Simply Wine!

We've all seen them in the grocery store, boxed wine! If you're an enthusiast, you often shake your head and walk on by. Well, today, Laura and I decided to see what the fuss was all about.

Black Box Wines is the equivalent of 4 bottles of wine sealed in a plastic, air tight bag packed inside, what else, a black box. The company claims it will hold for up to four weeks in the fridge.

We picked up the chardonnay for $18.99 at the local Safeway Supermarket. We served it up with steamed crab legs and fresh, local Washington sweet corn. We both decided the wine wasn't quite buttery enough to go with our dinner. That could be a good or bad thing, depending on what you're doing with the wine. It is slightly oaked without being over the top, balanced with a fruitiness suitable for sipping on it's own. We think this one is best served chilled.

We would say this one is worth having on hand if you are having a large group over and wine isn't a major focus of the gathering. As for the longevity claim, we have it in our fridge, we'll let you know how it holds up.

-Rich-

Finally got around to finishing this entry:

Archery Summit is our favorite Pinot Noir. We joined their wine club when we were in town this past May. The wine club entitles you to free tasting when you visit, special events they have throughout the year and great deals on their wines! In fact, they sell 80% of their yearly production strictly to wine club members! (Sorry, there's a 3,000 member limit, we just made it, and the waiting list now is about a year out!)

We knew through the newsletter that they had "Lobsterfest" going on this weekend. We figured it was full and we didn't know exactly when the coach was going to be ready, so we didn't give it much thought.

We pulled into McMinnville at 4pm on Friday afternoon. Laura said, "Archery Summit is opened till 4:30 and we're 5 minutes away". Being the good husband I am, we parked the coach and made our way to the winery for our free Pinot tasting.

We were chatting with Lynda, the customer service manager, and she let us know they had a cancellation for the Lobster Fest and we could get in if we wanted too. Now, it was a bit expensive, but we were here and they had a cancellation; Who am I to mess with Karma ;)












While the lobsters' cooked, we drank Pinot! They had quite a few vintages availble for trial and purchase; 97 cuvee, 2000 cuvee, 03 Redhills just to name a few. They were all delicious, but we didn't have the budget to buy any 40-60 dollar Pinot Noir!


After about an hour of mingling and drinking, we were summoned to the "feast" and it was amazing!

They poured the lobsters directly on to the tables; No plates and the only utensils available were the lobster Krackers. Thank goodness they gave us all aprons before we got started :)

Beside the lobster, this one pot dish consisted of whole shrimp, artichokes, potatoes, corn, onions and cloves of garlic. It was all served with drawn butter, fresh baguettes and of course Pinot Noir!














In both pictures you can see the amazing view of the vineyards we enjoyed during the meal! The weather was fabulous, 80 degrees and not a cloud in the sky!

The cave was open during the event, you actually had to walk through it to get to the rest rooms. It was a nice refreshing walk to get out of the sun and cool down for a moment.

We stuffed ourselves silly with lobster and washed it down with plenty of Pinot. It ruined the "dining" budget for the rest of the month, but we both agreed it was well worth it and an experience we won't soon forget!

-Rich-