Coravin 12/30/15: Deep ruby with minimal bricking; aromatic nose with blackberry fruit, some mint/menthol, initially had just a tad bit of funk that blew off with some swirling, slightly earthy; palate is full bodied, excellent blackberry and black currant fruit, balanced alcohol, fresh balanced acid that gives the wine freshness, fruit fades somewhat through the midpalate, tannins well integrated; finish is short-medium. The last 5-6 notes are polarizing, either poor or very good (95+). I am neither. The nose and palate are both well balanced california cabs with plenty of fresh fruit and excellent balance, but the fruit on the palate drops out significantly through the midpalate and makes the wine seem simpler than most Dunn Cabernets that I've had. For a '94, I would have expected better. Not bad at its $43 release price, but I would not buy this vintage at its $80-100 price point now. I do not think additional aging is needed. 90 1.5 hours decanting: Nose has fleshed out a bit with more aromatics, more complexity, good blackcurrant, mint, and even a bit of spice; the palate has shown the most improvement, now showing more density throughout, more persistent flavor through the midpalate, more fruit overall. I think this has significantly improved with air, now 90-92+ and may improve over the next 1-1.5 decades. 1/9/16: Consistent with notes above. After a bit of air it opens up nicely and is very enjoyable. Opened next to the Dunn 1997 Napa Valley and I like the 1994 more... better concentration of fruit and more persistence through the midpalate. Has a bit more vegetal on the palate now than before... starting to resemble bordeaux. 92
Deep ruby with age-appropriate bricking; while decanting had wonderful blackberry fruit, but that seems more reticent in the glass, some eucalyptus and mint, some blackberry; palate is full bodied, integrated tannin, moderate alcohol (~14%?), some blackberry fruit, slight bitterness that is unusual for a cab, flavor fades a bit through the midpalate; medium finish. Overall well balanced and enjoyable to drink but it didn't stand out to me. Will likely last for a while but may not improve. 90-91 Update: Improving with 30-60 minutes of air. Better fleshed out through the midpalate, which happened with the 1994 Napa Valley alongside it as well. The 94 has better concentration of fruit and the 97 seems a bit more ponderous and closed at this point... may need some time. Nose shows a bit more green vegetal at this point starting to hint at bordeaux qualities. I like this better now than when first tried... 90-91+
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
(1/9/2016)
Deep ruby with significant bricking for its age; aromatic nose with a good dose of funk, earth, green capsicum, plummy fruit; palate is full bodied, tannins are drying at this point, still some plummy fruit, midpalate fruit fades a tad; finish is medium length. Good, has interesting bordeaux character, but fading with drying tannins. Still will be decent for another year or two. 88
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
(1/9/2016)
Deep ruby with some bricking; nose is moderately aromatic with plenty of red fruit, red cherries, slight flint, some earth; palate is medium to full bodied, some drying tannins, red cherry fruit, medium acid; finish is short-medium. Decent bordeaux but lacks interesting character and depth of flavor or fruit. May be somewhat on the decline from my last taste in 2011. Drink up... I don't think additional aging will help. 88 3 hours air: This held up well. Maybe improved a tad, but not significantly. Still well balanced but nothing that stands out. Still 88, but may have a few years before decline... not likely to improve.
From a 375. Medium yellow-gold; aromatics picked up a bit with 20 minutes of air compared to when popped and poured, honeysuckle, slight glue, slight orange marmalade; palate is medium bodied, sweetness in slight excess with slightly lacking acidity, slight orange fruit, fruit falls out completely by the midpalate; short finish. Not a flawed wine and decent to drink for its $15 price, but it lacks depth, complexity, and all interesting character. It is sold frequently with a wink and a nod that it is a second wine from Yquem, and it certainly has no indication of that. 83 Day 3: A bit more air and a bit more chilled. This comes across as slightly more alcoholic, slightly less fruity. Given that a slight chill tends to cover the alcohol a bit, this is a downward slide for this wine. Not recommended. 80- today.
