Medium ruby-purple, the 2018 Pinot Noir Cuvée Natalie Silver Belt Vineyard has a gorgeous, classically Kistler nose: crushed cranberries, blackberries and rhubarb with nuances of violets, dried tobacco, underbrush and blood orange peel—it’s like staring into a well of archetypal Pinot Noir with all its ripe berry fruit and bitters-tinged accents. The palate is medium-bodied and offers up all the flavor layers in the Pinot Noir toolbox, but with expert restraint, the fruit making way for the amaro accents. It has a silky texture and very fine grain, with seamless freshness and a very long, very nuanced finish.

There are two Pinot Noirs from this great estate, and while they ferment at higher temperatures and quickly with their Chardonnay, they take the opposite approach with their reds. These were both destemmed and brought up in 40% new French oak. The 2018 Pinot Noir Cuvee Natalie is the more delicate, cool-climate styled release and offers a beautiful perfume of redcurrants, black raspberries, rose petals, gunpowder, and forest notes. Medium-bodied, elegant, and beautifully balanced, it will evolve for 10-15 years or more.

The 2018 Pinot Noir Silver Belt Vineyard Cuvée Natalie opens with a burst of ripe red/purplish berry fruit. Iron, game, savory herbs and rose petal add layers of intrigue. Overall, though the Cuvée Natalie remains a bit austere and unyielding. The aromatics are quite expressive, and yet the wine is far less forthcoming on the palate. Star anise, blood orange and spice give the 2018 an attractive exotic quality. It will be interesting to see if the 2018 comes together a bit more fully with time in bottle.