9/24/2015 - audicfa Likes this wine:

Shocked by the freshness of this wine for 17 years old.

Nose
Pine, dark fruit, menthol, lavender, leather, dark chocolate

Colour
Opaque cherry red

Taste
Medium body, mouth puckering dry, dark fruits, not quite as expressive as nose would suggest

Wow! Feels like this wine has more runway to improve.

3/27/2015 - audicfa wrote:

This has matured beautifully since I opened my first bottle in 2009.

Nose reveals nice floral notes, earth, cigar box, leather

Deep purple color

Nice round plum fruit, clove, earthy and with something woody going on in the finish. Good acidic backbone. Slight bit of heat.

Really enjoying this.

8/27/2013 - audicfa wrote:

Opaque crimson. On the nose; lavender, coffee, toast, pine, sourness, gravel, licorice, smoke, dark fruit. Same on the palate as my last tasting note. Nice full fruit plum merlot mouthful with nice acidity at the start; mineral, dusty mid palate, long finish but feels disjointed, bitter and the fruit fades/disintegrates fast.

6/6/2012 - audicfa wrote:

Oldest daughter (9) - smells like dying flowers, butterfly bush, gym socks, cherries, stinky cheese

2nd daughter (7) - smells like burps

Me (45) - cherries, wet stones, iodine, licorice. Medium body, very acidic

12/25/2011 - audicfa Likes this wine:

Nose - forest floor, caramel, pie crust, lavender, blueberry, cigar box, cedar.

Purple, medium body, dark fruit, stunning, glorious, magnificent

> 1 minute finish

8/9/2012 - audicfa wrote:

My daughter (9): nose = lemon, orange peel, rushing fresh water river, wet stones, cherries, ivy, spice drawer, sour cherries, smell of fresh earth after picking weeds
My 2nd daughter (6): nose = like every other red wine you drink Daddy; rotten apples, composte

Me (45) Nose = sour cherries, spice, rhubarb, wet stones
Palate = very bright ( acidic?), muted fruit but after an 1hr in the glass more noticeable, long finish. This wine has some integration to do I think. Overall not bad. Needs more time perhaps.

2/1/2012 - audicfa wrote:

Dark red, slightly opaque. Wonderful nose of earth, spice, cigar box, mushroom, wood. Nice fruit mixed with earthy gravelly mid palette and stunning 30-40 second finish. Couldn't hold-back and proceeded to drink the whole bottle by myself over 4-5 hrs.

1/21/2012 - audicfa wrote:

Dark inky purple, intoxicating nose of pine, forest floor, lavender, cigar, & dark fruit that opened up over time. On the palate medium body with some dustiness on the mid palate. Nice fruit and fantastic 60 second finish. Hardly overwhelming tannins but I feel this wine needs more time to fully integrate. I sense that I am drinking a bit early. This has potential to be a blockbuster in a few years. Rating subject to increase. Fantastic!

1/2/2012 - audicfa wrote:

Popped and poured. Initially a beautiful traditional Bordeaux nose. A little bit lacking in the palate at first. Drank over the course of an hour. Aromas and flavor profile vastly improved over time. Lovely wine. Dark fruit, tobacco, some usual Bordeaux funk/musty/old house that blew off over time. I have one more in the stash.

11/4/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Well made wine. Opaque purple. Initially quite tight on the nose but opened up after after 15-20 minutes in the glass. Awesome potential but needs some time to integrate as tannins still a bit overwhelming. Try again in a year or two. Rating subject to moving higher

10/24/2011 - audicfa wrote:

OTBN with a good friend. Decant for about 1/2 hr. Blueberry pie bursting on the nose, smoke, spice. Massive on the palate - teeth staining, wonderful dark fruit, structure and a 45 second finish. Never a boring sip. Evolved over the 2 hrs we drank the bottle. Monumental wine!

9/3/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Day 1 - Popped and poured. I really want to like this wine because I think it's great what Dunn Vineyards is trying to achieve. There is lack of the traditional spicy California cab fruit in this one. Day 2 and it is opening up nicely. On the nose, menthol, matchbox, burnt logs, musty old house, wet concrete, ozone ( smell just before it rains). On the palette, mouth coating with some nice but not big fruit in the middle. A solid 30 second finish with some tannin but not overwhelming. A fascinating wine. I understand 99 was a tough vintage. I've had the 94 Napa Valley and the 04 Howell Mountain with both exhibiting a touch more ripe fruit. I have 05, 06 and 07 Howell Mountain on order and am looking forward to experiencing them with some friends!

8/29/2011 - audicfa wrote:

This is solid value. Popped and poured. Earthy with some fruit on the nose initially. Has quite the bite on the palate. That bite, I think, comes from the Cab Franc. Thankfully it doesn't overwhelm the fruit from the Cab Sav and sangiovese. After 10-15 minutes in the glass really opens up. I never tired of this throughout the night. Drank 1/2 bottle. Well made and enjoyable. I have had 2 bottles and would buy more.

8/28/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Drank with some friends @ Manteo Resort in Kelowna BC. In a word "fantastic". Fruit, earth, layers of complexity. Never a dull sip. Wonderful!

6/22/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Wonderful deep purple, bit of a musty, skunky nose at first but this blew off. A nice smooth wine but with surprisingly little complexity. Well made to be sure but in my view not worth the price. I have consumed both my bottles and would not likely buy again.

5/26/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Popped and poured. Initially very tight nose. Opened up beautifully over 20 minutes in the glass. Very rustic like an old-timer musty home with some barnyard too. Scents of pine, burnt something, tar, leather, pepper, eucalyptus, dirt, and a manure note that largely blew off over time. Wonderful full velvety mouthful and a solid 30 second finish with some lingering tannin. This is like no other Cali Napa Cab I've tried. Reminds me of left bank Bordeaux perhaps Smith Haut Lafitte.

