for their purity, balance, and lingering perfume. From these sites there is a progression of color and length of character as we move towards the coast.
Kistler 2019 Les Noisetiers Chardonnay, Sonoma Coast
$ 69.99
New release!
The Kistler 2019 Les Noisetiers Chardonnay is a special blend of wines from Kistler's vineyards.
The Kistler Les Noisetiers is of the same high quality as Kistler's single vineyard chardonnays but, through blending, they are able to create a high quality wine, with a consistent flavor profile. Rich, complex smoky aroma of perfect ripe fruit with a delicious noisette note, in a pleasing, Meursault-like style. In the mouth the wine is very delicious, displaying intense, fruit flavors underpinned with toasty oak and smoky flavors. The crisp acidity in the wine highlights the delicious fruit and makes it an excellent accompaniment to a wide range of foods. It is richly textured with a long, lingering finish.
Winery Notes: The Les Noisetiers is a combination of three Sonoma Coast sites (Vine Hill Vineyard, Dutton Ranch, and Trenton Roadhouse) and emphasizes the area’s sandy Gold Ridge soils. The vinification draws on techniques used in Burgundy. The result is one of the most luxurious and complex white wines made in this county, possessing a minerality rare in New World Chardonnay.
Kistler 2019 Sonoma Mountain Chardonnay
$ 79.00
New release!
The Kistler 2019 Sonoma Mountain Chardonnay is a special blend of wines from Kistler's vineyards.
The Kistler Sonoma Mountain Chardonnay is of the same high quality as Kistler's single vineyard chardonnays but, through blending, they are able to create a high quality wine, with a consistent flavor profile. Rich, complex smoky aroma of perfect ripe fruit with a delicious noisette note, in a pleasing, Meursault-like style. In the mouth the wine is very delicious, displaying intense, fruit flavors underpinned with toasty oak and smoky flavors. The crisp acidity in the wine highlights the delicious fruit and makes it an excellent accompaniment to a wide range of foods. It is richly textured with a long, lingering finish.
Winery Notes: The Kistler plantings on Sonoma Mountain, situated on a hillside bench perfectly suited for growing world class Chardonnay, are interlaced with the rare combination of red volcanic and fine grained chalky soils. The vineyards are planted to California Heritage clones that were selected specifically over the last 30 years to ripen to our balanced wine standards. They are some of the oldest Chardonnay vineyards in Sonoma County. When coupled with the selections in the vineyard the textbook growing conditions afford a wine that is decidedly Sonoma Mountain in character. Annually some of our earliest vineyard pickings each year, this is a wine driven by a grounded, focused mineral core yet lifted by striking ethereal tones of vibrant light fruit raised at elevation.
Occidental 2019 Pinot Noir, Occidental-Freestone (Kistler)
$ 67.00
New Occidental Pinot Noir release from Kistler. Limited.
previous vintage 95+ Points Robert Parker: "The Pinot Noir Freestone-Occidental comes mostly from younger vines at the Occidental property but is made with the same attention to detail as the other wines in the portfolio, using free-run juice. Its nose is an aromatic well, offering crushed blueberries, charcuterie, Earl Grey tea leaves, graphite, saline, bitter orange peel and potpourri aromas. In the mouth, it explodes with lush fruits that give way after their initial rush to bitter, citrusy, minerally accents. It has a fine grain, seamless freshness and long, layered finish. It's enjoyable now but will age well over the next five to eight-plus years."
94 Points Antionio Galloni (Vinous): "The 2018 Pinot Noir Freestone Occidental is a truly remarkable wine. Maybe that is the vintage, or the added complexity the vines are acquiring with time, but the 2018 Freestone Occidental makes me incredibly curious to taste the rest of the 2018s. Bright, focused and beautifully sculpted, the 2018 is a wine of total elegance and finesse. Moreover, it captures the savory, energetic, saline style that is so typical of this part of the Sonoma Coast."
Occidental is Steve Kistler's new Pinot Noir project, which is starting essentially as a spin-out from Kistler Vineyards. Steve Kistler remains CEO of Kistler Vineyards and very much in charge of day to day operations. At the same time, Kistler understandably wanted to manage a small project of his own with an eye towards his two younger daughters who will one day run Occidental.
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