2005 Dunn Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain

Bright, fresh red with ruby tones. Knockout explosive nose melds red berries, tobacco, minerals, loam, gravel, mocha, espresso and camphor; Randy Dunn noted that this was even more Bordeaux-like at the beginning, even a bit herbaceous. Then wonderful silky and fine-grained on the palate, perhaps the second mostly glyceral vintage to this point after the '03. But this very young, backward, even youthfully medicinal wine also boasts terrific energy. Finishes firm and classically dry, with emerging purple fruits suggesting that this splendid wine will ultimately merit an even higher score. The Dunn team routinely does a lot of selection in the vines at harvest time and Dunn noted that "a lot of shot berries also flew out of the crusher in 2005." (13.9% alcohol; 3.84 pH)

(13.8% alcohol): Dark red. Aromas of crushed cassis, minerals and violet are accompanied by some slightly sauvage notes of leather and game. Juicy, savory and penetrating in the mouth, should outstanding energy and strong underlying minerality to its fine-grained flavors of dark berries, mocha and game. Very sexy, grown-up wine with a subtle sweetness--not at all a blockbuster. Terrific clarity and class here. Really resounds and rises on the end. Sexy juice--and likely to be very long-lived.

This iconic wine, consistently made since it was first released in 1979 by Randy Dunn, is always aged 30 months in barrel and then an additional six months in bottle prior to being released. It is always 100% Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon. Randy Dunn is one of the first advocates of alcohol levels under 14%. (This one is listed at 13.8%.) I just can’t comprehend the obsession and polemics about alcohol. Unless the wine lacks balance and character, it is rarely even a legitimate issue. Anything between 12.5% and 15.5%-16% can work well, and even some higher ones seem to carry their alcohol extraordinarily well, especially if they are made from grapes such as Zinfandel or Grenache. Dense purple in color and still looking like a barrel sample, the 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain has a nice, cedary, new saddle leather-infused blackcurrant richness, outstanding purity, medium to full body, sweet tannin and a layered, lush texture. The level of concentration is impressive. I don’t think there’s a wine taster that could tell whether this is 13.8% or 15.8% alcohol, given this level of richness. This wine is certainly accessible, but probably won’t hit its prime for another 5-7 years, and like most Dunn Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignons, it will have a good 30+ years of longevity. (Keep in mind that his 1982 is just now hitting that peak of quality to my palate.)