Aromas of dried cherry, blackberry, currant and touch of leather. Flavors of blackberry, currant, sour cherry and touch of leather. Ends with a long finish of blackberry. Still drinking quite young.
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OK, coming up on 40, still structured and tannic. But with the hanger steak I quite enjoyed. Chewy tannins, black plum and black currant, ferric notes, long finish. Eat with steak or wait forever. B+
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Beautiful beautiful floral nose of mostly rose petals. Palate is very complex with lot of things going on including notes of chocolate, cigar box, mushrooms, and delicate tannins. Makes you want to parachute down into into a volcano of erupting chocolate surrounded by roses in full blossom. 94 points.
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Nose: Black Cherry, violets, cedar, herbs and mushroom notes. Very perfumed in the first hour, then tightened up. Palate: silky and beautifully fresh. Bright black cherry, blackberries, herbs, cedar and a slight mineral note. Finish: Fades on the finish, but shows its quality.
Same bottle as Englishmans Claret. These put on a tight race, but my preference was for the darker fruit of the 94.
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For a few minutes after the cork was pulled, this showed the most gorgeous blackberry, violet, sandalwood, eucalyptus, and thyme nose with an impactful presence. Easily reaching a 94ish level, this seemed to slightly clamp down afterwards, but it’s tough to forget that glorious debut... Accordingly, a little tough to put a clear number on this but really enjoyable nonetheless.
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Memorial Day 2020 Santa Maria BBQ. Opened six hours before drinking. Cork came apart in pieces. Decanted 30 prior to drinking. Deep tawny color with brick red edges. Drinks smooth, Almost no tannin to speak of. I’m getting red fruits. Surprised by how long it stood up out of the bottle. I’m seeing a lot about this being on its last legs but I’m still getting a robust experience.
Ruby brick color. Muted nose. Still has fairly pronounced tannins. But has a surprising freshness and energy. The fruit is fading with dark cherry and cassis notes plus tobacco and cedar. Classic cabernet in a very elegant style. Well within its drinking window, but still has 5+ year ahead of it. A classic wine.
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This is my last bottle of this vintage. Seemed to have a little more funk than my previous bottle, which overall was superb. This bottle took a lot longer to open but the wine still has decent fruit, though it is more like stewed or baked fruit than the previous bottle. Nice tingling finish after open for three hours. This seems fully mature but still delicious.
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Cabernet Sauvignon Dinner in DC (Eric and Janet's House in DC): Really nice, amazingly young for a 34 yr old wine. This was balanced, mostly black fruit and red fruit mix, herbal, earthy and complex. Tannins still have structure along with the acid. Really nice and enjoyable. A good wine that both Bordeaux and new world cab folks will love. Honestly, this should go 50 yrs if you have a good bottle.
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Funky nose quickly blew off to black berry, boysenberry, raspberry, black cherry, cassis, and plum, same on the bottle, big body, elegant tasting, and a long, long finish, best bottle of this vintage ever tasted, time to drink up as its past the peak drinking window.
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I was afraid the wine would be over the hill but man was I wrong. Lots of dried dark fruit flavors, hints of teritary notes, and heady acidity. The tannins have mostly melted away. I can't imagine how undrinkable this must have been on release. The finish was a bit shorter than I would've liked but the wine was very hedonistic and is in a great drinking window. The wine still have 5+ years no problem as far as holding potential goes but no reason to hold at this point.
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Continues to drink beautifully with plenty of fruit and structure still in the tank. Highly enjoyable now and should hold at this level for another five years at least if stored well.
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Bonus points for still kicking at 32 yrs. However this did not show nearly as good as the '85 Howell Mt. that we had side by side. Lots of acidity, tannins were all but gone, still had some interesting notes but this seemed to be on its down slope, drink up.
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Nose of mocha, black cherry, black berry, and plum, same on the palate, very tasty, mouth filling fruit, showing its age but still a lovely wine with lost of complexity, and a long, long finish.
