2014 Crocker & Starr Cabernet Sauvignon Stone Place
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Tasting notes
Good medium ruby. More about soil than primary fruit on the complex nose, offering scents of coffee, mocha, chocolate, earth and graphite minerality. Plush, sweet and impeccably balanced; a complex, soil-driven wine with a generous texture and good expansion toward the back. As with the '13 version, this struck me as distinctly more savory than some earlier vintages. Finishes with terrific slowly building length and suave, totally buffered tannins that reach the front teeth. Ultimately a bit more tightly wound and medicinal on the back end than the '13 version but still with a sexy sweetness.
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Stone Place is scented of cassis, warm blackberries and blueberry pie with underlying dark chocolate, yeast extract and menthol notes plus a waft of chargrill. Medium to full-bodied, lively, fresh and vivacious in the elegantly crafted mouth, it has a seductively plush texture and lingering savory and exotic spice notes on the finish.
The star of the shows is the 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Stone Place, which is 100% Cabernet from the oldest block on the property. Aged 22 months in new French oak it offers lots of blueberry, blackberry liqueur, lead pencil, and subtle graphite as well as a full-bodied, upfront, yet beautifully pure, concentrated style on the palate. It’s very much in the forward, charming style of the vintage, yet has a classic, balanced feel and I suspect is capable of lasting 20 years in a cool cellar. These wines come from a collaboration between Charlie Crocker and winemaker Pam Starr, who created this St. Helena based estate in 1997. While the Cabernet Sauvignon gets the top billing, they make one of the best Malbec blends out there.