2023 Kistler Vineyard Chardonnay
Notes
Green-tinged pale yellow. Delicately perfumed, of white spring morning flowers, just ripe stone fruit both skins and flesh, and nuanced mineral tones that hint of wet rock. Its soft grip on the palate due to its uncommon to Chardonnay tannins, speaks with a bold voice of its hillside heritage. That grip drives its one-of-a-kind tactile nature through the center of the green fruited body and on to the ending finish which leaves lasting impressions. A one-of-a-kind vineyard of dry farmed, mountain top Chardonnay that produces quite singular wines and annually two of our most heralded.
Reviews
100
Lisa Perrotti-Brown
The 2023 Chardonnay Kistler Vineyard comes from the original 1979 plantings on St Georges rootstock. It races out with intense notes of apple butter, pineapple upside-down cake, and passion fruit, giving way to nuances of lemon zest, fresh ginger, and Marcona almonds. The full-bodied palate delivers fantastically intense, tightly wound layers of tropical and citrus fruit with loads of savory accents and a creamy texture, finishing epically long and with a refreshing lift.
98
Jim Gordon
An ultra-concentrated, full-bodied wine that's elegant, ethereal in texture and so soothing and rich to sip. A touch of tannin adds some grip, while vivid acidity, minerals and generous citrus, apple and lemon blossom flavors dominate the palate. Rather tight and closed at this young age. Made from mountain-grown vines at 1,400 feet elevation in the Mayacamas Mountains. Best from 2030.
96
Audrey Frick
The 2023 Chardonnay Kistler Vineyard is from the Sonoma Valley and pours a deeper youthful golden hue. Ripe with poached golden apples, baking spice, wild fresh herbs, dark stones, and peach, it’s full-bodied and rounded, with a ripe, stone-fruited texture and elegant baking spice and vanilla on the finish. Drink 2025-2035.
97
Antonio Galloni
The 2023 Chardonnay Kistler Vineyard is so beguiling. Aromatic, layered and wonderfully detailed, the Kistler Vineyard Chardonnay is a standout. All the elements are well balanced. Dried herbs, chamomile, graphite and crushed flowers are some of the notes that start to emerge with a bit of time in the glass. The complexity and dynamic energy here are so palpable.
97
Erin Brooks
The 2023 Chardonnay Kistler Vineyard is incredibly expressive! The nose is bursting with singular scents of oystershell, citrus oil, honey, peach and orange blossoms. The medium-bodied palate is equally complex. It offers concentrated and detailed saline and citrus flavors made shimmery by racy acidity, and it has a very long, dynamic finish.