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Cork came out in one piece with a good screwpull. Still a dark brooding red garner with only very slight brick on rim. Cedar and dark fruit nose with a little whiff of dill on the nose. Fully softened tannins and dark cherry fruit with a hint of black pepper. Finish is short but a very delicious wine with chocolate. Probably fully mature and frankly much better than the two previous times I had this wine mostly because the tannins are fully resolved.
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Medium red color, slightly bricked at edge. Savory, herbal nose: olives, bay leaf, mint, and delicate cherry fruit. On arrival, low-medium tannin and energetic acidity. Flavors more balanced between savory side and a deepening cherry fruit, increasingly so with exposure to air. Give this as much as a day's aeration to bloom fully. Bottle #9 of twelve.
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Wine Group New Year's Eve Dinner hosted by Aniko. 5 wines from 1985, thirty years ago. Nose opened when poured and then closed up for the next hour, Nose of graphite, plum, black cherry fruit, more of the same on the palate, needs 3 years to peak, big body, long finish. My score-tied for third.
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Elegant, nicely developed, beautifully resolved wine with notes of eucalyptus, leather and blue and red fruits. Classically old school California Cab. Two bottles at Thanksgiving dinner with consistent notes.
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I was excited to this one as part of the lineup, but after tasting my thought was "Is that the 'dunn vineyards'"? It felt past its prime. Compared with the Beringer 1985 and Robert Mondavi '85 it just did not stand a chance. Drink up, though it could have been more impressive on its own or in cooler weather.
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Medium-dark red color. Initially mute aromatically though a bit dirty, hinting at minty cherry fruit. With decanting and two hours wait, more fruit (Cranberry), bigger mint, leather and earth. On arrival, medium-low tannin and medium acidity; lithe not chunky. Fruitier than expected, and the finish is the best part: high energy, complex, sustained, tangy. Bottle #8 of twelve.
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Nice that it's still showing up after all these years. Some fruit left -- was that sour cherry on the finish? A bit of an odd note, that. Peppery nose -- not overpowering but not lovely. Still, a fun wine.
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Enjoyed over two hours with a Bone-in Ribeye Steak at Flemings. Opened with a dirty nose including raspberry notes, cassis, and plum, within thirty minutes had dramatically improved to a nose of black cherry fruit, baker chocolate, and cassis, rich, soft, elegant, no tannins, medium body, medium finish,
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Little funk on the nose that could be green vegetable-ish. The palate is light fruit with almost no tannins left, finish was very short. The color in the glass is deep red with a lot of bricking around the edges. Wine is fading very fast and this bottle was on life support.
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Tasted non blind at a dinner. Double decanted for sediment just before leaving for dinner. Nose of green pepper, cassis and leather. More green pepper and cassis on the palate along with cedar. Decent length finish. Medium acidity and mostly resolved tannins. Seems to be toward the end of its life but does still have some fruit left. Drink within the next few years.
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Jesus, this thing is still young and brooding. Very dark. Iron, blood, minerals, and dark dark fruit. Really dry and tannic on the palate. Lots of power, but needs time. Will this ever come around? Was it aged in a cryo-cellar? who knows. Judgement deferred.
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Domino's 40th (The Anvil Club, East Dundee, IL): Courtesy of Otis. Crimson color. Mint, black fruits and leather; some chocolate too. Well-balanced, with nice integration and flavors of red fruit, sandalwood, baking spices and cherry. Long finish; hints of mint and black fruit. 93+ pts.
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Decanted for 30 minutes and drank over next 2 hours. Was at best after 1 1/2 hours. Drinking beautifully now with more years to go. Open nose with cherry, cassis. Well preserved cabernet fruit in the taste with added complexity from bottle age. Nicely integrated tannins and a very long finish make this bottle a pleasure to drink.
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Even better thanI remember the first bottle. It took around 30 minutes to really sing with mature cherries, milk chocolate and sweet smooth tannins. For Bordeaux like on nose and palate. A reason to allow some great young wines to hide in the cellar
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Medium red, some bricking. Initially shows some corkiness in the nose, which blows off in 30 minutes. Cranberry, mint, leather and some earthy mushroom notes come forward in the nose with air. Medium light tannin, balanced acidity. A bit delicate in the mouth, there's more olive and thyme here than cranberry fruit, but there's good mouth feel. Bottle #6 of twelve.
