2010 Kistler Chardonnay Trenton Roadhouse

Greenish gold. Fresh orange and pear on the highly fragrant nose, with a bright lemon zest quality adding lift. Pliant, gently sweet citrus and orchard fruit flavors show excellent concentration and provide superb palate coverage. Finishes with great clarity and energy, leaving vibrant mineral and floral notes behind. I suspect that this energetic chardonnay will age very gracefully.

Kistler’s 2010 Chardonnay Trenton Roadhouse is one of the bigger, richer wines in this lineup, but at the same time, there is a huge center of minerality running in the fruit. Orange blossoms, nectarines and tropical all make an appearance in this striking, totally exciting Chardonnay. At times, the Trenton Roadhouse appears to have the structure and frame of a red wine, yet all the elements are in the right place. The 2010 is a wonderfully complete, exciting wine from Steve Kistler. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2018. It is always a pleasure to visit with Steve Kistler and his partner Mark Bixler. The 2011s and 2010s are excellent across the board, although I currently have a preference for the 2011s. Vintage 2011 is shaping up beautifully, for both the Chardonnays and Pinots. As was the case throughout the region, the season was cool and slow to develop. The 2011s were picked at lower sugars than is the norm here, but very much in keeping with the personality of the year. Steve Kistler commented that a poor set in 2011 resulted in their lowest crop loads in years. Like a lot of his colleagues, Kistler noted that the experiences of 2010 had a huge positive impact on how he responded to similar challenges in 2011. The 2010 Chardonnays are beautiful across the board. Although solid, the 2010 Pinots aren’t quite at the level of the superb 2009s and I expect, ultimately, the 2011s. It was a tough vintage for the Pinots. Yields were mercilessly low. Sadly, there is no Cuvee Elizabeth, as the little fruit that came in went into the Kistler Vineyard bottling. Tel. (707) 823-5603

Kistler’s 2010 Chardonnay Trenton Roadhouse is one of the bigger, richer wines in this lineup, but at the same time, there is a huge center of minerality running in the fruit. Orange blossoms, nectarines and tropical all make an appearance in this striking, totally exciting Chardonnay. At times, the Trenton Roadhouse appears to have the structure and frame of a red wine, yet all the elements are in the right place. The 2010 is a wonderfully complete, exciting wine from Steve Kistler. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2018. ||It is always a pleasure to visit with Steve Kistler and his partner Mark Bixler. The 2011s and 2010s are excellent across the board, although I currently have a preference for the 2011s. Vintage 2011 is shaping up beautifully, for both the Chardonnays and Pinots. As was the case throughout the region, the season was cool and slow to develop. The 2011s were picked at lower sugars than is the norm here, but very much in keeping with the personality of the year. Steve Kistler commented that a poor set in 2011 resulted in their lowest crop loads in years. Like a lot of his colleagues, Kistler noted that the experiences of 2010 had a huge positive impact on how he responded to similar challenges in 2011. The 2010 Chardonnays are beautiful across the board. Although solid, the 2010 Pinots aren’t quite at the level of the superb 2009s and I expect, ultimately, the 2011s. It was a tough vintage for the Pinots. Yields were mercilessly low. Sadly, there is no Cuvee Elizabeth, as the little fruit that came in went into the Kistler Vineyard bottling.||Tel. (707) 823-5603 Wine Advocate.April, 2013