2020 Kistler Chardonnay Cuvée Cathleen
| Type of Wine | |
|---|---|
| Country | |
| Region | |
| Appellation | Sonoma County |
| Winery | |
| Vintage | 2020 |
| Grape | |
| Content (Alc) | 0.75 ltr (14%) |
| Drink window | 2024 - 2034 |
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Description
Kistler Vineyards is a small family winery in the Russian River Valley. They have specialized in producing Burgundy type chardonnay and pinot noir wines. The winery was founded in 1978 by the Kistler family. They own some of the very best vineyards in Napa and Sonoma, including Dutton Ranch (Russian River Valley) in Western Sonoma County.
Kistler's chardonnay wines are produced according to the French example. The wines are fully fermented in barriques, using both indigenous and cultured yeasts. After malolactic fermentation, the wines remain on their 'lees' (fine sediment) and are aged in French oak barriques (50% new). After 12-18 months of ageing, the wines are bottled without filtration or clarification.
The Kistler Vineyard Cuvée Cathleen has been bottled since 1998. Made exclusively from fruit from one specific block in the Kistler Vineyard, the only part of the vineyard with red volcanic schist soil that faces the midday sun rather than the morning. Since its planting in 1989, the block stood out and clearly asked for a separate bottling. The Cuvée Cathleen annually produces one of the most classic, complex and complete chardonnays.
The Chardonnay Cuvée Cathleen 2020 offers exceptionally defined, layered aromas: apricot and peach are complemented by notes of dried lilacs and spices, honeycomb, almonds, mandarin orange, tart spice The medium-bodied palate is satiny and seamless, with concentrated, peachy fruit, spicy acidity and a hugely long finish powered by an attractive touch of phenolic texture. It is a rare combination of fruit density on an elegant, harmonious structure.
This powerful wine with ripe aromas calls for similar dishes: dover sole fried in butter with almonds, Bresse chicken with truffle and foie gras, rosé baked veal kidneys with 'moutarde à l'ancienne' cream sauce, turbot or brill with a creamy butter/white wine sauce, monkfish ham with beurre blanc, lobster with vanilla butter.
Specifications
| Type of Wine | White |
|---|---|
| Country | USA |
| Region | Californie |
| Appellation | Sonoma County |
| Winery | Kistler Vineyards |
| Grape | Chardonnay |
| Biological certified | No |
| Natural wine | No |
| Vegan | No |
| Vintage | 2020 |
| Drinking as of | 2024 |
| Drinking till | 2034 |
| Alcohol % | 14 |
| Alcohol free/low | No |
| Content | 0.75 ltr |
| Oak aging | Yes |
| Sparkling | No |
| Dessert wine | No |
| Closure | Cork |
| Parker rating | 98 |
| James Suckling rating | 98 |
| Tasting Profiles | Complex, Droog, Houtgerijpt, Krachtig, Rijk, Rond, Vol, Wit fruit |
| Drink moments | Indruk maken, Lekker luxe, Open haard |
Professional Reviews
Parker
The 2020 Chardonnay Cuvée Cathleen offers exceptionally defined, layered aromas: apricot and peach are complemented by tones of dried lilacs and herbs, honeycomb, almonds, tangerine, pie spices and flinty streaks. The medium-bodied palate is satiny and seamless, with concentrated, peachy fruit, tangy acidity and a tremendously long finish driven by an appealing touch of phenolic texture. It's a rare combination of fruit density carried on an elegant, harmonious structure.
