Steve Kistler and Mark Bixler believed that ‘remarkable and charactered Chardonnays of site could in fact be grown and produced in California’. This was a notion ahead of its time. And it was on this premise that they established Kistler in 1978. Today, Kistler is undeniably one of the world’s great chardonnay and pinot noir producers.

Kistler is a single clone chardonnay house! One heritage Californian selection is planted across fifteen vineyards from Carneros in the south through Sonoma Valley, Russian River Valley and out to the Sonoma Coast. They are entirely dedicated to the ideal of wines of site resulting in eleven vineyard designated chardonnays with the addition of two, multi-vineyard wines, ‘Sonoma Mountain’ and ‘Les Noisetiers’.

Kistler makes a little pinot noir too. Two heritage selections of pinot noir, originating from a Grand Cru vineyard in Burgundy, provide the outstanding fruit for their wines. There are two vineyard designated pinot noirs along with two, multi-vineyard wines from Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast.

Since the very beginning, they’ve been farmers first. The majority of the land they farm themselves, but the winery wouldn’t be what it is today without their growers and the nature of their relationships. Kistler doesn’t buy fruit in the traditional sense. Instead, they collaborate with their growers, selecting the best soils for the young vines, working closely together to raise these heritage clones. The youngest of these partnerships’ dates back to 1994, but most go back to the late 1970’s. Jason Kesner, Winemaker and President managed Hudson Vineyard and worked with Steve for 8 years before Steve invited him to join Kistler in 2008.

All the chardonnays are fermented in their subterranean barrel chais, where the native yeasts and various biological patinas rule the ecology. Each pinot noir fermentation is watched over, twenty-four hours per day. The fermentations are guided with as little intervention as possible. A gentle touch defines the approach. They watch, take notes, and guide more. There’s no leeway for their hand stacked, French cooperage, air dry aged barrels to be even a quarter inch out of line in their fermentation rooms. Everything must be perfectly in line. It sets the tone and expectation for every move made in the cellars. This is highly thoughtful, meticulously considered winemaking. As Jason notes: ‘The pace colours a lot of how we do things at Kistler, always have and always will.’

www.kistlervineyards.com