Napa's 1st Growth, Same Vtg & Vyd Rank #6 WS TOP 100: Dunn Vineyards (DM95, JS95, JD94) "Superb Cab, Layered Beauty, Serious, Gorgeous Finish, Enjoy next 15 yrs"
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Elsewhere $150.00 $119.99 Save $30.01 Per Bottle · Save $360 Per Case
36 bottles remaining · Limit one case per customer · Ships nationwide
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The Open Secret The Man Who Built Caymus, Then Walked Away to Make Something Better
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In 1975, a young UC Davis enology graduate named Randy Dunn took a job at a small Rutherford winery called Caymus. Over the next decade, he created the wines that put Caymus on the map — including the 1984 Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon, which Wine Spectator named its Wine of the Year. Caymus remains the only winery in history to receive that honor twice, and both winning vintages were made under Randy Dunn's watch. Then he walked away. He left the valley floor in 1985 and climbed 2,000 feet up Howell Mountain, where he had quietly purchased 14 acres of Cabernet vines in 1978. He made 660 cases of his first Dunn Vineyards wine in 1979 and never looked back. What happened next is the kind of story that only happens in wine. Randy Dunn didn't just make great Cabernet on Howell Mountain — he defined it. He co-authored the petition that established Howell Mountain as Napa Valley's first sub-appellation in 1983. He went on to consult for Pahlmeyer, La Jota, Livingston, and Palmaz — names that now occupy their own rarefied place in the world of California fine wine.
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Today, three generations of the Dunn family farm 42 acres on Howell Mountain. Production remains at roughly 4,500 to 5,000 cases per year. The wines are allocated almost entirely through the winery mailing list — a wait list that stretches years. The winemaking has barely changed since 1979: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, fermented in stainless steel, aged 32 months in French oak. Dunn is spoken of alongside Harlan Estate, Screaming Eagle, and Colgin. The difference: Dunn has been doing it since 1979 — longer than nearly all of them — and never priced itself into the stratosphere. That gap between reputation and price is the opportunity in front of you today.
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Vintage Intelligence 2019: The Vintage That Returned Napa to Its Classical Best
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The 2019 growing season in Napa Valley was, in the words of multiple winemakers, "unremarkable" — and in Napa, that is the highest compliment. Ample winter rainfall (over 34 inches) was followed by a warm, even summer with very few heat spikes. Phenolic ripening proceeded slowly. Harvest stretched long into autumn. The result: wines of vivid freshness, deep concentration, and impeccable structural balance. Decanter declared 2019 a "beautifully classic vintage" and awarded five perfect 100-point scores to individual Napa Cabernets. Vinous's Antonio Galloni called the wines "high energy" with "laser focus." James Suckling noted the vintage produced "focused and fruity reds with gorgeous depth and intensity without being heavy." Critically, 2019 was the last clean, great Napa vintage before the Glass Fire devastated the 2020 harvest. Free of the smoke taint that afflicted parts of 2017, isolated areas in 2018, and much of the 2020 vintage. That alone makes 2019 a cellar cornerstone.
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Value Anchoring The "Smart Money" Grid: 2019 Napa CabernetSame vintage. Same appellation. Same grape. Vastly different prices. Where does Dunn fit?
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On a restaurant wine list — at Press in Napa, Boa in Los Angeles, Peter Luger in Brooklyn, Bern's Steak House in Tampa, The Capital Grille, or any serious steakhouse nationwide — a Napa Cabernet of this pedigree would carry a 2.5 to 4x markup. You would see this wine listed at $300 to $500 per bottle, poured alongside Opus One and Insignia. At $119.99, you are acquiring it for less than what a single glass of Screaming Eagle costs at any auction dinner in the country.
