I have a 1995 Dunn Cabernet I'm planning on drinking tonight, pairing with NY strips and shrimp at home. I stood it up in my wine fridge last night and will be upright for about 24hr before dinner time.
I've never opened or consumed a wine with this much age before. Any tips for a newbie? Should I decant for sediment or just pour straight to glass? I do have a durand for opening.
Cheers,
by Either-Breadfruit-83
6 Comments
open mouth
Definitely use the Durand. Decant for sediment (a filter wouldn’t hurt if you’ve never done it before). Then drink 😬
If it smells rotten when you open it give it some time and be patient with it.
I would decant this personally and check every 15-30 minutes or so to see where it was at. I have had a lot of trouble with these older Dunn corks so just be ready for that to be shit show, even with the Durand. Killer wine though.
I’ve drank numerous bottles of Dunn from the 1990s. They do best with age. You’re doing the right thing letting it sit upright. There will be lots of sediment. I would not decant, but rather carefully pour your wine and let open up in your large wine glasses and let open up as you enjoy it overtime. That’s part of the journey. It will be tight, but will open up as the evening progresses. Don’t cheat yourself out of the full experience. Make sure you have a little wine left in the bottle after three or four hours. Enjoy!
I can tell you that wine has some serious tannins that are specific to growing on Howell Mountain. You can absolutely let that stuff breathe for a while and it will still taste like it could’ve aged longer.
The grapes on those hills grow smaller so you’ve got much higher skin to juice ratio—or at least that’s my understanding. So yeah give it some time to open up and enjoy some extra butter on that steak because that stuff will absolutely cut through any fat.