Hartford Court, Jennifer's Chardonnay, Russian River Valley

Deep gold color. Nose of cumin, turmeric, quince, honeycomb, nougats with subtle notes of candied apple. As the wine opens up notes of toasted hazelnuts become pronounced. On the palate is honey, quince, and baked apple and brown sugar. Medium minus acidity, medium alcohol and body. The finish has some subtle oak but it’s mellow. I wish the finish was a bit longer but otherwise it’s excellent. When I opened the first bottle back upon initial release, I found the …

Lovely, lively, Chardonnay. Stone fruit, medium acid and finish

This heavy and honeyed Chardonnay is still alive, but just barely. Golden yellow in color; full in body; aromas of beeswax, lemon meringue pie (the brown part), and vanillin. Flavors of poached pear, orange marmalade, and toasted almond, with a finish that resembles sugar syrup with a touch of grapefruit. 14.4% alcohol. Give this to a relative who loves KJ Vintner's Reserve, but I wouldn't expect much more.

Just not our type of chard. Way too oaky - sort of a throw-back California chard from a couple of decades ago. That said, we appreciate that it is a very well-made wine in other respects. After sitting in the fridge half-full for 5 days, it had hardly changed from when originally opened and went pretty well with a wilted spinach salad.

Full bodied and big without being obnoxious. Ripe apple.