KISTLER OCCIDENTAL STATION CUVEE CATHERINE 2007 PINOT NOIR

Steve Kistler’s rich, Burgundy-style Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, from a series of ideally situated vineyards all around Sonoma County, have long been favorites among collectors and restaurant clients. For good reason. Quality has remained high even as production has grown. When the vineyard was founded in 1978, production totaled 3,500 cases per year. Now Kistler produces more than seven times that amount — around 25,000 cases per year. The best bottlings have proven to be excellent mid-term agers and are among the richest and most complex Chardonnays made anywhere — the key is low-tech, hands-off wine making that makes the most of the particular vineyard site plus what each vintage has to offer.