Community Tasting Notes 5

• bdhanna Likes this wine: 92 points

  October 9, 2023 - Still tasting great !! At peak !!
  Perfect cork after over a dozen years in the bottle, easily removed. Consumed with friends at dinner. A beautiful dark burgundy color with minor oxidation and good clarity. Aromas of black cherry, raspberries, and pomegranate. Expressive flavors of red berries, currant, and spice that includes a long to medium finish of marine soil and forest floor. Arrendell Vineyard sits in arguably the coldest spot in the Green Valley of the Russian River Valley AVA. Each year this old-vine Pinot Noir vineyard, which was planted to Martini clone in 1975, struggles to ripen the one-ton/acre crop of old heirloom Pinot Noir selections by Halloween. One of the coldest sites in the Russian River Valley and has been called the “snowshoe vineyard” because in wet years, workers need to wear snowshoes to get through the muddy rows of vines. The cold meso-climate that results from cool air settling in this low-lying vineyard preserves natural acidity in the grapes and helps preserve the purity expression of the unique, terroir in this wine. Natural acidity and density of distinct flavors that result from these adverse conditions also heightens the potential for extended aging of Arrendell Vineyard Pinot Noir bottlings. Wood from this vineyard has been sent to UCD to get a virus-free field selection version. This very balanced Pinot Noir was made by winemaker Jeff Mangahas who left in late 2011 to go to Williams Selyem. The vineyard manager is Walt Chavoor. The wine has aged beautifully and may have years of life remaining if properly cellared. I have no bottles of this vintage remaining in my cellar.

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• Jjarriel Likes this wine: 92 points

  February 18, 2021 - I loved this - a subtle, lighter , but still fruit forward Californian Pinot Noir at it's best. No way this was at the end of it's drinking window - this could go a few more years easily.

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• kcp Likes this wine: 92 points

  October 22, 2017 - Good, rich and complex Arrendell.

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• Jmac56 Likes this wine: 90 points

  January 20, 2016 - Nice full bodied wine but missing cherry and other pinot character

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• Hebrew Hammer wrote: 93 points

  May 9, 2015 - - Garnet color.

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Pro Reviews 2

Wine Definition

• Vintage 2010
• Type Red
• Producer Hartford / Hartford Court
• Varietal Pinot Noir
• Designation n/a
• Vineyard Arrendell Vineyard
• Country USA
• Region California
• SubRegion Sonoma County
• Appellation Russian River Valley

Community Holdings

• Pending Delivery 0 (0%)
• In Cellars 38 (27%)
• Consumed 103 (73%)

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