Air Guitar Bow & Arrow, Scott and Dana Frank, Portland 2021

Scott and Dana Frank, Portland 

Scott Frank of Bow & Arrow beys the rule of the Loire. For him it involves sourcing the right vineyards and farmers who understand his requirements for grapes that pack fruit and acid in equal measure.

Despite Oregon’s constant comparisons to Burgundy, it’s the Loire Valley that inspires Scott Frank’s wines. He only started bottling in 2010 but has quickly earned a reputation for bringing a bit of the Loire to the Pacific Northwest. They source fruit from vineyards planted by some of Oregon’s earliest ‘wine pioneers’ that were planted with grapes like old vine Pinot Noir, Gamay, Cabernet Franc, and Melon de Bourgogne – all typical Loire Valley grapes. These carefully sourced grapes are treated with the greatest care and minimal-intervention winemaking techniques. Their resulting wines are a breath of fresh (French) air from Oregon, lighter in style, lower in alcohol, and extremely food-friendly.

From the Borgo Pass Vineyard, this is cool climate fruit grown on clay and sedimentary soils, destemmed into macrobins for fermentation before going into used oak puncheons for ageing.

Stylistically, this sappy red is reminiscent of the wines from Anjou-Villages. Light on its feet it is aromatic with lifted red fruit, pepper and graphite aromas and delicious acidity to keep the wine fresh on the palate.

Grapes: 60% Cabernet Franc and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon

Biodynamic