Scott and Dana Frank live in Portland, Oregon. By day, Scott is a one-man-show wholesale wine distributor, and by night he is a stay-at-home father. His wife, Dana, trades off daytime parenting duties and at night she oversees one of the west coast’s most egoless and well-curated Italian wine programs at the acclaimed restaurant, Ava Jean’s. On top of all this, the young family still finds a way to make wine every year. Not just any wine mind you, but outstanding and really delicious wine! Their “Rhinestones” Pinot Noir blend was one of my favorite domestic wines of last year and I’ve been eagerly awaiting the release of the new vintage. This is a limited wine—all told, Scott and Dana only bottle a few hundred cases each year. Most stays in Oregon and a fraction goes to New York, Vermont, and California.

What makes Bow & Arrow truly special is that the wines are in no way reminiscent of typical California or Oregon Pinot Noir. Scott and Dana are working in homage to the fresh, angular, and mouthwatering reds of Loire Valley. There is no oak spice or sappy fruit on the nose, alcohol levels remain in the 11-13% range, and the end result is a collection of wines that are as much delicious, thirst quenching “beverages” as they are thought provoking, handmade, and truly artisanal wines. Scott and Dana achieve this impressive balance and freshness by harvesting their fruit, (Pinot Noir with a bit of Gamay), from some of the best cool weather vineyard sites in Oregon—almost a full month earlier than some of their neighbors. Next, they preserve character of the terroir by treating the wine very gently in the cellar with no excessive technology. A small portion of the fruit remains in whole clusters and there is no effort put toward maximizing color or intensity. Their goal is to produce wines that are poised, light on their feet, and energetic.