The Kistler Russian River Valley Pinot Noir 2024 comes from warmer, more sheltered sites than the estate's Sonoma Coast bottling, giving this pioneering producer's Pinot Noir more depth and dark-fruited richness while still keeping real freshness. It's a fuller, more generous style than its coastal sibling.

Dark cherry and plum sit alongside baking spice and a touch of forest floor, the fruit noticeably riper and denser than in the Sonoma Coast wine. The palate carries real weight through the mid-palate, without losing its lift or turning heavy, the fruit staying vivid throughout.

Tannins are a touch firmer, giving the wine more grip and structure, closing on a long, savoury finish with good persistence.

It suits richer dishes than the coastal wine — duck confit, braised short rib, a mushroom and beef pie, or a firm, nutty cheese.

This is the more food-friendly of the estate's two Pinot Noirs on a cold evening. It's drinking well now, with the structure to hold for a further four to six years and continue building complexity.