Hartford Family Winery: Impressive Wines from Russian River AVA

by Dan Williams

Robert Parker has commented that "Hartford Family Winery is one of the most impressively run wineries in the Russian River AVA."  Why is that?  Because Don Hartford knows how to find the right spots for growing Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and knows how to coax the most out of those berries!

Pinot Noir is one of the most fickle grapes in the world for wine production.  It’s not like Syrah, in that it can thrive in a wide variety of soils and climates.  No… Pinot Noir is picky.  It only shows its best when it’s in one of a very few specific types of soil, with minimal rain during the growing season, and in cooler regions.  Maybe that’s why Pinot Noir is so revered by consumers and collectors, and certain bottlings of Pinot Noir are among the most expensive wines in the world.

Sonoma County’s Russian River Valley and its surrounding areas are known as having the ability to produce some of the best Pinot Noir (and Chardonnay) in the world.  The cooling influence from the Pacific Ocean combined with the loamy soils that are a mix of sand, clay, and old ocean floor, are an ideal combination for these Burgundian varietals.  Don and Jennifer Hartford fell in love with the Pinot Noirs around their Russian River Valley home and began to learn why these wines were so special.  They found that making delicious wines of high personality is directly related to the difficult locations of their vineyard sources, along with limiting the yields of those vineyards.  "Character through adversity" is an expression that they believe applies to people and grapevines, and surviving adversity builds character, and personality, in both.  Since 1994, the Hartford Family Winery has crafted some of the most thrilling Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays out of Sonoma County and yet they have flown relatively under the radar.  Well… we’re here to change that last part!

The Hartford wines have received VERY high scores in the past few years; scores as high as 97 points from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate.  Recently, we went through much of the lineup, and to say that we were completely floored by this current offering would be an understatement.  We are fortunate to taste a large number of wines here at Hi-Time, but it’s not often that the entire lineup from one winery really makes us “sit up straight and pay attention--" these Hartford wines did just that!

That being said, here’s a list of some of the standout wines from that recent tasting-- including the pictured-at-left Old Vine Zin.  Some of these wines are extremely limited, so you might not want to hesitate!

HARTFORD 2013 CHARDONNAY RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY
$23.95 [228800]
One taste of this Chardonnay, and we were hooked!  This Russian River Valley Chardonnay comes from a collection of small vineyards located throughout the Russian River Valley AVA.  These vineyards are a combination of Hartford Court's estate properties such as Fog Dance, Arrendell and Bloomfield, as well as a handful of neighboring vineyards located in the heart of the Russian River Valley. The sites express the essence of the Russian River Valley by showcasing the best of the sub-regions within this world class AVA.  Aged for 9 months in French oak barrels, the 2013 Hartford Court Russian River Valley Chardonnay offers subtle aromas of jasmine flower, citrus oil, ripe apple and pear.  The elegant aromatics are complemented by fresh kiwi, lemon drop and Pippin apple flavors.  The fruit-focused mid-palate is followed by subtle mineral notes and a hint of crystallized ginger in the finish.


HARTFORD 2013 CHARDONNAY “FOUR HEARTS” RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY $30.99 [228870]
ROBERT PARKER 93 POINTS! – “From the Laguna Ridge sub-region of Russian River, the bottled 2013 Chardonnay Four Hearts Vineyard (1,200 cases made) is fashioned from such older Chardonnay clones as the Wente, Sees and Rued. It displays tremendous acidity, wonderful ripeness, a leaner, and a more premier cru Chablis-like style than the Three Jacks and Stone Cote cuvées. It should drink well for 5-7 years."

HARTFORD 2012 PINOT NOIR RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY
$27.95 [228860]
It’s hard to find a better Russian River Valley Pinot Noir for the money than this one right here!  This bottling is a mélange of fruit from several key and distinct vineyards from across the valley.  In fact, much of this wine is comprised of barrels from their single-vineyard program!  Aromas of blackberries, boysenberry, nutmeg and smoke are followed by flavors of Bing cherries, wild raspberries, roasted plum and allspice. A compelling & dense entry followed by a sweet and juicy mouthfeel is supported by balanced acidity, fine grain tannins and an intriguingly complex finish.


HARTFORD 2012 PINOT NOIR “HAILEY’S” SONOMA COAST
$65.95 [228850]
ROBERT PARKER 96 POINTS! – “The 2012 Pinot Noir Hailey’s Block comes from a cold, windy area in Green Valley. In reality, it is a sub-portion of the Arrendell Vineyard. The wine, which sees 44% new French oak, possesses stunning intensity as well as notes of spring flowers, raspberries, wild strawberries and sweet black cherries, a medium to full-bodied mouthfeel, and a broad, savory richness. Drink 2015-2025."

HARTFORD 2012 ZINFANDEL “OLD VINE”
RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY $29.99 [228810]
ROBERT PARKER 91 POINTS! – “The 2012 Zinfandel Russian River, their largest production cuvee (over 2,500 cases), was aged in 20% new French oak for nine months, then bottled unfined and unfiltered. It tips the scales at 15% alcohol. It exhibits an opaque blue/purple color along with plenty of briery, berry fruit intermixed with hints of incense, Christmas fruitcake and spice. This exuberant, richly fruity, full-bodied Zin can be drunk over the next 4-5 years.”