#6 Wine Spectator Top 100 of 2023
Dunn's signature wine contains only fruit farmed in their vineyards on Howell Mountain. The wine comes in a distinctive bottle that is hand dipped in red wax.
100% Cabernet Sauvignon aged 32 months in 100% new French oak.
98 Vinous The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is outrageously beautiful. A wine of extraordinary purity, the 2019 dazzles right out of the gate. The tannins are nearly silky for a young Howell Mountain Cabernet. Red/purplish fruit, lavender, spice, rose petal and pomegranate all build in this sumptuous, explosive Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2019 is one of the most elegant Cabernets I have tasted here, and that is saying something What a wine!
96 Wine Spectator Lushly fruited, this sends waves of crushed plum, boysenberry compote and blackberry paste out from the core, with a strong undercurrent of cast iron and smoldering tobacco to boot. Grippy and dense, but with a sense of polish and a note of purity in the guise of a pretty violet echo. Best from 2025 through 2040.
98 Jeb Dunnuck I would put the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain up against both the 2013 and 2016 as a potential reference point vintage for this cuv e. Checking in at 13.9% alcohol and revealing a deep purple hue as well as incredible aromatics of pure cr me de cassis, scorched earth, graphite, bouquet garni, and hints of plum, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness carrying ultra-fine tannins, a flawless sense of balance and purity, and incredible length. It has plenty of classic Howell Mountain structure, but it's far from the beast of a wine these were 10 to 15 years ago, and it clearly offers ample pleasure today. Nevertheless, it's going to benefit from 5-7 years of bottle age and, I suspect, evolve nicely over the following 20-30 years. Tasted twice with consistent results, hats off to Mike Dunn for this brilliant wine.
98 International Wine Review The 2019 Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon from Dunn in nothing short of stunning in this vintage. This immediately begins to impress as it opens to gorgeous, perfumed aromatics of ripe dark currants and black cherries, which are woven together with fresh violets, graphite shavings, exotic spices, herbs and earthy minerals that all come together and burst from the glass. On the palate this is full-bodied and remarkably polished, with absolutely incredible overall balance and structure. This displays wonderful precision and a sense of refinement, as it continues to captivate all the way through the long, lavish finish. Dunn's wines are always one of the finest examples of Cabernet from Napa, and there is certainly no exception with this utterly brilliant wine. The 2019 Howell Mountain is already outstanding and there is no doubt it should have an incredibly bright future ahead for many years to come.