In the spring of 2022, I visited Kistler to taste the 2020s, which were bottled just after Thanksgiving in November of 2021. Annual production is usually around 35,000 cases; in 2020, only 25,000 cases were made. Some cuvées will result in just 500-1,000 cases, winemaker Jason Kesner said. “We were two days away from being able to make Cuvée Natalie, so we got in by the skin of our teeth.” The 2020s will be released in the fall of 2022 and the spring of 2023. He recapped the challenging vintage. “Our country was tearing apart at the seams," he remembered. “It was heartbreaking and emotionally draining. And then to be struck by lightning—we saw lightning bolts hitting the ground the day we were supposed to start picking. Out of pressure comes diamonds.” So far, the wines are showing wonderfully, marrying concentrated, ripe fruit, satiny textures and tangy acidity. “It was an early start to the year,” Kesner said of the 2020 growing season. “There was very inclement weather during bloom, then it got warm and dry. It was a light crop—in some vineyards, the yields were half of normal or even less, so ripening moved quickly. Evenings were cool, so there was great acid retention across the board. The wines are the most compact, dense and tightly wound that I ever recall tasting at Kistler, and that is due to super-low yields.” The fires came on the precipice of harvest. “We were literally due to start with Laguna Pinot Noir the night of the lightning storms,” Kesner said. “I called off the pick because I didn’t want anyone to get electrocuted. We were awoken by thunder and lightning at my house in west Sonoma County, and we saw a bolt strike a fir tree about 400 yards from our house.” The Walbridge fire sparked north of Kistler but took a few days to start dropping smoke onto the vineyards. “Once it started smoking, it was being driven by a northwest wind off the Pacific,” he continued. “Smoke went up and then inland but eventually started to creep closer to us. After six or seven days it started to drop, and we started seeing smoke and ash. We picked Laguna the night after the fires started and pulled the trigger on everything else. We picked Hudson, Trenton, then McCrea and kept right on picking. We condensed the harvest from our normal 10 days to seven days.” Despite the speed of harvest, some of the grapes that go into the Sonoma Coast bottlings were lost. Kesner says those vineyards tend to ripen a bit later, and the grapes just weren’t ready. “I saw that the likelihood we would use the fruit was nil. I don’t want to treat anything except with sulfur additions—the prospect of treating wine is completely foreign to me, and there are certain winemaking processes I don’t want to learn about,” he quipped. “So, we fermented the wine in barrel, sold it and destroyed the barrels. The financial impact was significant, but that was the cost of doing business in 2020.” Chardonnay was also harvested quickly, and on the early side for Kistler, Kesner said, adding that “with the early start and low crops, everything was ready to pick. Natalie was picked about two days before we would have normally picked it. It’s fascinating because I learned something—maybe moving forward, we pick a day earlier.” In the cellar, Pinot Noir grapes were 100% destemmed, no press wine was used and the wines were not pumped over. Around 38% new oak was used for both Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. “Despite the chaos, the numbers were as close to perfection as you could get,” Kesner said wistfully. “It was uncanny. The 2020s are so dense and concentrated, it’s almost like they have been reduced down to their primal essence because many of these vineyards produced half of what they normally would.” The 2020 Chardonnays even have a noticeably concentrated, vibrant golden color. I asked Kesner how the 2020 vintage may have changed his view of agriculture in California. “Having grown up here since I was about 10, late fall has always been fire season,” he explained. “Thankfully, we have started pulling the trigger on the earlier side in general as we increase our focus on natural acidity and pH.” Kistler recently began planting a new nine-acre vineyard two ridges in from the Pacific Ocean in the town of Freestone. “It’s an obvious place for Pinot Noir, but we are planting Chardonnay there instead. Pinot Noir has a shorter window of ripeness, and I don’t want any late-season Pinot Noir. It’s just too risky.” Kistler is also forming a fire brigade to protect its structures in the future. “It’s part of our reality now,” Kesner notes matter-of-factly. “We are in a mega-drought. We have to lean into it.” Kesner, his vineyard manager, assistant winemaker and equipment manager will be taking a 100-hour course and physical tests to become class one firefighters. “I’ll have my firefighting card, and if winemaking doesn’t work out, maybe I can get a job at Calfire," Kesner said cynically—or maybe with hope for the future.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua...
James Suckling
KISTLER CHARDONNAY SONOMA COUNTY SONOMA VALLEY KISTLER VINEYARD CUVÉE CATHLEEN 2020
Tuesday, August 9, 2022
CountryUnited States
RegionCalifornia
Vintage2020
CHECK PRICE
DOWNLOAD SHELFTALKER
Score
98
Delicate yet really complex nose of orange peel, brioche, crushed sage and baked pear. Full-bodied, but soft in approach. So much going on. Powdery tannins are soaked in toasted citrus, hazelnuts, chalk and herbs. There’s a lot to unpack here. Layered and long. It’s tasting beautifully now, but this really needs time to show its true potential. Best after 2025.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua...
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Wijnhuis
Kistler Vineyards is a small family winery in the Russian River Valley. They have specialized in producing Burgundy type Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The winery was founded in 1978 by the Kistler family. They own some of the very best vineyards in Napa and Sonoma, including Dutton Ranch (Russian River Valley) in Western Sonoma County. The winery was founded in 1978 by Steve Kistler and Mark Bixler. Kistler Vineyards has built a reputation for its dedication to making wines that express the unique terroir of the various vineyards from which they come.
Kistler's production
Kistler is best known for its Chardonnay and Pinot Noirs, which consistently receive high scores and critical acclaim. The winery produces a range of single-vineyard Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, often named after the vineyard the grapes come from. Some of the well-known vineyards Kistler works with include Dutton Ranch, Hudson Vineyard and Cuvee Cathleen. Kistler follows a winemaking philosophy with minimal intervention, with the aim of bringing out the natural qualities of the grapes and the vineyard in the wines. They use traditional winemaking techniques and often ferment their wines with native yeasts. Kistler wines are produced in relatively small quantities, making them highly sought after by collectors and wine enthusiasts. The limited production contributes to their exclusivity. In recent years, the winery has transitioned to using biodynamic farming methods in some of its vineyards. This holistic approach to farming aims to improve the health and vitality of the vineyards and grapes.