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With Aaron, Temple and Tonya. Surprisingly youthful with few telltale signs that this is 26 years old. Excellent intensity of aromatics including bright red fruit and rose with notes of olive. Fully resolved structure with great intensity of flavors persisting on a finish that exceeded our expectations. Outstanding QPR.
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New World Wines - Blind (Jace's House - Bethesda, MD): An impressive showing! Nose had wonderful dusty red fruit, dried rose petals, cedar, and subtle charcoal. The palate was fresh and lively with silky red fruit woven seamlessly together with pipe tobacco, and elegant violet and rose tones. I don't have a lot of experience with the wines from Dunn, but have always heard they're classic examples of the more restrained, elegant Napa Cabernet. The good news is that this lived up to the stereotype!
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It's alive! I took a risk a bought some 85 cabs because it was the vintage that got me hooked on wine. The color was deep garnet. At first, it had a vegetal, funky, musty, green pepper nose. This blew off after ten minutes. Fruit appeared like the genie from the bottle. Mature cherry, plum, cassis with ample cedar, oak and nice earthy tones. Vibrant red, tart finish. Loved it.
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Dark ruby. Energetic nose of cherry fruit, dill, olives, spearmint, chocolate. Medium tannin, firming with somewhat in three hours of air. Flavors remind me of cherry cola and birch beer, with a dollop of kalamata olives. It's terrific California cab. The wine is in mid-life, with much strong fruit concentration remaining, presented with softened structure and some secondary flavors. Bottle #5 of twelve.
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Awsome! - Black Cherry followed by White Pepper nose. Black Cherry and Currnat on the front of the palate. Very, Very smooth tannins integrate well - A 25 to 30 second finish that just slowly disappears... A great example of a 25 year old Cali Cab.
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Cork pulled amazingly intact. Decanted two hours. Bright ruby red with no bricking to speak of. Leather, spice and smoked, black cherries on the nose. Wonderfully integrated tannins with velvety balance throughout. More black cherry fruit on the palate. Drinking a very nice CA Zin after this tasted like sugary sweet coolaide!
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Selected this one from the cellar with some trepidation due to its age. The cork extracted easily and was barely stained at the bottom. Drank after 2-3 hours (not decanted). A very nice total package--very drinkable, with the tannins well integrated. Leather and cassis flavors. Very tasty.
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From magnum. Richer-than-expected red cabernet fruits and green minty notes. Uplifting volatility. Medium body, with classic styling and abundant, grainy Dunn tannins. Nice wine in a good place.
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this is amazing for a 23 yr old cab. the color is deep red, not at all brown as I expected. tannic at first but this dissipated after 60-90 minutes. fruit is muted at this point. surprisingly good.
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Bottle seems in good condition. Light ruby red color, medium body. Not much nose. Not unpleasant but fairly tannic and not much fruit. Not worth dwelling on...
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8 Cabernet Sauvignons tasted, 6th place. Nose of jam preserves, more of the same on the palate, lovely, rich taste, needs 4 years to peak, medium/long finish.
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10 Dunn Cabernet Sauvignons (Lafayette, Ca.): Simple, closed nose, nice, rich, medium/big taste, slightly closed, coffee, big body, good acid, lots of soft tannins, needs time/years, long finish. My #5, Group # 2.
Singer and Foy survey of Dunn. Good deep ruby color. Nose is closed, but shows a hint of mint. Tobacco initially in the mouth, but it is not offering up much at present. Needs TIME. 5-10-15-8: 88/100.
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6 La Jota +Montelena+Dunn Tasting (Walnut Creek, Ca.): Big, rich nose, dry and dusty fruit, big, rich tannins tonight, needs time, well balanced, softer then expected for the vintage. My tied #6 and Group tied #4.
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With MPL and BLR at S&F survey of '85 Cabs. Extremely dark ruby color. Almost opaque, in fact. Nose is closed, but there is plenty of fruit lurking. On the palate, thick, rich, dense, very concentrated fruit. Chewy. Rich and great. All it needs is time. 5-11-17-8: 91/100.
