2015 Finn Pinot Noir

The flagship 2015 Pinot Noir Finn has more tannin as well as density. Terrific notes of dried flowers, red currants, menthol, and earth, medium to full body, a layered, concentrated mid-palate, and a great, great finish all define this seriously good Russian River Pinot Noir. It’s one of the tighter, more backward 2015s from Andy Smith, but it’s packed with potential. Give it another 2-3 years, and it’s capable of keeping for over a decade. I still remember tasting with Andy Smith while I was writing The Rhône Report and I was thrilled to be able to sit down and go through all of his wines on this occasion. Stylistically, Smith makes a fresh, vibrant style of wine, yet I never find them lacking for depth and or texture. Looking at the Chardonnays, these are made in a reductive, age-worthy style and the clear majority have distinctly Burgundian profiles. These are beautiful wines that, at least to my palate, surpass the quality of the Pinot Noirs, which are slightly more variable. Nevertheless, the top Pinot Noirs are certainly up with the crème de la crème of the region. While Andy favors a tight, age-worthy style of Chardonnay, the Pinot Noirs are made in a slightly more forward style. In addition to the Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays, DuMol also produces a handful of world-class Syrahs, as well as one of the top examples of Viognier coming out of California. Both the 2015s and 2016s reviewed here are terrific wines, with the 2016s showing slightly more balance and elegance, but you can’t go wrong with either vintage here.

Pinot Noir Finn is a blend of Occidental Road and DuMOL Estate vineyards. Medium ruby-purple in color, the 2015 Pinot Noir Finn offers evocative notes of Bing cherries, fresh raspberries, wild blueberries and mulberries with touches of fragrant soil, underbrush, wild thyme and rose hip tea. Medium to full-bodied and built like a brick house in the mouth with very firm, ripe grainy tannins and fantastic freshness, it finishes very long and earthy. This should cellar gracefully over the next 18-20 years.

A suave, polished wine, the 2015 Pinot Noir Finn is laced with expressive floral notes, silky tannins and slightly redder fruit than the other wines in this range, all of which give it a very distinctive feel. The power of 2015 comes through, but the Finn retains its gracious personality. Today, the Finn is a bit more refined than it was from barrel. (AG)