4/10/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Wood, dark fruits, graphite, menthol. Mouth coating texture, ample fruit, some well integrated tannins. For me, the flavor stays pretty static on the pallet so not as exciting as I normally like so this held back the score a bit. Well balanced and no hint of heat on the back end something I usually worry about with 14.5% alcohol. Faded a bit on day 2.

4/6/2011 - audicfa wrote:

See my other tasting note January 2011. This wine is great. This time I noticed it to be better on the 3rd day. Wow! Too bad this is my last bottle.

3/9/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Opaque crimson color; smells of tar, licorice, dark fruits. Creamy texture with a nice bite on the initial attack, well rounded, lots of fruit and some tannin that is well integrated. Slight bit of heat on the finish but nothing too overwhelming. Very nice wine.

1/29/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Popped and poured. Dark inky purple. A little bit restrained on the nose at first. After 10 minutes in the glass, very new world. Dark fruits, wet stones, spice, pepper, sausage, earth, leather, vanilla, cigar box. Velvety mouthful, chewy, some dustiness, nice fruit ( rhubarb?) and a 30 second finish. Dare I say some earthy manure thing burbling up on the finish as well. Hardly overwhelming tannins but certainly lots of layers and structure. Magical wine.

1/18/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Nice deep dark slightly opaque in the glass. Nose of blackberries, spice, cherries, plums, oak. Initial attack on the palat is really bright & sharp. There are some grippy tannins here which are counterbalanced by some nice fruit. Some gravelly, grainy type stuff going on in the finish which is a good 20-30 seconds. Nice wine but perhaps needs some more time. 5 bottles left. Vintage the year my twins were born. Will have to hold some for them!

1/16/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Popped and poured. A nice well made wine. Typical cabernet on the nose, & nice deep purple. Taste left we wanting for something more. Pleasant and incredibly smooth but lacking in a strong finish - it just faded away quickly on my palate. Not as complex as I was expecting.

1/15/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Dark purple. Wonderful dark fruits on the nose. Combination of old and new world styles and 30 second finish. Probably drinking too early. Would buy more of this special wine. A big hit at a tasting I did last year.

1/8/2011 - audicfa wrote:

Dark red slightly opaque. Great nose of leather, cigar box, stones, earth, mushrooms and pepper. Grippy mouthful but hardly overwhelming tannins. Wonderful 40 second finish. Well balanced and ahead of my expectations. Only drawback and ever so slight lack of fruit. Overall very nice. The vintage the year my first daughter was born.

12/27/2010 - audicfa wrote:

Opaque deep color, on the nose smokey, earth, musty smells with largely blew off over time. Drank over a 2 hr period over which time nose opened up to spice, fruit and interestingly some toffee. Awesome mouth coating feel, noticeable fruit coming through 30 second finish.

9/2/2010 - audicfa wrote:

Popped and poured. Wonderful color, almost viscous like when swirled in the glass. On the nose fruit seemed a little restrained at first but opened up after about 15 minutes in the glass. Hints of spice, dark fruit, cigar. Wonderful mouthful with a lingering pleasant finish. Hardly the tannins I expected. Superbly made. 2 glasses with a steak for dinner. This wine doesn't wear me out like some more fruit forward alcoholic new world styles do. Happy I have 5 bottle left. I have the 05 too. Fantastic!

6/18/2010 - audicfa wrote:

Popped and poured. Barnyard, musty nose, but noticeable underlying fruit. Deep burgundy almost brownish color. Dusty mid palate, tannic, austere at first. After 1/2 in glass really opened up. Thick spicy noise, wet stones, earth, fruit is still bit restrained. This should improve with time.

5/15/2010 - audicfa wrote:

Our dinner guests Carri and Ian loved it. Dark fruits, well balanced, integrated tannins

4/15/2010 - audicfa wrote:

Popped and poured. Intense cigar box on the nose, leather, spice. Old world taste, nice finish. Something lacking in the middle. When I say cigar box, I mean man cave smokiness. Somewhat overwhelming in the flavour too.

4/8/2010 - audicfa wrote:

Corked

4/1/2010 - audicfa wrote:

Opened bottle and let sit for about 1/2 hr. Very little fruit on the nose. Odd mouthful. No real taste of fruit at the start, thick in the middle and a bit of heat on the back end. Where's the fruit? Let 1/2 glass sit for and 1hr more. Not much change. A bit disappointing.

3/23/2010 - audicfa wrote:

Popped and poured. Took some time to warm up to this one. Interesting blend of indigenous Portuguese grapes. Licorce, dark fruits, smooth mouthful with somewhat fruity finish. A good Tuesday night wine.

3/8/2010 - audicfa wrote:

Opened this as a bit of an experiment. V/worried that is was going to be far too early. I was pleasantly surprised. Popped and poured. Closed on the nose intially but opened up beautifully in the glass after a 1/2 hr. Well balanced, noticeable dark fruits, round full body with a 30+ second finish. Tannins were there but hardly overwhelming. Drank over 2 days. 5 bottles left.

12/24/2009 - audicfa wrote:

Pop and pour. Sensed very little fruit on the nose --closed and v/tannic. Drank over period of 2 hrs and it never opened up at all. Well made wine to be sure but I will keep for several more years before trying the next bottle. Vintage the year my twins were born. We'll see what they think in 15 years!

10/19/2009 - audicfa wrote:

New world style. Wonderful with lamb. Leather, dark fruit, some complexity. This is a great value.