1994 Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 92 Points
USA, California, Napa Valley
(12/30/2015)
Coravin 12/30/15: Deep ruby with minimal bricking; aromatic nose with blackberry fruit, some mint/menthol, initially had just a tad bit of funk that blew off with some swirling, slightly earthy; palate is full bodied, excellent blackberry and black currant fruit, balanced alcohol, fresh balanced acid that gives the wine freshness, fruit fades somewhat through the midpalate, tannins well integrated; finish is short-medium. The last 5-6 notes are polarizing, either poor or very good (95+). I am neither. The nose and palate are both well balanced california cabs with plenty of fresh fruit and excellent balance, but the fruit on the palate drops out significantly through the midpalate and makes the wine seem simpler than most Dunn Cabernets that I've had. For a '94, I would have expected better. Not bad at its $43 release price, but I would not buy this vintage at its $80-100 price point now. I do not think additional aging is needed. 90
1.5 hours decanting: Nose has fleshed out a bit with more aromatics, more complexity, good blackcurrant, mint, and even a bit of spice; the palate has shown the most improvement, now showing more density throughout, more persistent flavor through the midpalate, more fruit overall. I think this has significantly improved with air, now 90-92+ and may improve over the next 1-1.5 decades.
1/9/16: Consistent with notes above. After a bit of air it opens up nicely and is very enjoyable. Opened next to the Dunn 1997 Napa Valley and I like the 1994 more... better concentration of fruit and more persistence through the midpalate. Has a bit more vegetal on the palate now than before... starting to resemble bordeaux. 92
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1997 Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 91 Points
USA, California, Napa Valley
(1/9/2016)
Deep ruby with age-appropriate bricking; while decanting had wonderful blackberry fruit, but that seems more reticent in the glass, some eucalyptus and mint, some blackberry; palate is full bodied, integrated tannin, moderate alcohol (~14%?), some blackberry fruit, slight bitterness that is unusual for a cab, flavor fades a bit through the midpalate; medium finish. Overall well balanced and enjoyable to drink but it didn't stand out to me. Will likely last for a while but may not improve. 90-91
Update: Improving with 30-60 minutes of air. Better fleshed out through the midpalate, which happened with the 1994 Napa Valley alongside it as well. The 94 has better concentration of fruit and the 97 seems a bit more ponderous and closed at this point... may need some time. Nose shows a bit more green vegetal at this point starting to hint at bordeaux qualities. I like this better now than when first tried... 90-91+
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1998 Château La Couspaude 88 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
(1/9/2016)
Deep ruby with significant bricking for its age; aromatic nose with a good dose of funk, earth, green capsicum, plummy fruit; palate is full bodied, tannins are drying at this point, still some plummy fruit, midpalate fruit fades a tad; finish is medium length. Good, has interesting bordeaux character, but fading with drying tannins. Still will be decent for another year or two. 88
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1999 Château Pavie Decesse 88 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
(1/9/2016)
Deep ruby with some bricking; nose is moderately aromatic with plenty of red fruit, red cherries, slight flint, some earth; palate is medium to full bodied, some drying tannins, red cherry fruit, medium acid; finish is short-medium. Decent bordeaux but lacks interesting character and depth of flavor or fruit. May be somewhat on the decline from my last taste in 2011. Drink up... I don't think additional aging will help. 88
3 hours air: This held up well. Maybe improved a tad, but not significantly. Still well balanced but nothing that stands out. Still 88, but may have a few years before decline... not likely to improve.
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2010 Haut Charmes 81 Points
France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
(1/9/2016)
From a 375. Medium yellow-gold; aromatics picked up a bit with 20 minutes of air compared to when popped and poured, honeysuckle, slight glue, slight orange marmalade; palate is medium bodied, sweetness in slight excess with slightly lacking acidity, slight orange fruit, fruit falls out completely by the midpalate; short finish. Not a flawed wine and decent to drink for its $15 price, but it lacks depth, complexity, and all interesting character. It is sold frequently with a wink and a nod that it is a second wine from Yquem, and it certainly has no indication of that. 83
Day 3: A bit more air and a bit more chilled. This comes across as slightly more alcoholic, slightly less fruity. Given that a slight chill tends to cover the alcohol a bit, this is a downward slide for this wine. Not recommended. 80- today.
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