2009 Pinot Noir Cuvee Elisabeth

Bright ruby. Heady, exotic nose delivers an array of red berry, spice and floral qualities, with a bright mineral topnote Graceful, focused red berry and rose pastille flavors show outstanding vivacity, with spicecake and anise flavors contributing complexity. Very pure, mineral-driven pinot with wonderful finishing clarity and lingering florality. This fruit (almost all Calera clone) was picked at 23 degrees Brix, according to Kistler; the yield from the 18 planted acres was only 18 tons. (JR)

The 2009 Pinot Noir Bodega Headlands Cuvee Elizabeth comes across as a bit firmer and less expressive than the Cuvee Catherine. There is a salty, saline quality that runs through the fruit in this powerful, structured wine. Waves of fruit crescendo on the explosive finish. This is a dazzling Pinot Noir, but it will require at least another year or two in bottle to reveal its pedigree. I loved it.

The 2009 Pinot Noir Bodega Headlands Cuvee Elizabeth comes across as a bit firmer and less expressive than the Cuvee Catherine. There is a salty, saline quality that runs through the fruit in this powerful, structured wine. Waves of fruit crescendo on the explosive finish. This is a dazzling Pinot Noir, but it will require at least another year or two in bottle to reveal its pedigree. I loved it. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2021. I was blown away by these wines from Steve Kistler, his partner Mark Bixler and assistant winemaker Jason Kesner. Over the last few years Kistler has refined his approach, as he wasn’t totally satisfied by the way some of his earlier wines had developed in bottle. Today Kistler is picking his Chardonnays at lower Brix levels, using less French oak (with no stirring of the lees) and keeping the wines in barrel for a shorter amount of time, all in an effort to preserve as much freshness as possible. The result is wines that are totally different in style from past years. The Pinots see a maximum of 50% new oak barrels and that number will continue to trend downwards over the next few years. The 2009 harvest started around September 4 for both Chardonnay and Pinot. The 2009s were bottled in December 2010. Unfortunately, I was not able to taste the 2010s, as they had been bottled just prior to my visit. I will taste those wines in October, 2012. A frequent source of frustration among Wine Advocate readers has been the lack of in-the-bottle reviews for Kistler wines. Beginning this year, all wines tasted from barrel will be subsequently reviewed from bottle as well. Readers who haven’t tasted the Kistler wines in some time owe it to themselves to do so. These are some of the most thrilling wines being made in California today. Tel. (707) 823-5603, www.kistlervineyards.com