Winemaker Notes
The mountain really determined the style of the wine. It became obvious right away that the grapes up here were much more powerful than down on the valley floor. I just made the wine itself the same way we did at Caymus, it just was a more tannic wine due to the place. -Randy Dunn
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Reticent but promising blackberry and black currant fruit as well as licorice aromas jump from the glass of this inky/purple-colored 2004. Rich and broad with sweeter tannins than one expects in a ten-year-old Dunn Cabernet, it reveals impressive richness, power and purity, but is still an adolescent in terms of its evolution. Slightly more evolved than the Dunn Cabernets of the early and mid-1980s, it can be drunk now or cellared for another 20-25 years.
One of the most prestigious wines of the world capable of great power and grace, Napa Valley Cabernet is a leading force in the world of fine, famous, collectible red wine. Today the Napa Valley and Cabernet Sauvignon are so intrinsically linked that it is difficult to discuss one without the other. But it wasn’t until the 1970s that this marriage came to light; sudden international recognition rained upon Napa with the victory of the Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon in the 1976 Judgement of Paris.
Cabernet Sauvignon undoubtedly dominates Napa Valley today, covering half of the land under vine, commanding the highest prices per ton and earning the most critical acclaim. Cabernet Sauvignon’s structure, acidity, capacity to thrive in multiple environs and ability to express nuances of vintage make it perfect for Napa Valley where incredible soil and geographical diversity are found and the climate is perfect for grape growing. Within the Napa Valley lie many smaller sub-AVAs that express specific characteristics based on situation, slope and soil—as a perfect example, Rutherford’s famous dust or Stags Leap District's tart cherry flavors.