'06 MEDICI, Oregon, Pinot Noir & Pan-Seared Beef Fillet

unWine'd with a pour...

I was introduced to this Pinot by my good friend Mr. PR Snipes of the Murfreesboro Snipes.  I'm a huge fan of Russian River Valley Pinots from CA but after drinking the Medici "I am now a fan!"  You cannot find this wine in my area (Middle TN) but since Mr. Snipes was recently in the Willamette Valley area, I am now the proud owner of 6 (now 5) bottles of the '04 & '06 Medici Pinot.  I will drink it slowly and purposefully.
As for my personal tasting notes, I get red fruit on the nose, bing cherry to me, but not too fruit forward.  It's nicely balanced and not tannic.  The mid-palate seems to have a hint of vanilla and a slight touch of spiciness.  And, the wine has a nice lingering finish - quite quaffable.  I give it a rating of opulent.  <$30 / bottle.

Cooking the Fillet:  I use a generous coat of EVOO on the steak and then add, to taste, shaved sea salt and black pepper.  I let that sit for about one hour at room temp.  When I'm ready to cook, I place the cast iron skillet in a 400 degree oven and let the skillet get smoking hot.  Afterward, transfer to the skillet to the side burner on the grill.  Over high heat I'll place one Tbsp of butter in the skillet and then place the fillets in the skillet.  I cook them for 3 minutes and then add one more Tbsp of butter and turn the fillets for 3 more minutes.  After that six minutes, I transfer the fillets to my grill, which is at 500 degrees, for another 6 - 8 minutes, not turning - just place them on the grill. This cooking time produces a very nice med-rare every time.