Occidental Wine Offer

Last Friday, we were fortunate enough to have Catherine Kistler join us at Mayacama to pour five of her beautiful Occidental Pinot Noirs alongside a stunningly paired dinner by Chef Matt Enjaian. Wow, Chef did a great job pairing Salmon Crudo, Duck Tagliatelle, and Lamb Saddle with Catherine’s stellar, delicate cool-climate Pinots. Her wines were really shining—absolutely lovely. We’re talking not just dancing with, but standing up to, and even lifting, some of the heartier fare. During early discussions with Chef and Catherine, kicking around which wines to pour and how to pair them, I’ll admit it, I voiced concern, if not downright confusion. How the HECK are we supposed to do a complete dinner paired with FIVE Pinot Noirs? How can we pair a salmon crudo and a lamb saddle solely with Pinot? Just how is THAT supposed to work? Can you tell me that, HUH? But Catherine and Chef were right, OF COURSE; and they were more than right; it didn’t just work, it ROCKED.

It takes something special for a wine to pull off the kind of magic needed to pair equally well with something as light as Salmon Crudo and something as dark and brooding as Lamb Saddle. It’s a big thing for Catherine and her Occidental wines to do that; but do that, they did. Both Catherine and her wines have been making a name for themselves. I can’t imagine it would be easy to get started in the wine industry with a last name like Kistler—it must be a steep hill to climb, with so many expectations to live up to—but Catherine is clearly doing it, doing it well, and forging her own path. Since joining the team in 2017 and assuming the title of Winemaker and CEO in 2022, these wines have never been better and, as we saw with the 2021 Bodega Ridge, they just keep improving with time in bottle.

On the heels of a French Burgundy offer, it’s refreshing to present California Pinot Noirs that can be every bit as compelling as these. Referring to cool-climate Pinots like Occidental as “Burgundian” is the obvious allusion, but it bothers me. It really rankles me, and I try not to do that whenever possible. It’s just not fair to either party, besides being solidly untrue. As the Bard tells us, “Comparisons are odious.” Lisa Simpson of The Simpsons once pointed out, “The something of something, is the nothing of nothing.” Both of these philosophers are really onto something. California is not Burgundy, and Burgundy is not California. And, if I can shout and whisper at the same time, by all that is holy, I DON'T WANT THEM TO BE THE SAME. Even Mick Jagger sings to us, “Thank you for your wine, California. Thank you for your sweet and bitter fruits.” Mick Jagger and The Stones hung out on St. Jean Cap Ferrat in the French Mediterranean, but they SANG about California wine. So, take THAT, Burgundy…

And so, somewhere between The Stones, The Simpsons, and Shakespeare, we come to these terrific, stand out, and stand on their own, cool climate Pinot Noirs.

There’s an immediacy on the nose of this wine. Fruit without “fruit bomb.” The oft-cited elegance with power. This is NOT the lesser wine to its counterparts, it understands the assignment. It’s lithe, with the depth of solid fruit. The acidity and structure keep it honest, but still hedonistic.

Darker fruits emerge here. Planted in 1999 by Steve Kistler, the fruit from this vineyard is usually the first harvested, but the longest fermentation. Purple, with hints of whispers and secrets. Whispered tales somehow ring truer when you can FEEL the teller speak...

Defiant. Structured mid-palate. Stands with Fist. The Pinot Noir that stood its ground with the Lamb Saddle. Some wines demand you to wrap your head around them, not the other way around.

Not tasted at the First Friday Pour, only shared at the Winemaker Dinner. Glowing with that indefinable reason for which we age Pinot Noir. For the cognoscenti, alone. Only three cases available.

Thank you, as always, for supporting the Mayacama wine program. We’re excited to share these wines with our Members, and I’m always happy to talk through the selections or help with your order. Don’t hesitate to reach out.

Cheers!

Jared Hooper, Wine Director

WINES BEING OFFERED: (3-bottle minimums per wine)

Occidental, Pinot Noir, Freestone-Occidental, Sonoma Coast 2024 $75

Occidental, Pinot Noir, Occidental Station Vineyard, Sonoma Coast 2023 $125

Occidental, Pinot Noir, Bodega Headlands Vineyard, "Cuvée Elizabeth," Sonoma Coast 2022 $125

Occidental, Pinot Noir, Bodega Ridge Vineyard, Sonoma Coast 2021 $125