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With Kathy at home at dinner (stew). Deep, dark, rich ruby-purple. Viscous, with thick legs. Nose is massive, even Port-like. Tremendous depth of fruit, beautifully balanced between cassis and oak. Intense and riveting. In the mouth it's youthfully tight and tannic, but with air opened up enough to reveal plenty of underlying fruit. Mouthfilling. Dry finish. Shows just tremendous potential. 5-14-16-9: 94/100.
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With MPL, BLR and Diane at Square One restaurant with dinner (swordfish). Red purple color. Almost completely opaque. Dense Cabernet nose, but quite closed. On the palate, extremely tannic, masking rich fruit. Is there enough fruit? Time will tell. A powerful wine. 5-11-13-7: 86/100.
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12/25/2022 - ShadowIII Likes this wine: 93 Points
On a very nice plateau, elegant with black currants, dark cherry, cedar, spice, fully integrated tannins, long finish
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2/18/2022 - jgh123 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Still solid. Not complex but nice fruit on nose and palate. Rich for a 13% abv wine. May hold for a couple of years but nothing to gain.
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6/17/2021 - slywka7 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Aromas of dried cherry, blackberry, currant and touch of leather. Flavors of blackberry, currant, sour cherry and touch of leather. Ends with a long finish of blackberry. Still drinking quite young.
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4/22/2021 - DaleW wrote:
OK, coming up on 40, still structured and tannic. But with the hanger steak I quite enjoyed. Chewy tannins, black plum and black currant, ferric notes, long finish. Eat with steak or wait forever. B+
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4/17/2021 - winecoffee wrote: 94 Points
Beautiful beautiful floral nose of mostly rose petals. Palate is very complex with lot of things going on including notes of chocolate, cigar box, mushrooms, and delicate tannins. Makes you want to parachute down into into a volcano of erupting chocolate surrounded by roses in full blossom. 94 points.
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11/8/2020 - jlgnml wrote: 88 Points
While there’s fruit their is an over powering smell of mold, wet newspaper. Initial taste was good but the mold smell is taking over the experience.
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7/11/2020 - RockinCabs wrote: 93 Points
Nose: Black Cherry, violets, cedar, herbs and mushroom notes. Very perfumed in the first hour, then tightened up. Palate: silky and beautifully fresh. Bright black cherry, blackberries, herbs, cedar and a slight mineral note. Finish: Fades on the finish, but shows its quality.
Same bottle as Englishmans Claret. These put on a tight race, but my preference was for the darker fruit of the 94.
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7/10/2020 - englishman's claret wrote:
For a few minutes after the cork was pulled, this showed the most gorgeous blackberry, violet, sandalwood, eucalyptus, and thyme nose with an impactful presence. Easily reaching a 94ish level, this seemed to slightly clamp down afterwards, but it’s tough to forget that glorious debut... Accordingly, a little tough to put a clear number on this but really enjoyable nonetheless.
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5/25/2020 - dolyaie Likes this wine: 90 Points
Memorial Day 2020 Santa Maria BBQ. Opened six hours before drinking. Cork came apart in pieces. Decanted 30 prior to drinking. Deep tawny color with brick red edges. Drinks smooth, Almost no tannin to speak of. I’m getting red fruits. Surprised by how long it stood up out of the bottle. I’m seeing a lot about this being on its last legs but I’m still getting a robust experience.
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4/11/2020 - djarcara Likes this wine: 93 Points
Ruby brick color. Muted nose. Still has fairly pronounced tannins. But has a surprising freshness and energy. The fruit is fading with dark cherry and cassis notes plus tobacco and cedar. Classic cabernet in a very elegant style. Well within its drinking window, but still has 5+ year ahead of it. A classic wine.
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6/4/2019 - ElAzul Likes this wine: 90 Points
This is my last bottle of this vintage. Seemed to have a little more funk than my previous bottle, which overall was superb. This bottle took a lot longer to open but the wine still has decent fruit, though it is more like stewed or baked fruit than the previous bottle. Nice tingling finish after open for three hours. This seems fully mature but still delicious.