Kistler Vineyards is a small family winery in the Russian River Valley. They have specialized in producing Burgundy type chardonnay and pinot noir wines. The winery was founded in 1978 by the Kistler family. They own some of the very best vineyards in Napa and Sonoma, including Dutton Ranch (Russian River Valley) in Western Sonoma County.
Kistler's chardonnay wines are produced according to the French example. The wines are fully fermented in barriques, using both indigenous and cultured yeasts. After malolactic fermentation, the wines remain on their 'lees' (fine sediment) and are aged in French oak barriques (50% new). After 12-18 months of ageing, the wines are bottled without filtration or clarification.
The Kistler Vineyard Cuvée Cathleen has been bottled since 1998. Made exclusively from fruit from one specific block in the Kistler Vineyard, the only part of the vineyard with red volcanic schist soil that faces the midday sun rather than the morning. Since its planting in 1989, the block stood out and clearly asked for a separate bottling. The Cuvée Cathleen annually produces one of the most classic, complex and complete chardonnays.
The Chardonnay Cuvée Cathleen 2020 offers exceptionally defined, layered aromas: apricot and peach are complemented by notes of dried lilacs and spices, honeycomb, almonds, mandarin orange, tart spice The medium-bodied palate is satiny and seamless, with concentrated, peachy fruit, spicy acidity and a hugely long finish powered by an attractive touch of phenolic texture. It is a rare combination of fruit density on an elegant, harmonious structure.
This powerful wine with ripe aromas calls for similar dishes: dover sole fried in butter with almonds, Bresse chicken with truffle and foie gras, rosé baked veal kidneys with 'moutarde à l'ancienne' cream sauce, turbot or brill with a creamy butter/white wine sauce, monkfish ham with beurre blanc, lobster with vanilla butter.
| Type of Wine | White |
|---|---|
| Country | USA |
| Region | Californie |
| Appellation | Sonoma County |
| Winery | Kistler Vineyards |
| Grape | Chardonnay |
| Biological certified | No |
| Natural wine | No |
| Vegan | No |
| Vintage | 2020 |
| Drinking as of | 2024 |
| Drinking till | 2034 |
| Alcohol % | 14 |
| Alcohol free/low | No |
| Content | 0.75 ltr |
| Oak aging | Yes |
| Sparkling | No |
| Dessert wine | No |
| Closure | Cork |
| Parker rating | 98 |
| James Suckling rating | 98 |
| Tasting Profiles | Complex, Droog, Houtgerijpt, Krachtig, Rijk, Rond, Vol, Wit fruit |
| Drink moments | Indruk maken, Lekker luxe, Open haard |
Parker
The 2020 Chardonnay Cuvée Cathleen offers exceptionally defined, layered aromas: apricot and peach are complemented by tones of dried lilacs and herbs, honeycomb, almonds, tangerine, pie spices and flinty streaks. The medium-bodied palate is satiny and seamless, with concentrated, peachy fruit, tangy acidity and a tremendously long finish driven by an appealing touch of phenolic texture. It's a rare combination of fruit density carried on an elegant, harmonious structure.
In the spring of 2022, I visited Kistler to taste the 2020s, which were bottled just after Thanksgiving in November of 2021. Annual production is usually around 35,000 cases; in 2020, only 25,000 cases were made. Some cuvées will result in just 500-1,000 cases, winemaker Jason Kesner said. “We were two days away from being able to make Cuvée Natalie, so we got in by the skin of our teeth.” The 2020s will be released in the fall of 2022 and the spring of 2023. He recapped the challenging vintage. “Our country was tearing apart at the seams," he remembered. “It was heartbreaking and emotionally draining. And then to be struck by lightning—we saw lightning bolts hitting the ground the day we were supposed to start picking. Out of pressure comes diamonds.” So far, the wines are showing wonderfully, marrying concentrated, ripe fruit, satiny textures and tangy acidity. “It was an early start to the year,” Kesner said of the 2020 growing season. “There was very inclement weather during bloom, then it got warm and dry. It was a light crop—in some vineyards, the yields were half of normal or even less, so ripening moved quickly. Evenings were cool, so there was great acid retention across the board. The wines are the most compact, dense and tightly wound that I ever recall tasting at Kistler, and that is due to super-low yields.” The fires came on the precipice of harvest. “We were literally due to start with Laguna Pinot Noir the night of the lightning storms,” Kesner said. “I called off the pick because I didn’t want anyone to get electrocuted. We were awoken by thunder and lightning at my house in west Sonoma County, and we saw a bolt strike a fir tree about 400 yards from our house.” The Walbridge fire sparked north of Kistler but took a few days to start dropping smoke onto the vineyards. “Once it started smoking, it was being driven by a northwest wind off the Pacific,” he continued. “Smoke went up and then inland but eventually started to creep closer to us. After six or seven days it started to drop, and we started seeing smoke and ash. We picked Laguna the night after the fires started and pulled the trigger on everything else. We picked Hudson, Trenton, then