2020 Freestone Occidental Pinot Noir
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Tasting notes
The 2020 Pinot Noir Freestone-Occidental is gracious, aromatic and lifted. All the elements are so well balanced in this very pretty, mid-weight Pinot Noir. Crushed red berry fruit, mint, spice, white pepper and dried flowers all grace this exquisite, wonderfully nuanced Pinot. This might be the most remarkable of all the 2020 Pinots at Occidental, as it is technically the entry-level offering and yet is absolutely exquisite!
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Jeb Dunnuck
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The 2020 Pinot Noir Freestone-Occidental is approachable and easy to drink without losing any sense of detail and nuance. It has generous aromas of cranberries, blackberries and blood orange with streaks of forest floor, aniseed and mossy bark. The light-bodied palate is finely chalky and fresh with a concentrated core of expressive fruit, and it has a long finish with a fan of bitters-like spices. It really opens up as it spends time in the glass, so give it a couple of hours in the decanter.
The 2020 Pinot Noir Freestone-Occidental is highly aromatic and has a perfume of incense, all spice, and ripe red cherry fruit. The palate medium-bodied and inviting, with tangy cherry, dried black raspberry, and savory umami herbs. It offers a lot of pleasure now, but it will be fantastic to enjoy over the next 10 or more years. The estate of Steve Kistler and his family in the Bodega Headlands, Occidental is exclusively devoted to the production of coastally influenced Pinot Noir. Kistler was initially drawn to the area after tasting a bottling of Summa Vineyard that expressed a vivid and more cool climate style. Though Occidental was officially founded in 2011, Steve has been planting vineyards and purchasing property in the area since the 1990s and has retained his original cellar team from the past 30 years. His daughter, Catherine Kistler, has been the assistant winemaker since 2017. They are members of the West Sonoma Coast Vintners Association, which was approved as the newest AVA of Sonoma in May of this year.
About the producer
Steve Kistler is a man who needs little introduction. He founded, and – for almost 40 years – made the wines at, Kistler. Since leaving his eponymous estate in 2017, Kistler has been focused exclusively on Occidental, his new, family winery on the outer edges of the Sonoma Coast.