Description
96
Wine Advocate
Review Date: 12/2014
An outrageously superb effort, the 2012 Pinot Noir Far Coast Vineyard sees 25% new oak. It offers a flowery, black cherry, forest floor and underbrush-scented bouquet. Deep, full-bodied, stunningly concentrated, pure, rich and expansive on the palate, this knock-out wine should drink well for 10 years. Part of the Jackson Family empire, Hartford Court is run with incredible enthusiasm and competence by Don Hartford and his winemaker, Jeff Stewart. One of the bright shining stars in California winedom, their Chardonnays are clearly Burgundian, but with sensational purity and ripeness. The Pinot Noirs are among the finest of Northern California, and Hartford Court’s Zinfandels rank alongside such top Zinfandel producers as Turley, Limerick Lane and Carlisle. I tasted six impressive 2013 Chardonnays, which are generally aged for 15 months in 100% French oak, with a range of 33% to 44% new. Bottling is done without fining or filtration. I tasted seven bottled Pinot Noirs from the sensational 2012 vintage. All of them are aged in 100% French oak, with the percentage of new oak ranging from a low of 25% to a high of 40%. Most of these wines spend 16 months in barrel prior to being bottled. In addition to their enviable portfolio of Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, Hartford Court is one of the top Zinfandel specialists in California. The five 2013 Zinfandels I tasted were all bottled early to preserve their fruit and character.
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