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3/9/2019 - ericindc Likes this wine: 94 Points
Cabernet Sauvignon Dinner in DC (Eric and Janet's House in DC): Really nice, amazingly young for a 34 yr old wine. This was balanced, mostly black fruit and red fruit mix, herbal, earthy and complex. Tannins still have structure along with the acid. Really nice and enjoyable. A good wine that both Bordeaux and new world cab folks will love. Honestly, this should go 50 yrs if you have a good bottle.
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1/12/2019 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 94 Points
Funky nose quickly blew off to black berry, boysenberry, raspberry, black cherry, cassis, and plum, same on the bottle, big body, elegant tasting, and a long, long finish, best bottle of this vintage ever tasted, time to drink up as its past the peak drinking window.
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9/18/2018 - sung251 Likes this wine: 91 Points
I was afraid the wine would be over the hill but man was I wrong. Lots of dried dark fruit flavors, hints of teritary notes, and heady acidity. The tannins have mostly melted away. I can't imagine how undrinkable this must have been on release. The finish was a bit shorter than I would've liked but the wine was very hedonistic and is in a great drinking window. The wine still have 5+ years no problem as far as holding potential goes but no reason to hold at this point.
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1/1/2018 - PJRONeill wrote:
Continues to drink beautifully with plenty of fruit and structure still in the tank. Highly enjoyable now and should hold at this level for another five years at least if stored well.
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9/30/2017 - redknife Likes this wine:
With the group at Le Provencale several months ago
Dont remember anything
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5/6/2017 - Vinophiliac559 wrote: 90 Points
Bonus points for still kicking at 32 yrs. However this did not show nearly as good as the '85 Howell Mt. that we had side by side. Lots of acidity, tannins were all but gone, still had some interesting notes but this seemed to be on its down slope, drink up.
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5/2/2017 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 92 Points
Nose of mocha, black cherry, black berry, and plum, same on the palate, very tasty, mouth filling fruit, showing its age but still a lovely wine with lost of complexity, and a long, long finish.
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2/16/2017 - danielbleier Likes this wine: 91 Points
felt very Bordeaux in profile, with plenty of tannin standing up the plum, tobacco and earth notes.
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1/11/2017 - ElAzul Likes this wine: 92 Points
Cork came out in one piece with a good screwpull. Still a dark brooding red garner with only very slight brick on rim. Cedar and dark fruit nose with a little whiff of dill on the nose. Fully softened tannins and dark cherry fruit with a hint of black pepper. Finish is short but a very delicious wine with chocolate. Probably fully mature and frankly much better than the two previous times I had this wine mostly because the tannins are fully resolved.
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9/19/2016 - redknife Likes this wine: 93 Points
At Le Provencale with the group
Short decant <30 min, some sediment
Drinking beautifully, tannins are resoved
Drink soon
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11/26/2015 - lamitchw wrote: 86 Points
Still had some nice structure and tannins, but the fruit was completely gone. Sad.
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10/1/2015 - t.c.green wrote: 93 Points
A wonderful old bottle, the fruit is at the end of it's career, with some soft tannins
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7/31/2015 - Hodby wrote: 92 Points
Medium red color, slightly bricked at edge. Savory, herbal nose: olives, bay leaf, mint, and delicate cherry fruit. On arrival, low-medium tannin and energetic acidity. Flavors more balanced between savory side and a deepening cherry fruit, increasingly so with exposure to air. Give this as much as a day's aeration to bloom fully. Bottle #9 of twelve.
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12/31/2014 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 92 Points
Wine Group New Year's Eve Dinner hosted by Aniko. 5 wines from 1985, thirty years ago. Nose opened when poured and then closed up for the next hour, Nose of graphite, plum, black cherry fruit, more of the same on the palate, needs 3 years to peak, big body, long finish. My score-tied for third.
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12/24/2014 - PJRONeill wrote: 93 Points
Elegant, nicely developed, beautifully resolved wine with notes of eucalyptus, leather and blue and red fruits. Classically old school California Cab. Two bottles at Thanksgiving dinner with consistent notes.
