Hartford Family Winery was founded in 1994 as a result of Don and Jennifer Hartford’s appreciation for the wines, the people, and the unique vineyards near their Russian River Valley home. Located in the Sonoma County town of Forestville, the winery is about 15 miles from the cool Pacific Coast. Jeff Stewart is the Hartford Family Winemaker.
Purple in color. 15.3% ABV. Sublime nose of red and blue fruits, black licorice and white pepper. Full bodied with mouth watering acidity. Rich, lush and silky. Boysenberry, blueberry, raspberry liqueur and pepper on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. Incredibly plush and polished Zinfandel and a great reflection of the ’18 vintage. Best over the next 3-5 years.
My rating: 94 points.
Hartford is on a great run with their Russian River Valley Old Vine Zinfandel since the ’14 vintage. It is now a must buy for me every vintage. The ’19 version, at $40 or so a bottle, is worth the hunt.
Great notes, Tom. The ’18 is $34 at my local Total Wine and is just excellent. It being RRV, the slightly cool climate comes through. Sort of like how Ridge’s Pagani Ranch bottling showcases the range of fruit aromas and flavors of its microclimate in the Sonoma Valley. Agree the Hartford Old Vines is a go-to, must buy year, in year out. Cheers!
I’m in Vegas for a few days and actually picked this up at Total Wine. Cheers!
Tom, the last time I purchased this was two years ago in North Las Vegas on a work trip and the ’15 vintage made my trip. Yeah, yeah, it was served with In-N-Out Burger but hey, I’m an East Coaster.