2008 Chardonnay Vine Hill Road Vineyard
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Tasting notes
Greenish gold. Highly complex, mineral-driven aromas of fresh nectarine, citrus pith and iodine, along with a hint of smokiness. Supple, broad and impressively concentrated, with pit fruit and mineral flavors showing serious depth and firm acidity adding spine. Boasts an oily, mouthfilling texture but carries no excess weight and finishes with excellent persistence and a firm edge of acidity.
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Average Score
Robert Parker
Robert Parker
More reviews and scores
A sensational effort, the layered, full-bodied 2008 Chardonnay Vine Hill Vineyard exhibits hints of peaches, buttered nuts, white currants, pears and subtle smoke, a rich mouthfeel and a long finish. Not only have the 2008s lived up to or exceeded their potential from last year’s barrel tastings, the 2009s appear to be fabulous as well. Of course, 2008 was a much more challenging vintage and 2009 was a cool year, much like 2005, with slightly lower alcohols and higher yields than the short crop of 2008. All of the 2009 Chardonnays finished with around 14+% alcohol levels and had more minerality than usual. Kistler’s bottled 2008s were all concentrated. The 2008 Chardonnays have the potential to last even longer than the 2009s given the fact that they are even more concentrated than those wines. Tel. (707) 823-5603; Fax (707) 823-6709
A sensational effort, the layered, full-bodied 2008 Chardonnay Vine Hill Vineyard exhibits hints of peaches, buttered nuts, white currants, pears and subtle smoke, a rich mouthfeel and a long finish. ||Not only have the 2008s lived up to or exceeded their potential from last year’s barrel tastings, the 2009s appear to be fabulous as well. Of course, 2008 was a much more challenging vintage and 2009 was a cool year, much like 2005, with slightly lower alcohols and higher yields than the short crop of 2008. All of the 2009 Chardonnays finished with around 14+% alcohol levels and had more minerality than usual. Kistler’s bottled 2008s were all concentrated. The 2008 Chardonnays have the potential to last even longer than the 2009s given the fact that they are even more concentrated than those wines.||Tel. (707) 823-5603; Fax (707) 823-6709 Wine Advocate.February, 2011
About the producer
Kistler’s Chardonnays are some of the world’s most sought-after. This cult Californian producer crafts small volumes of exceptional, rich and generous, yet mineral and precise wines. With almost the entire production sold directly to their mailing list, the wines are also incredibly hard to find.