Wine of the Week:Davis Bynum 2015 Pinot Noir

The late vintner Davis Bynum once joked that “Any idiot can make wine, but he has to be a tireless idiot. Winemaking takes enormous work and attention.”

As a reporter in his 20s, Bynum worked his first 48-hour shift when Harry S. Truman was elected. Bynum decided he was tireless enough to become a winemaker when he was in his 40s.

Today Bynum’s brand is produced by Healdsburg’s Rodney Strong Vineyards, and he would be proud to know it continues to impress.

The Davis Bynum 2015 Russian River Valley Jane’s Vineyard Pommard Clone Pinot Noir at $55 was the standout in The Press Democrat Wine of the Week tasting.

It’s a brambly pinot noir with layered aromas and flavors. The sassy pinot has notes of cherry and plum, with a rustic earthiness that will turn heads. It hails from 10 acres of the Pommard Clone planted at Jane’s Vineyard.

“It’s one of the few wines that we’ve ever put in the bottle unfined and unfiltered because it knocked us out as it was,” said winemaker Greg Morthole. “This block always shows earth and brooding fruit tones; it reminds me of great Burgundy, but the fruit is solid Russian River with its signature black and red cherry flavors.”

Morthole, 46, has been the winemaker for Davis Bynum for the past nine vintages. Rodney Strong Vineyards purchased the brand in 2007 from Bynum after he spent four decades at the helm. The vintner passed in 2017 at the age of 92.

Like Bynum, Morthole was drawn to the craft of winemaking because it requires curiosity at its core.

“Curiosity is undervalued in our current culture, and it’s something that drives me to see what lies around the next corner, not only in life, but in wine,” Morthole said. “Being a good winemaker means dancing to each wine’s lead …”

Morthole was weaned on wine made from the sweet Concord grapes, but over the years his palate expanded, and he was drawn to making fine wine. He earned a bachelor of science degree from the University of Wyoming in 1996. Today, the winemaker said he likes a wide range of pinot noir styles, but he most fancies the ones groomed in the Santa Rosa plain area within the Russian River Valley.

“The rich red fruit tones supported by savory elements of earth and mushroom make a complex pinot,” he said.

Wine writer Peg Melnik can be reached at peg.melnik@pressdemocrat.com or 707-521-5310.