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12/16/2014 - redknife wrote:
there was something on the nose that was off. After two hrs it went away. I think this bottle was off. Wine is downhill, at least this bottle
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6/21/2014 - odds wrote: 85 Points
I was excited to this one as part of the lineup, but after tasting my thought was "Is that the 'dunn vineyards'"? It felt past its prime. Compared with the Beringer 1985 and Robert Mondavi '85 it just did not stand a chance. Drink up, though it could have been more impressive on its own or in cooler weather.
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12/26/2013 - Hodby wrote: 90 Points
Medium-dark red color. Initially mute aromatically though a bit dirty, hinting at minty cherry fruit. With decanting and two hours wait, more fruit (Cranberry), bigger mint, leather and earth. On arrival, medium-low tannin and medium acidity; lithe not chunky. Fruitier than expected, and the finish is the best part: high energy, complex, sustained, tangy. Bottle #8 of twelve.
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9/7/2013 - jdlee1232 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Nice that it's still showing up after all these years. Some fruit left -- was that sour cherry on the finish? A bit of an odd note, that. Peppery nose -- not overpowering but not lovely. Still, a fun wine.
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7/26/2013 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 92 Points
Enjoyed over two hours with a Bone-in Ribeye Steak at Flemings. Opened with a dirty nose including raspberry notes, cassis, and plum, within thirty minutes had dramatically improved to a nose of black cherry fruit, baker chocolate, and cassis, rich, soft, elegant, no tannins, medium body, medium finish,
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5/3/2013 - GalvezGuy wrote: 91 Points
CT Texas V - North Dallas Forty and then some; 5/3/2013-5/5/2013 (McKinney, North Dallas, TX): Nose of sour cherry, red currant, tobacco, and bell pepper. On the palate bright red fruits with tobacco. Finishes with resolved tannins.
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4/15/2013 - SkeBum wrote: 90 Points
Little funk on the nose that could be green vegetable-ish. The palate is light fruit with almost no tannins left, finish was very short. The color in the glass is deep red with a lot of bricking around the edges. Wine is fading very fast and this bottle was on life support.
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3/23/2013 - ckinv368 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Spicy, smooth, tannic, a bit sweet and fruity. Some blackberry, white pepper, and good acidity.
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3/23/2013 - floydtp wrote: 91 Points
Tasted non blind at a dinner. Double decanted for sediment just before leaving for dinner. Nose of green pepper, cassis and leather. More green pepper and cassis on the palate along with cedar. Decent length finish. Medium acidity and mostly resolved tannins. Seems to be toward the end of its life but does still have some fruit left. Drink within the next few years.
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2/4/2013 - lesz wrote: 92 Points
beautiful wine
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11/18/2012 - shiel wrote: 90 Points
Drank at my daughter's wedding. This was birth year wine and still going strong.
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10/25/2012 - DaleW wrote: flawed
corked
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6/26/2012 - Seth Rosenberg wrote:
Jesus, this thing is still young and brooding. Very dark. Iron, blood, minerals, and dark dark fruit. Really dry and tannic on the palate. Lots of power, but needs time. Will this ever come around? Was it aged in a cryo-cellar? who knows. Judgement deferred.
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5/19/2012 - AllRed wrote: 93 Points
Domino's 40th (The Anvil Club, East Dundee, IL): Courtesy of Otis. Crimson color. Mint, black fruits and leather; some chocolate too. Well-balanced, with nice integration and flavors of red fruit, sandalwood, baking spices and cherry. Long finish; hints of mint and black fruit. 93+ pts.
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12/10/2011 - Kitsap Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted for 30 minutes and drank over next 2 hours. Was at best after 1 1/2 hours. Drinking beautifully now with more years to go. Open nose with cherry, cassis. Well preserved cabernet fruit in the taste with added complexity from bottle age. Nicely integrated tannins and a very long finish make this bottle a pleasure to drink.
