Some wines hit the mark, and some wines hit the bullseye. Archery Summit Previer Cuvee Pinot Noir is one that definitely hit the target dead center.

Mondays are difficult days, and even more so if the job feels like a job, and the limbs and spirit are tired from a weekend of workouts. With no special occasion except survival to celebrate, I held a small dinner gathering in my studio+ apartment, or what I like to call, The Lockerroom.

I perfect only a few dishes, and a pork slider with onions and apples thrown into the mix was one of these perfections. With lettuce as the wrap, and pickles, spicy mustard and mayo as the condiments, this wine seemed like it was going to be a little too big–and too expensive–to serve with the dish. But with a side of grease and stress, this Pinot Noir drinks like a robust red that can be calming like what I imagine a sunset over Kona to be;  yet has a refinement that speaks in a whisper rather than a guffaw. A beautiful clear ruby color that Dorothy herself would wear, the Archery Summit has spicy notes of rasberry and blueberry on the nose and palate. It was balanced with flavors of earth, light pepper, vanilla, oak and a touch of minerality, as if it was just dusted off of slate into the glass. The tannins were light but firm, the taste bright and lasting. I would double up the workouts to drink a few glasses of this–with or without food. We are nearing a zone 5, but no alarms of “stop” are going off in this wine workout.   If you are drinking this bottle, my guess is you need to be drinking it–the workout can wait.

I couldn’t find it in the store in DC, so I ordered it from the winery directly: http://store.archerysummit.com/. Without shipping, it will set you back around $50, but it’s cheaper than flying to Oregon!