Winemaker Notes
Bottled since 2009. Straddling a south facing hilltop comprised of Gold ridge soils, like the Vine Hill and Dutton vineyards, but the finest grained sand of any of those sites. A soil influenced Chardonnay noted by vaulted green-orchard and yellow-citrus fruit aromatics, resounding minerality and complex earthy sulfides.
Professional Ratings
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Chardonnay Trenton Roadhouse Vineyard rocks up with effortless notions of pear tart, warm apple pie and lemon curd plus touches of spice cake, croissant, almond butter and lime cordial. Full-bodied, rich and wonderfully harmonious, it delivers incredibly intense stone fruit and spice layers with a very long savory finish.
-
Connoisseurs' Guide
Ever so slightly reserved when measured against the bolder, more forceful wines in Kistler’s 2016 line-up, the Trenton Roadhouse Chardonnay is a precise and beautifully balanced rendition that tips toward refinement while retaining fine fruity potency. That is not to say that it in any way goes wanting for the richness or depth that are hallmarks of most all of its mates, but its richness is of a more subtle sort, and it is both substantial and uncannily light on its feet with the unfettered energy and stamina of a wine that is guaranteed to grow for years yet to come.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
A vast appellation covering Sonoma County’s Pacific coastline, the Sonoma Coast AVA runs all the way from the Mendocino County border, south to the San Pablo Bay. The region can actually be divided into two sections—the actual coastal vineyards, marked by marine soils, cool temperatures and saline ocean breezes—and the warmer, drier vineyards further inland, which are still heavily influenced by the Pacific but not quite with same intensity.
Contained within the appellation are the much smaller Fort Ross-Seaview and Petaluma Gap AVAs.
The Sonoma Coast is highly regarded for elegant Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and, increasingly, cool-climate Syrah. The wines have high acidity, moderate alcohol, firm tannin, and balanced ripeness.