United States · Sonoma

Occidental Wines

Coastal California Pinot Noir from fog-cooled, estate-grown vineyards on a south-facing ridge in the Freestone-Occidental area.

The producer

Occidental Wines farms 85 acres of Pinot Noir on a coastal ridge 400 to 750 feet above sea level. Fog, spring storms and moderated temperatures slow ripening, allowing physiological maturity at lower sugar levels and supporting red-fruited wines with fresh acidity and earthy depth.

Catherine Kistler, winemaker and CEO, works with separate vineyard-block fermentations, native yeasts, free-run wine and gravity transfer into François Frères barrels, 25% new in the current practice. The 2023 Freestone-Occidental is 100% Pinot Noir and entirely estate-grown, with medium body and a textured finish.

Known for

Estate-grown coastal Pinot Noir with early-edge harvest decisions, separate block fermentation, native yeast activity and measured new oak.

Notable facts

The story

The Four Acre Vineyard on Taylor Lane

In 1995, Steve Kistler planted the four-acre Occidental Vineyard on Taylor Lane as part of his experiments with coastal vineyards and Pinot Noir. Sixteen years later, in 2011, he founded the Occidental Pinot Noir brand. The family project later expanded to 85 acres of Pinot Noir in the Freestone-Occidental area. Catherine Kistler joined Occidental full time in 2017, gradually assuming winemaking responsibilities and learning to run the family business. She now serves as winemaker and CEO, while Occidental is wholly owned by Catherine and her sister Elizabeth.

From the atlas

Occidental Wines

At A Glance

Occidental Wines makes California Pinot Noir from 85 acres in the Freestone-Occidental area. Its south-facing ridge, coastal fog and slow ripening shape wines with red fruit, fresh acidity, earthiness and a textured finish. The 2023 Freestone-Occidental, made entirely from estate-grown Pinot Noir, is the clearest bottle to begin with.

The Producer

Steve Kistler founded the Occidental Pinot Noir brand in 2011 after years of working with coastal vineyards. Catherine Kistler joined the project full time in 2017, gradually taking over winemaking responsibilities. She now serves as winemaker and CEO, while Occidental is wholly owned by Catherine and her sister Elizabeth.

That change of hands is visible in the way the wines are made. Occidental remains focused on Pinot Noir from its own vineyards in the Freestone-Occidental area, with each block treated separately so its site character can be preserved through fermentation and ageing.

Place

The Freestone-Occidental area lies in coastal California, where maritime conditions moderate both daytime highs and nighttime lows. Spring storms and persistent fog can reduce yields below two tons per acre, while the long, cool season allows grapes to reach physiological maturity at lower sugar levels.

For Pinot Noir, that combination supports ripe red fruit without forcing an early, hot harvest. The place appears in the bottle as freshness, moderate weight and a profile shaped by the coast more than by sheer warmth.

Soil And Site

Occidental's vineyards sit on a south-facing ridge between 400 and 750 feet. The exposure helps the vines gather sunlight, while elevation and fog keep the growing season slow. Those conditions explain why harvest decisions can remain close to the early edge of ripeness while the grapes still develop mature flavour.

The site also carries risk. Spring weather affects fruit set, and persistent fog can reduce the crop. Lower yields give the cellar less fruit to work with, while the coastal climate keeps acidity present as the grapes ripen.

Story

Occidental began as Steve Kistler's dedicated Pinot Noir project in 2011. Catherine's arrival in 2017 changed the estate's daily leadership: she moved from learning the family business to assuming winemaking, then took on the CEO role. The ownership now sits with Catherine and Elizabeth, keeping the project inside the Kistler family while placing its working decisions with the next generation.

The wine consequence is practical. Occidental's direction remains centred on estate Pinot Noir, coastal vineyards and separate block treatment, with the range built from differences between vineyard sites instead of a broad collection of grapes.

Vineyards And Cellar

Occidental farms sustainably, relying heavily on organic techniques and limiting synthetic inputs. Native cover crops remain between the vines, providing habitat for beneficial insects and helping prevent erosion. Repeated thinning passes prepare the crop for picking at the early edge of ripeness, so fruit arrives with developed flavour and coastal freshness.

In the cellar, each vineyard block ferments separately in two to four ton fermenters, with no intentional cold soak. The fruit warms gradually, native yeasts begin fermentation after seven to nine days, and fermentation finishes in less than three weeks. Only free-run wine is used, and gravity moves it into François Frères barrels, 25% of them new. That approach keeps site differences visible while adding measured oak texture.

Wines

Occidental's range is a focused group of estate-grown coastal Pinot Noirs. Pinot Noir is the confirmed grape throughout the project, and the differences between wines come from vineyard location and block selection. Separate fermentation protects those distinctions before blending and bottling decisions are made.

Freestone-Occidental is the named bottle supported for the 2023 vintage. It is 100% Pinot Noir and entirely estate-grown. Across the range, the intended profile is red-fruited and coastal, with fresh acidity, medium body, earthy notes, a textured palate and a lingering finish. The current barrel practice uses 25% new François Frères oak, adding shape and spice without making oak the main flavour.

In The Glass

The first impression is red fruit, followed by earthier tones that keep the aroma from feeling sweet or simple. On the palate, the wine carries medium body, while fresh acidity from the cool maritime growing season keeps the fruit moving across the mouth.

The texture comes from ripe coastal fruit, separate block handling and the use of free-run wine, with a portion of new barrel ageing adding a gentle woody frame. The finish stays textured and savoury, leaving red fruit and earthiness in place after the acidity has cleared the palate.

A Bottle To Understand It

Start with the 2023 Freestone-Occidental. It is 100% Pinot Noir from Occidental's estate vineyards, so the bottle keeps the link between the producer's ridge, grape and cellar decisions easy to follow. Its red fruit, earthy edge, medium body and textured finish show the coastal style without requiring a tour of several labels first.

The bottle also carries the estate's working method: fruit from the family's own vineyards, block-by-block fermentation, native yeast activity and free-run wine moved by gravity into François Frères barrels. It is a direct expression of what Occidental grows and how Catherine Kistler makes it.

Anecdote

In 1995, Steve Kistler planted a four-acre vineyard on Taylor Lane and called it Occidental Vineyard. The planting came from his continuing interest in coastal vineyards and Pinot Noir, long before the Occidental Pinot Noir brand appeared in 2011. Four acres is a small physical beginning for a project that would later involve 85 acres of family-farmed Pinot Noir in the Freestone-Occidental area. The vineyard gave the name Occidental a place in the landscape before it appeared on the label as a dedicated Pinot Noir brand. Today, the name connects a Taylor Lane planting, a coastal ridge and a family winery built around Pinot Noir.

Final Word

Occidental Wines is a concentrated California Pinot Noir project shaped by fog, slow ripening, estate farming and block-by-block cellar work. The 2023 Freestone-Occidental puts those choices into one bottle with red fruit, acidity, earthiness and a tactile finish.

Sources

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