supposedly a bad vintage which produced a light (?thin), delicate PN that was determined to be on a fast evolutionary track with a TN on their website (written July 2007) that basically said drink up.
i opened my last bottle of 01 Beaux Freres Vineyard PN with some sushi grade tuna and if memory serves this was by far the best of the 6 bottles i bought long ago. cork very even and easily removed, vague memory of frizzante with the initial pour. dense forest floor in the nose with a red and black cherry attack that is explosive. maybe some pomegranate found too among the earth & spice. i did not find this wine as nearly as delicate or as close to its end of life as the website seems to. integrated tannins but not imperceptible yet, i wish i had some more that was well-stored.
2001 was written off by some as “lighter” and “high acid.” The wines are quite favorites by many local insiders and I think were built for aging. They aren’t blockbusters and they were overshadowed by 2002. In some ways they are like Burgundy where the '02s got all the press while terrific '01s slid under the radar. Glad you enjoyed this wine.
Great notes Doc. I’ve enjoyed some of the older BF’s I’ve had of late. They can be a bit big in ABV but they do deliver nuance and depth imo. I’ve noticed many of these trading on the secondary market I can’t imagine that it would be hard to scoop a few in the coming months…
this bottle had some real heat noticed initially, especially thru the finish. this faded noticeably though the 1st 30 minutes the bottle was opened. i had steered clear of 2001 in the secondary market but thinking about replenishing as i wait for my 00s to come to life.
Part of the problem with the 2001 BF was that, despite efforts to the contrary, the vineyard produced slightly over 3 tons per acre.
Sounds like Doc liked it just fine.
this was definitely the best bottle from that 6-pack.
Yeah, but Doc knows what he’s doing. Parker didn’t like it, and it was a big reason why TWA bagged on the vintage as a whole.
Tanzer gave it a 89 which usually translates to a 91 for yours truly. Those that based their Oregon purchases based on WA scores will learn sooner or later me thinks.
I have found that most '01 OR PNs are drinking really beautifully right now…