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6/20/2011 - rdsboca wrote: 95 Points
Even better thanI remember the first bottle. It took around 30 minutes to really sing with mature cherries, milk chocolate and sweet smooth tannins. For Bordeaux like on nose and palate. A reason to allow some great young wines to hide in the cellar
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6/9/2011 - Hodby wrote: 90 Points
Medium red, some bricking. Initially shows some corkiness in the nose, which blows off in 30 minutes. Cranberry, mint, leather and some earthy mushroom notes come forward in the nose with air. Medium light tannin, balanced acidity. A bit delicate in the mouth, there's more olive and thyme here than cranberry fruit, but there's good mouth feel. Bottle #6 of twelve.
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5/28/2011 - Bin242 wrote:
With Aaron, Temple and Tonya. Surprisingly youthful with few telltale signs that this is 26 years old. Excellent intensity of aromatics including bright red fruit and rose with notes of olive. Fully resolved structure with great intensity of flavors persisting on a finish that exceeded our expectations. Outstanding QPR.
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3/18/2011 - tooch wrote: 92 Points
New World Wines - Blind (Jace's House - Bethesda, MD): An impressive showing! Nose had wonderful dusty red fruit, dried rose petals, cedar, and subtle charcoal. The palate was fresh and lively with silky red fruit woven seamlessly together with pipe tobacco, and elegant violet and rose tones. I don't have a lot of experience with the wines from Dunn, but have always heard they're classic examples of the more restrained, elegant Napa Cabernet. The good news is that this lived up to the stereotype!
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1/13/2011 - rdsboca wrote: 94 Points
It's alive! I took a risk a bought some 85 cabs because it was the vintage that got me hooked on wine. The color was deep garnet. At first, it had a vegetal, funky, musty, green pepper nose. This blew off after ten minutes. Fruit appeared like the genie from the bottle. Mature cherry, plum, cassis with ample cedar, oak and nice earthy tones. Vibrant red, tart finish. Loved it.
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10/11/2010 - Hodby wrote: 93 Points
Dark ruby. Energetic nose of cherry fruit, dill, olives, spearmint, chocolate. Medium tannin, firming with somewhat in three hours of air. Flavors remind me of cherry cola and birch beer, with a dollop of kalamata olives. It's terrific California cab. The wine is in mid-life, with much strong fruit concentration remaining, presented with softened structure and some secondary flavors. Bottle #5 of twelve.
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1/8/2010 - KurtK wrote: 95 Points
Awsome! - Black Cherry followed by White Pepper nose. Black Cherry and Currnat on the front of the palate. Very, Very smooth tannins integrate well - A 25 to 30 second finish that just slowly disappears... A great example of a 25 year old Cali Cab.
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8/23/2009 - Thom wrote: 92 Points
Cork pulled amazingly intact. Decanted two hours. Bright ruby red with no bricking to speak of. Leather, spice and smoked, black cherries on the nose. Wonderfully integrated tannins with velvety balance throughout. More black cherry fruit on the palate. Drinking a very nice CA Zin after this tasted like sugary sweet coolaide!
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1/25/2009 - martuna wrote: 90 Points
Decanted 2 hours. "Good 'n plenty" licorice on the nose. Leather and anise flavors on the palate. A whole lotta tannins, but they are well integrated.
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7/13/2008 - winemaker wrote: 93 Points
Big with firm tannins even after all these years. Very nice!
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6/30/2008 - Italiana wrote: 90 Points
Selected this one from the cellar with some trepidation due to its age. The cork extracted easily and was barely stained at the bottom. Drank after 2-3 hours (not decanted). A very nice total package--very drinkable, with the tannins well integrated. Leather and cassis flavors. Very tasty.
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6/28/2008 - psmith wrote:
From magnum. Richer-than-expected red cabernet fruits and green minty notes. Uplifting volatility. Medium body, with classic styling and abundant, grainy Dunn tannins. Nice wine in a good place.
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3/8/2008 - kas wrote: 91 Points
this is amazing for a 23 yr old cab. the color is deep red, not at all brown as I expected. tannic at first but this dissipated after 60-90 minutes. fruit is muted at this point. surprisingly good.
