2007 Archery Summit Renegade Ridge Estate Pinot Noir, Dundee Hills, Oregon

[wondersofwine]

13.9% alcohol according to the label.
This was a gift to me from a man who used to work for Archery Summit and had seen my comments that my experience with the winery was that they buried gorgeous fruit with too much oak. He felt the winemaker had dialed back on oak treatment in more recent vintages and wanted me to give one of the wines another try.

Mostly Dijon clones 114 and 667, indigenous yeasts. Fermented in both wooden and stainless steel open-top tanks in a gravity-flow winery. Deep purple color, nearly opaque. First sniff of the wine seems to impart oak spice along with purple or black fruits. Plum and dark berries on the mildly tart side of the spectrum on the palate. The fruit is not "buried" in this wine but does have an oak "surround." Some elegance shines through. I admit I liked this, liked it especially on the fourth evening when I only had about 2 oz. left in the bottle. Shucks! I suggest a long decant or perhaps holding until 2013.
It definitely has some positive points but comes at a high price point. This vintage is currently available from the winery for $85 or $68 if you have joined the A-list (mailing list or online purchasing list.) The 2008 vintage of this wine sold out (92 points from WA).