McCrea and kept right on picking. We condensed the harvest from our normal 10 days to seven days.” Despite the speed of harvest, some of the grapes that go into the Sonoma Coast bottlings were lost. Kesner says those vineyards tend to ripen a bit later, and the grapes just weren’t ready. “I saw that the likelihood we would use the fruit was nil. I don’t want to treat anything except with sulfur additions—the prospect of treating wine is completely foreign to me, and there are certain winemaking processes I don’t want to learn about,” he quipped. “So, we fermented the wine in barrel, sold it and destroyed the barrels. The financial impact was significant, but that was the cost of doing business in 2020.” Chardonnay was also harvested quickly, and on the early side for Kistler, Kesner said, adding that “with the early start and low crops, everything was ready to pick. Natalie was picked about two days before we would have normally picked it. It’s fascinating because I learned something—maybe moving forward, we pick a day earlier.” In the cellar, Pinot Noir grapes were 100% destemmed, no press wine was used and the wines were not pumped over. Around 38% new oak was used for both Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. “Despite the chaos, the numbers were as close to perfection as you could get,” Kesner said wistfully. “It was uncanny. The 2020s are so dense and concentrated, it’s almost like they have been reduced down to their primal essence because many of these vineyards produced half of what they normally would.” The 2020 Chardonnays even have a noticeably concentrated, vibrant golden color. I asked Kesner how the 2020 vintage may have changed his view of agriculture in California. “Having grown up here since I was about 10, late fall has always been fire season,” he explained. “Thankfully, we have started pulling the trigger on the earlier side in general as we increase our focus on natural acidity and pH.” Kistler recently began planting a new nine-acre vineyard two ridges in from the Pacific Ocean in the town of Freestone. “It’s an obvious place for Pinot Noir, but we are planting Chardonnay there instead. Pinot Noir has a shorter window of ripeness, and I don’t want any late-season Pinot Noir. It’s just too risky.” Kistler is also forming a fire brigade to protect its structures in the future. “It’s part of our reality now,” Kesner notes matter-of-factly. “We are in a mega-drought. We have to lean into it.” Kesner, his vineyard manager, assistant winemaker and equipment manager will be taking a 100-hour course and physical tests to become class one firefighters. “I’ll have my firefighting card, and if winemaking doesn’t work out, maybe I can get a job at Calfire," Kesner said cynically—or maybe with hope for the future.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua...
James Suckling
KISTLER CHARDONNAY SONOMA COUNTY SONOMA VALLEY KISTLER VINEYARD CUVÉE CATHLEEN 2020
Tuesday, August 9, 2022
CountryUnited States
RegionCalifornia
Vintage2020
CHECK PRICE
DOWNLOAD SHELFTALKER
Score
98
Delicate yet really complex nose of orange peel, brioche, crushed sage and baked pear. Full-bodied, but soft in approach. So much going on. Powdery tannins are soaked in toasted citrus, hazelnuts, chalk and herbs. There’s a lot to unpack here. Layered and long. It’s tasting beautifully now, but this really needs time to show its true potential. Best after 2025.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua...
Exclusive Content
Sign in to unlock professional wine reviews from world-renowned critics
Kistler Vineyards is a small family winery in the Russian River Valley. They have specialized in producing Burgundy type Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The winery was founded in 1978 by the Kistler family. They own some of the very best vineyards in Napa and Sonoma, including Dutton Ranch (Russian River Valley) in Western Sonoma County. The winery was founded in 1978 by Steve Kistler and Mark Bixler. Kistler Vineyards has built a reputation for its dedication to making wines that express the unique terroir of the various vineyards from which they come.
Kistler's production
Kistler is best known for its Chardonnay and Pinot Noirs, which consistently receive high scores and critical acclaim. The winery produces a range of single-vineyard Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, often named after the vineyard the grapes come from. Some of the well-known vineyards Kistler works with include Dutton Ranch, Hudson Vineyard and Cuvee Cathleen. Kistler follows a winemaking philosophy with minimal intervention, with the aim of bringing out the natural qualities of the grapes and the vineyard in the wines. They use traditional winemaking techniques and often ferment their wines with native yeasts. Kistler wines are produced in relatively small quantities, making them highly sought after by collectors and wine enthusiasts. The limited production contributes to their exclusivity. In recent years, the winery has transitioned to using biodynamic farming methods in some of its vineyards. This holistic approach to farming aims to improve the health and vitality of the vineyards and grapes.
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