2008 Crocker & Starr Cabernet Sauvignon Stone Place
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Tasting notes
Dark ruby-red. Perfumed, high-pitched yet rather brooding aromas of cassis, violet, spices and English licorice. Pure and sharply delineated but tight and a bit unyielding, conveying medicinal black fruit flavors complicated by licorice and herbs. Finishes with slightly drying tannins. Not hugely ripe or site-specific, this wine still needs time to open and gain in length. Pam Starr back-blended 5% from vintage 2009 in an attempt to buffer this wine's tannins and add juiciness.
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider
More reviews and scores
The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon emerges from the glass with dark plums, cherries, tobacco, flowers and mint. It shows lovely textural depth and sweetness through to the enveloping, layered finish. The 2008 was aged in 85% new oak barrels. Based on this tasting, a little less new oak might allow more varietal complexity and nuance to come through.