Napa: elegance vs. fruit bombs.

For an excellent discussion on the ability to make a great Napa wine that is not a fruit bomb, check out this article by Eric Asimov appearing in the August 20 New York Times.

For my own experience with a wine that was amazingly elegant, but also panned by a critic, check out my review of the 2004 Clos du Val Cabernet Sauvignon.

Yes, Napa can do elegance, and I think Mr. Asimov is right that the market is due for a correction on this point -- after all, too many of the once heralded fruit bombs of the 1997 vintage are proving to be... well, flat.