I will admit that I am a political junkie. Let me amend that: I am a cynical political junkie. I realize that the average person has very little impact on the political process. I am not independently wealthy; I do not ‘donate’ large sums of money; I live in a state that seems to have been ‘decided’ and therefore my one puny little vote matters little. You can jump all over me and site the founding fathers, the Constitution, or even the Oscar Meyer Bologna song, but that changes little. Unless you have large amounts of cash, you are not going to influence an election these days.

Call me a cynic. It’s OK.

Whatever your political persuasion, I imagine if you are a political junkie like me, you already have your mind made up and you will be watching not to determine your candidate of choice but for the potential gaffes, zingers, and ‘Oh-my-God-did-he-really-say-that?’ moments that will keep us riveted to our media outlet of choice for days.

Call me obsessed. It’s OK.

My wife also has a big exam tomorrow, so I figured I would pull out a nicer bottle since I doubted she would be joining me.

Call me a jackass. It’s OK.

The question: which bottle? We had a rather humid day here in Philly and I was thinking something cold would be nice. I checked my Cellar Tracker to see which wine I should drink. You see, Cellar Tracker has this feature that provides the ‘drinking window’ for the bottles in your collection. I rarely, if ever, agree with the Community assessment of the drinking window, but somehow I am driven by it.

Call me a lemming. It’s OK.

Tonight, though, I decided to throw caution to the wind.

Call me wreckless. It’s OK.

When I was out in Portland for the Wine Bloggers Conference, I stopped off at my favorite winery in the Willamette Valley: De Ponte Cellars. They were my host winery when I attended the International Pinot Noir Celebration and they were simply incredible–they showed me around the winery, gave me an incredible tasting, and provided a friendly face among the hordes.

Call me a loner/loser in need of a father/mother type figure when traveling alone. It’s OK.

I bought three bottles of their 2011 De Ponte Cellars Pinot Noir Rosé while I was out there and I have been Jonesing to pop one since I have been back. Tonight was the night.

Call me impatient. It’s OK.

I grilled some Coho Salmon, sautéed some broccoli, and made some Israeli cous-cous with onion and mushroom (since my wife seems to think we always need a starch with the meal).

Call her the Anti-Atkins. It’s OK.

The wine did not disappoint. A nose of red berry fruit and a bit of candied apple. On the palate, great initial acidity and fantastic balance throughout. Nice strawberry and cherry at the finish. This is one of the better rosés I have had this year and my only wish is that I had bought more. Excellent to outstanding. 90-92 points.

Call me a homer. But you would be wrong. This is great juice! Enjoy the debate….