2001 Crocker & Starr Stone Place Cuvée- USA, California, Napa Valley (1/2/2010)
Seems a lot more like an 02 Napa than an 01. Really big black plum fruit. Overall sweet character. Huge mouthfeel. Dark chocolate, strong, slightly bitter, espresso. Mint. Toasty oak. A LOT more youthful than I expected at this point but not lacking in complexity. Excellent with about an hour of air. I don’t think there is a rush to drink this but it is so pretty right now… this wine, in my opinion, has reached its highest potential. Wish I wasn’t all out. (92 pts.)
I like it a lot but do you really think its peaked? I have some 1997 that’s still great. Not as much basic fruit but has an added bit of maturity that seems to be working really well. It’s a different blend of course, but I haven’t tried one of the 2001s for a while and I wasn’t thinking that they’d peaked. I agree that those wines are always pretty good out of the chute though.
I don’t think “peaked” would be the right word as it implies that it is all downhill from here. I just meant that I thought it was in such a wonderful place, that (for me) it was the right time to drink 'em. It will probably stay here for years and then will continue to transition to more secondary, earthy (if that’s not a flaw, Pete C. ) characteristics. Right now, it is showing the best of the Napa fruit wonderfully balanced with what such fruit can become in the cellar.
) characteristics. Right now, it is showing the best of the Napa fruit wonderfully balanced with what such fruit can become in the cellar.