Lot 49
Legends of the Fall

8 – 5 Liter Dunn Cabernet Sauvignon - Howell Mountain (88, 89, 93, 98, 99, 00, 01, 02)
9 – 1.5 Liter Dunn Cabernet Sauvignon - Howell Mountain (89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 97, 98, 03)
7 – 1.5 Liter Dunn Cabernet Sauvignon - Napa Valley (84, 89, 91, 92, 94, 97, 98)
4 – 750ml Dunn Cabernet Sauvignon - Howell Mountain (88, 89, 93, 98)

The greatest tribute to an artist is to have one of his works become a legend. T.H. White’s The Once and Future King. Longfellow’s Paul Revere’s Ride. Seldom, however, has an artist created more than one work that becomes the fabric of legend. Grecian epics had Homer, and Napa Cabernet has Randy Dunn.

Through 1984, Dunn was the winemaker who crafted the great Caymus Special Selection Cabernets, arguably the first of California’s cult wines. He was also the initial winemaker at Pahlmeyer, again producing legendary wines that speak volumes to this day. However, Dunn’s finest works have emanated from the eponymous Dunn Vineyards, tucked away in the woods on top of Howell Mountain.

At 2,000 feet of elevation, Dunn’s vines sit above the fog layer, 10 to 15 degrees cooler than the Valley floor. This unique microclimate, along with viticultural practices designed to achieve phenolic ripeness at lower sugar levels, allow Dunn to craft bold and dramatic wines packed with compact, deeply concentrated plum and currant flavors. Massive age-worthy Cabernets, these exceptionally rich and pure wines have unreal aging potential, meant to survive four to five decades of cellaring.

Since leaving Pahlmeyer in 1992, Randy Dunn has focused his attention on Dunn’s two wines; its Howell Mountain and Napa bottlings. The limited production and Dunn’s undivided attention allows the flexibility to make hands-on decisions specific to the vintage and avoiding the trends du jour. In their youth, the Napa wine is more accessible yet, with age, the Howell Mountain bottling proves its world-class pedigree.

Virtually every modern-day vintage of Dunn is represented in this lot, the elegant Napa Valley bottling in a vertical of Magnums, and the Howell Mountain in a series of 750ml bottles, nine Magnums and eight incredible five-liter Imperials. Dunn’s wines are amazingly consistent over the years, a hallmark of his work at Caymus as well. Legendary wines within this remarkable collection include the dramatic 1984 Howell, the classic 1992 and the massive 1993. A singular collection and a testament to the single-minded dedication of the man who went to the mountain.

DONORS: Barbara & Ron Balser