Dunn Vineyards - Worldclass Cabernet & an exciting new Vinum exclusivity
We are absolutely delighted to welcome Dunn Vineyards to Vinum’s portfolio of exclusive agencies. Dunn Vineyards, the family and their wines encapsulate so much of what we love and cherish in fine wine. We are proud to bring you in inaugural offer of their iconic Howell Mountain Cabernet.
Napa Valley’s reputation was built upon wines that were mid-weight, savoury, moderate in alcohol and age-worthy. Dunn Vineyards is one of a small group of producers who still hold true to those values today. In the face of fashion, in the face of global warming, they continue to make classically-proportioned Cabernet with drinkability at its core. In an age of slick corporate ownership and multi-national wine businesses, Dunn remains proudly family-owned and family-made.
“Randy Dunn is one of Napa Valley’s most iconic producers. Over the years and decades Dunn has remained faithful to what he views a classic style of Cabernet Sauvignon.”
– Antonio Galloni / Vinous Media
“From the outset, Randy Dunn’s flagship Cabernet has been one of Napa Valley’s slowest agers and most consistently outstanding wines.”
– Stephen Tanzer / Vinous Media
Ask anyone who is making classical California wine today, who are the custodians of Napa’s heritage style, and Dunn is going to be on the shortlist alongside Philip Togni, Diamond Creek and a handful of others.
This is why were are so excited and proud to represent Dunn Vinyards in Singapore.
Our opening allocation of Dunn Vineyards comprises three vintages of the flagship Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon.
- 2018 is one of the most elegant of recent Napa vintages, the wines are lifted, floral and bright.
- Dunn’s 2017 Howell Mountain significantly out-performs the year’s reputation – as the scores demonstrate. It is in a broader style that should be approachable younger than is the norm.
- 2016 is an outstanding, classic vintage that needs time in the cellar.
Fruit grown above the fogline, at 1,400 feet, benefits from more sunshine yet more moderate temperatures than vines planted on the valley floor. This slows ripening and promotes the development of aromatics and tannin over the sugar accumulation that leads to higher alcohols. At the same time, the berries retain acidity for lift and freshness.
At a recent dinner a friend opened a succession of vintages of Dunn Vineyards and each was exceptionally impressive. These are intensely savoury, muscular, wines that somehow manage to remain mid-weight and medium-bodied. The experience is closer to drinking Pauillac – and the wines demand a similar amount of cellar time – than what has become typical of Napa Valley today.
Dunn Howell Mountain is profound rendition of Napa Cabernet, yet somehow seems achieve this effortlessly. It is a special wine and deserves a place in any cellar.
The Offer:
Offered subject to restrictions and remaining unsold and immediately available from our Singapore cellars.
Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2018
20 cases (1×6) OC available @ $ 1,380 (incl. GST $ 1,490.40)
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is elegant, deep and classy. Inky dark purplish fruit, savory herbs, menthol, licorice and spice. The purity of the fruit is remarkable today. There is plenty of youthful Howell Mountain tannin, so readers will have to be patient. Bright floral accents lift the red/purplish berry fruit nicely. This is such an expressive, alluring Cabernet.
97/100 – Antonio Galloni
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is a typically long-term proposition, coated in dusty tannins and cedary oak. It will take time for the cassis, blueberry and slightly pine-scented backbone of this wine to emerge, as for the moment it’s almost difficult to taste. Yes, the concentration is present, the tannins are almost silky-ripe, but the structure of this medium to full-bodied wine is unassailable. Hands off for at least five years, and probably more, to judge by how past vintages have evolved.
95+/100 – Joe Czerwinski / The Wine Advocate
Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2017
10 cases (1×6) OC available @- $ 1,440 (incl. GST $1,555.20)
** Limited to one case per client **
The 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is sure to make Dunn fans happy. Powerful and ample, it marries the natural intensity of the year with the savoriness that makes Howell Mountain Cabernets so distinctive. Dark blue/purplish fruit, graphite, spice, leather, dried herbs and lavender imbue the 2017 with striking intensity and character. I can’t wait to see how it ages. The 2017 is a positively stunning edition of the Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon.
97/100 – Antonio Galloni
Already more open than the 2018 Howell Mountain, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain boasts slightly piney, resinous herb notes—thyme and rosemary—along with classic cassis and blueberry fruit. Yes, there’s a cedary coat of oak, but the fruit comes through loud and clear, adding a rich, velvety textural component and mouthwatering berry flavors on the lingering finish.
96+/100 – Joe Czerwinski
Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2016
10 cases (1×6) OC available @- $ 1,560 (incl. GST $ 1,684.80)
** Limited to one case per client **
“A different beast, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is dense and concentrated, with gorgeous crème de cassis, lead pencil, violets, damp earth, and tobacco leaf all emerging from the glass. Full-bodied on the palate, it shows the vintage’s purity, balance, and elegance and is concentrated, has chalky, building tannins, a great mid-palate, and one heck of a finish. It reminds me of a great Saint-Julien from Bordeaux and will benefit from 7-8 years of bottle age and keep for 40-50 years. Bravo.”
99 Points Jeb Dunnuck
Terms & Conditions:
Offer ends on Friday 7th April 2023 l No further discount l Immediate payment required l Delivery fees ($32.40) waived for purchases above $500 before GST excluding airports | Cancellation of orders not allowed l Order/s to be collected/delivered within 1 month upon stock availability l Offered Ex-Singapore & subject to remaining unsold