August 26, 2023 - Winefool Going Away Party and Cellar Depletion (Jack's Bistro - Chicago IL): DOA
September 12, 2019 - Oenetrians Dinner - Still alive and well with just a hint of hazelnuts and big flavor profile. Dried dense orchard fruit with a good spicy frame. Drinking nicely perhaps a tad simple next to the Montrachet. Drink up.
August 4, 2018 - Winebar [4 Whites, 8 Reds, & 7 *shared* wines] from 08/03/18] (Vintage Wines Ltd., San Diego, CA): Storage conditions unclear
From dry farmed vines grown in deep red volcanic ash planted in a small bowl on the western edge of the Mayacama mountains just shy of 1800 ft in elevation;
N: Closed; some butter?
P: Med body; Still nice frt firmed by acidity. For now & the next couple of yrs? My VG+/EXC-. 96 pts WA, 93 Tanzer, & 91 WS.
February 2, 2014 - Good Wine with a Boring Super Bowl (Chez Kailin - Northbrook IL): Still quite vibrant with good stone fruit and just starting to show earthiness, but overall good length, balance and intensity.
February 2, 2014 - Consumed over 1 week. Was big, rich and deep when opened; was still big, rich and deep 1 week later! Was even showing more tropical fruits in the end-peaches, apricots, maybe a hint of pineapple, crème brulee. Surprised how well this held up and even opened up over such a long time. Upgraded my initial score of 92 to 94. That might even be lower than it deserves.
January 22, 2014 - A little over the hill but still drinkable. Golden flavor of apples, oranges, nuts and buttery fruit. Structure broken down - would be better 1 or 2 years earlier.
December 25, 2013 - Oxidizing. Still pretty on the finish but breaking down thereafter.
December 14, 2013 - Well made, as are all Kistler wines, but this one has either lost something or is just made in a greener and leaner style than most Chardonnays that I enjoy. It's not that it's more mineral, although it is closer to a Burgundian profile than a typical rich Chard. But there's a some what medicinal note to the nose, and a fair amount of tangy apple in the flavor profile. Not my thing these days.
November 10, 2013 - Stunning and holding up well at age nine. Flowers, minerals, honey and a touch of oak. Wonderful nose with interesting complexity. Still quite full bodied for a chardonnay.
December 25, 2012 - This, my last bottle of this wine was a touch past it's prime. Golden in color, the wine still had plenty of ripe fruit and very good depth and length but was limited by creeping oxidation. Drink up!