Hartford Family Winery - Forestville, California

Talya F.

Pete is our hero! Beautiful, quaint outdoor space and delicious wines. We all took home some bottles to enjoy. Thank you, Hartford!

Kate R.

We simply cannot get enough Hartford!

We had a large group in from NC and Pete took excellent care of us. The tasting is always fantastic, and the whole Hartford property is so beautiful. We’ve been members since 2017- and certainly one of our favorite wineries in Sonoma. ❤️

Jessica L. P.

Pete was excellent. Gave us so much information about the history and then also about all of the tasting profiles of the wine. We had a blast!

John J.

We had such an amazing experience at Hartford Family. The property was absolutely beautiful. Our host did a great job of going through the history of the Hartford Family and its wines. We were able to taste current and past releases. The wines were very good. We shipped home several and can't wait to drink them with our friends. This is one winery we'll definitely come back and visit again.

Myrna H.

The best experience so far, wines & service are exceptional. Adrian was outstanding, I will definitely be revisiting.

Mark W. (. P.

I had a truly fantastic time at this winery. My girlfriend and I showed up and they went to Great lengths to accommodate us - even though we did not have an appointment and even though they were fully booked for the day (and I can see why).
They were very gracious in giving us a place to sit and serving us their complete selection of red wines. The setting is absolutely gorgeous - this is exactly what you want when you are looking for a wine tasting experience. They are obviously very knowledgeable but surprisingly very approachable. I can't explain to you how much better my experience was here than it has been at most of the elitist Napa wineries. I was happy to support them with a purchase of some of their excellent wine, and I vow to return.

kevin C.

A group of 7 of us went for a tasting on Friday. It was the best experience of any tasting I've ever been to. We had a great host named Pete. He gave us some history but not enough to be boring. Hartford has many excellent wines and we got a few to taste off the menu. Two of three couples signed up for their wine club.
When we were all done they let us stay and have our picnic lunch since they didn't have another tasting after us. We bought a nice Pinot to enjoy with our lunch.
I can't say enough great things about the wine and the hospitality. Next time your in Sonoma don't miss Hartford!

Richard W.

Disappointing. It's a lovely venue with a patio that can provide views over the vines. If you are seated close to the building, as we were, the view is just of the patio.

The tasting cost $40 per person, and included 5 wines. The initial list didn't include a zinfandel as noted explicitly on the website, but fortunately our server substituted one in for a syrah. Our booking was at 3.30pm, and we were finished and leaving at 4pm; wines came quick and fast. Pours were quite meagre compared to some tastings, and yet with the server effectively standing over us waiting to pour the next, we felt quite pressured to either finish or dump what little we had.

In terms of the wines, the two chardonnays were served at room temperature; when questioned about this, we were told they should be served warm, though the surprised look on his face suggested this might not be correct. In any case, the two chardonnays were good, and contrasting—one smooth and oaked, one tart and fruity—and might have been elevated if chilled. The pinot noirs came next: neither from the Russian River region, so a bit disappointed by that (I understand there were fires that limited production, but a major selling point for the place is to try Russian River wines). IMO, the poured pinots had quite an alcoholic taste, which overpowered an initial (and lovely) fruit smell and flavour. Last the zinfandel: again, very strong on the flavour of alcohol, which overpowered the fruit. There are hints of spice, but a drying end note subdues this. The server kindly offered the syrah as well, and if the smell transferred to the palette, we'd have bought quite a few; sadly, and as with most syrahs, any fruit flavour quickly turns to tannin (I'm sure great for some; just not our preference).

So, quite an expensive 30 minutes, and the first time we haven't bought anything at a tasting. Most bottles are priced >$70, but I don't feel this reflects the quality; rather the exclusivity because of smallish batch sizes.