2014 · Velvet Sisters Vineyard Pinot Noir

Founded in 1994 by Don and Jennifer Hartford in Forestville, California, Hartford Court is a family-owned producer led today by their daughter, Hailey Hartford Murray. The winery focuses on limited-edition, single-vineyard Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and old-vine Zinfandel from the Russian River Valley and other cool-climate sites. Its vineyard work is highly site-specific, with detailed soil analysis, block mapping, tailored rootstock and clonal choices, organic practices in several vineyards, dry farming at some sites and deliberately low yields. Winemaking is traditional and hands-on: grapes are hand-picked and sorted, fermented with native yeasts, aged in French oak and often bottled unfined and unfiltered. The resulting wines aim to express the distinctive character of individual vineyards, including old, head-trained Zinfandel sites and challenging coastal locations.