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12/23/2005 - jrj wrote: 85 Points
Bottle seems in good condition. Light ruby red color, medium body. Not much nose. Not unpleasant but fairly tannic and not much fruit. Not worth dwelling on...
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10/19/2004 - MRichman wrote:
David Wainwright's Cos Vertical, 1985 Horizontal (Le Cirque): Blackberry, acidic tannins. Nice dark sweet fruit. Acidic tannins too much.
C++
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9/12/2004 - buckeye76 wrote: 95 Points
BLACKBERRIES, CURRANTS, AND LICORICE IN THE NOSE WITH RICH BLACK CHERRIES AND BLACKBERRIES IN THE FLAVOR. NICE COMPLEXITY AND A LONG FINISH.
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5/20/1999 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 89 Points
8 Cabernet Sauvignons tasted, 6th place. Nose of jam preserves, more of the same on the palate, lovely, rich taste, needs 4 years to peak, medium/long finish.
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5/10/1997 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 90 Points
1985 Tasting of 15 Cabernet Sauvignons (Walnut Creek, Ca.): Very rich, fruity taste, lovely fruit, nice tasting, fairly rich tonight, good acid, long berry finish. My #4 tied.
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10/19/1993 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 93 Points
10 Dunn Cabernet Sauvignons (Lafayette, Ca.): Simple, closed nose, nice, rich, medium/big taste, slightly closed, coffee, big body, good acid, lots of soft tannins, needs time/years, long finish. My #5, Group # 2.
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2/6/1993 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 91 Points
Chateau Woltner and Dunn and Chateau L' Arrosee (Hi-Time Wine Cellars, Costa Mesa, Ca.): Nice,rich, open, fruity nose, very lovely, subdued fruit on the palate, nice balance, ripe berry fruit.
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9/3/1992 - MicklethePickle Likes this wine: 88 Points
Singer and Foy survey of Dunn. Good deep ruby color. Nose is closed, but shows a hint of mint. Tobacco initially in the mouth, but it is not offering up much at present. Needs TIME. 5-10-15-8: 88/100.
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3/26/1992 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 88 Points
6 La Jota +Montelena+Dunn Tasting (Walnut Creek, Ca.): Big, rich nose, dry and dusty fruit, big, rich tannins tonight, needs time, well balanced, softer then expected for the vintage. My tied #6 and Group tied #4.
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5/29/1991 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 98 Points
1979-1987 DUNN NAPA VALLEY CABERNET SAUVIGNON (LA FOLIE SAN FRANCISCO, CA.): Slight pepper on the nose, dusty nose, fruit forward, big body, intense, raspberry, great structure, very berry like, great taste.
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4/12/1991 - MicklethePickle Likes this wine: 91 Points
With MPL and BLR at S&F survey of '85 Cabs. Extremely dark ruby color. Almost opaque, in fact. Nose is closed, but there is plenty of fruit lurking. On the palate, thick, rich, dense, very concentrated fruit. Chewy. Rich and great. All it needs is time. 5-11-17-8: 91/100.
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5/27/1990 - MicklethePickle Likes this wine: 94 Points
With Kathy at home at dinner (stew). Deep, dark, rich ruby-purple. Viscous, with thick legs. Nose is massive, even Port-like. Tremendous depth of fruit, beautifully balanced between cassis and oak. Intense and riveting. In the mouth it's youthfully tight and tannic, but with air opened up enough to reveal plenty of underlying fruit. Mouthfilling. Dry finish. Shows just tremendous potential. 5-14-16-9: 94/100.
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7/14/1988 - MicklethePickle Likes this wine: 86 Points
With MPL, BLR and Diane at Square One restaurant with dinner (swordfish). Red purple color. Almost completely opaque. Dense Cabernet nose, but quite closed. On the palate, extremely tannic, masking rich fruit. Is there enough fruit? Time will tell. A powerful wine. 5-11-13-7: 86/100.
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7/1/1988 - MicklethePickle Likes this wine:
Tasted with Michael Lehmann at Draper & Esquin wine shop in San Francisco. Very rich, concentrated Cabernet fruit and aroma.
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