Dunn Vineyards Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 Magnum

Grape: Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2010
Type: Red

This red comes from Dunn's own Howell Mountain vineyards, planted between 1,800 and 2,000 feet on volcanic soil thin enough to stress the vines by design. Randy Dunn has run the estate on the same principle since the 1970s: low-nutrient, well-drained ground that concentrates the fruit into small, structured berries. The wine ages 32 months in new French oak, a long and deliberately unhurried élevage. At 13.9% alcohol it favors structure over power, built on a timeline measured in decades rather than years.

It displays a dense, opaque garnet color, opening with aromas of blackcurrant, graphite, and cedar. On the palate, the full-bodied frame is built on firm, mountain-grown tannin, balancing dark fruit against a mineral, iron-edged backbone. New oak shows as structure rather than sweetness, still gripping at 15 years old. Acidity is high and holds the wine's density together. It finishes long and tannic, with years of aging still ahead of it.