Winemaker Notes
Vine Hill is the vineyard that surrounds the winery. 23 year old dry farmed Chardonnay grown in a deep, sandy subset of the Gold Ridge soil series that seemingly has no bottom. The vines mine the nutrient poor sands to produce a wine of unparalleled energy and verve. One of Kistler's perennial favorites due to its resounding natural acids and low pH which strike a perfect balance with the stone fruit body and notes of toasted hazelnut.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Opulently scented of exotic fruits and spices, the 2014 Chardonnay Vine Hill Road Vineyard offers up notes of ginger and anise over a core of pineapple paste, passion fruit and green guava. The palate is beautifully structured with a lively backbone of acid supporting the rich, seductive fruit, finishing long and creamy.
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Wine Spectator
Exhibits a rich core of creamy fig, apricot, melon and anise flavors, with toasty, mocha-laced oak. Though big and layered, this is also quite elegant and refined, featuring jazzy citrus blossom notes.
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 standout region for its decidedly Californian take on Burgundian varieties, the Russian River Valley is named for the eponymous river that flows through it. While there are warm pockets of the AVA, it is mostly a cool-climate growing region thanks to breezes and fog from the nearby Pacific Ocean.
Chardonnay and Pinot Noir reign supreme in Russian River, with the best examples demonstrating a unique combination of richness and restraint. The cool weather makes Russian River an ideal AVA for sparkling wine production, utilizing the aforementioned varieties. Zinfandel also performs exceptionally well here. Within the Russian River Valley lie the smaller appellations of Chalk Hill and Green Valley. The former, farther from the ocean, is relatively warm, with a focus on red and white Bordeaux varieties. The latter is the coolest, foggiest parcel of the Russian River Valley and is responsible for outstanding Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.