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The Investment Case Blue-Chip Cabernet at a Market Inefficiency
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According to Knight Frank's 2025 Luxury Investment Index, a hypothetical $1 million invested across luxury collectibles in 2005 would have grown to $5.4 million by end of 2024 — outperforming the S&P 500 over the same period. Fine wine has delivered over 37% appreciation in the last decade. Current market corrections represent entry points for informed collectors. Here is what matters for Dunn specifically: the wine has never been priced in line with its reputation. While Harlan and Screaming Eagle command four and five figures, Dunn's Napa Valley bottling has held remarkably steady around $130–$150 at retail. The Wine Searcher average for the 2019 is approximately $130. Artisan has it at $119.99 — below the market average. That kind of pricing anomaly, on a mailing-list-only wine with a 45-year track record, is precisely the kind of arbitrage that rewards the patient collector. Dunn Howell Mountain bottlings from the 1980s regularly trade at auction for $200 to $400 per bottle. Those wines were produced when the estate was half its current size. The trajectory is clear: these wines only become harder to find with time.
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Two Questions Every Collector Asks The Insider FAQ
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"Is Dunn too tannic? Too old-school for modern palates?" That is the old reputation — and the 2019 upends it. This is the most elegant, approachable Dunn in recent memory. At just 13.7% alcohol (remarkably low by Napa standards), Wine Advocate described it as "rather forward (for Dunn)" and said it "comes close" to being plush. The 2019 marks the first inclusion of Coombsville fruit from the newly acquired Eagle Summit Vineyard, adding a dimension of roundness that previous vintages did not possess. You do not need to cellar this for a decade before opening. It drinks beautifully now — and rewards patience through 2038–2039. "Why should I buy a full case instead of a bottle or two?" Because the magic of Dunn is in the evolution. A single bottle gives you one data point. A case gives you a 15-year conversation with the wine:
• Open one tonight to understand where the wine is now. A case of Dunn is not 12 bottles — it is 12 moments, spaced across your life. At $1,439.88 for the case, that is less than what a single bottle of Screaming Eagle costs on the secondary market.
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Why You Need a Case The Evolution Curve: 12 Bottles, Three Acts
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The Neighborhood Howell Mountain: Above the Fog Line, Above the NoiseDunn's vineyards sit between 1,850 and 2,100 feet of elevation — well above the 1,400-foot fog line that defines the AVA. At this altitude, vines receive more hours of sunlight but cooler overall temperatures. Yields average roughly 2 tons per acre, half the valley floor. The result: smaller berries with thicker skins, extraordinary concentration, and mineral depth. The 2019 draws 76% from Howell Mountain and 24% from Coombsville — a cooler southern AVA James Suckling has compared to Pauillac. Meager volcanic soils. Organic farming since 2016. Three generations. One grape. One mountain. Since 1979.
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Critical Consensus — Five Publications DM 95 · JS 95 · JD 94 · VM 93+ · WA 93
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Pairing & Service What to Serve with a 95-Point Mountain Cabernet
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The Math The Pricing Arbitrage Will Not LastWine Searcher average retail for the 2019 Dunn Napa: ~$130. Most retailers with remaining stock: $140–$165. Artisan: $119.99 — $30 below the typical retail and $10 below the market average. The case math: 12 bottles × $119.99 = $1,439.88. At the going retail rate of $150, that same case costs $1,800 elsewhere. You save $360 on the case — effectively three free bottles at cost. When these 36 bottles are gone, the next available bottles come from the secondary market at a premium. This is a mailing-list wine. It does not sit on shelves. For context: an entire case of Dunn at Artisan costs less than three bottles of Opus One 2019 — or a single bottle of Harlan Estate 2019.
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⚠ Library Vintage STILL AVAILABLE — Last Call — Only 8 Bottles ⚠ Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 · Napa ValleyJS 95 · WA 94 · VM 94 · WS 93 · JD 92 Vinous described the 2018 as "gorgeous" and "an absolute delight — a wine that won't take forever to come around." Wine Spectator places the drinking window through 2035. At $134.97 against a $175 elsewhere price, these 8 bottles represent a $40 saving on a library vintage that has functionally left the market.
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Since 1979. The Benchmark. Randy Dunn built Howell Mountain's reputation before most of today's cult producers existed. The 2019 is the most elegant vintage in recent memory. Five critics. 93–95 points. $30 below what anyone else charges. There are 36 bottles. Limit one case. This will not come around again.
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Cheers, James Tran Artisan Wine & Spirits artisan.wine · sales@artisan.wine · Text 650-880-3553
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