Wine of the week: J. Bucher, 2018 Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, Bucher Vineyard

Pinot noir is a transparent grape: You can taste in the glass the place where it was groomed. This is how vintner John Bucher sees it.

“We source our fruit from multiple sites within our Westside Road vineyard in Healdsburg, and it allows us to focus on the sense of place that pinot expresses so well,” he said.

Bucher and his wife, Diane, are behind our wine of the week winner — the J. Bucher, 2018 Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, Bucher Vineyard, 14.2%, $42. What sets this pinot noir apart is its great concentration of fruit. It has notes of cherry and pomegranate and a hint of cedar. Buoyed by crisp acid, it’s balanced, with a supple texture and a lingering finish.

“We make wines that are approachable early but structurally made to age well,” Bucher said. “We harvest for flavors and strive for balance and food-friendly wines. With the inclusion of many block sites and clones, we craft complex wines with outstanding aromas, flavors, mouth feel and structure.”

Bucher has farmed grapes for 25 years and said he’s tuned into what’s going on in his vineyard. He graduated with a degree in agricultural sciences and management from UC Davis and sells his grapes to esteemed Sonoma County wineries like Williams Selyem, Merry Edwards, Papapietro Perry and Joseph Jewell Wines.

“During the growing season, I’m in the vineyard every day,” he said. “And I work closely with our consulting winemaker Adam Lee to make the best decisions in the vineyard to produce stellar wines at harvest.”

The biggest challenge in grooming the temperamental grape of pinot noir is “getting it right in the vineyard,” Bucher said.

“Monitoring weather conditions during the growing season, especially as we near harvest, is a very important part of growing grapes and especially pinot noir,” he said. “Although pinot noir is challenging to grow, the most gratifying part is enjoying the wines we produce and reliving the growing season, harvest and vintage in each bottle.”

The vintner’s favorite wine-producing regions in California are the Russian River Valley and Santa Lucia Highlands,

“We enjoy the wines produced by our grower and winemaking friends in the Russian River Valley, with so many styles and neighborhoods all with a common thread,” Bucher said. “We also love the wines produced with fruit from the Santa Lucia Highlands. Many of our friends, including our winemaker Adam (Lee), are making exceptional wines from this region.”

Founded in 2011, the Buchers produce four pinot noirs, sauvignon blanc, a rosé of pinot noir, zinfandel and grenache. Crafting their wines at Windsor’s Grand Cru Custom Crush, they produce about 1,500 cases annually. The Buchers host their tastings there, and Grand Cru has six tasting salons, home to 18 boutique family-owned wineries.

“After college my friends would visit and we’d go wine tasting,” Bucher said. “It didn’t take me long to realize that Sonoma County, specifically the areas near our ranch in the Russian River Valley, produced great pinots.”

You can reach wine writer Peg Melnik at peg.melnik@pressdemocrat.com and 707-521-5310.