Dunning Vineyards

In conjunction with the

Harvest Wine Tour Weekend

Join the owners and winemakers from the eclectic group of 16 Far Out Wineries for an educational seminar, wine tasting and a whole lot of fun! Each winery will showcase their ‘favorite’ wine of the year as they impart insight into their winemaking philosophy and vineyard operation. It is sure to be an impressive line up of wines! Attendees will be wowed and amazed by the insight, candor and oftentimes amusing banter between the panel participants as they discuss their wines and experiences in the “far out” hills west of Paso Robles.

Cabernet Sauvignon Paso Robles Westside 2001 - 88 pts from the Wine Spectator
Focused, with fine intensity and concentration on black currant, black cherry and violet character, with roasted herb tones, minerals and generous cedary oak framed by solid structure. Drink now through 2009.

Dunning Vineyards Syrah 2002 - 87 pts from Parker's Wine Advocate
The reasonably priced 2002 offers Syrah character (blackberries, cassis, earth, and licorice), medium body, supple tannin, and a generous mouthfeel. Drink it over the next 3-4 years.

September, 2002: Dunning Vineyards 2000 Select Ranches Zinfandel won a Silver medal at the Orange county fair.

June 2001: Dunning Vineyards 1999 Estate Cabernet Sauvinon won a silver medal at the Orange County Fair in the $24 and up category.

March, 2001: Dunning Vineyards 1999 "Select Ranches" Zinfandel Paso Robles Westside has won a Silver Medal at Jerry D. Mead's New World International Wine Competition.

The 2004 growing season gave us a mix of great and unusual weather. Spring was a little warmer than normal on the Westside of the Paso Robles appellation.. At the highest elevation (1500 feet)

our mountainside vineyards had an early bud break with the new shoots getting a fast start in the spring. We are cooler on the Westside and a warm spring can give the grapes a longer hang time. But if the weather turns cold again you can have a burn back and the new flower cluster can be damaged. Mother Nature decided to "Shake us up Again" just as we were recovering from the Earth Quake of December 2003. Cold weather in late April did some natural crop thinning for us. May produced a normal weather pattern and the crop looked well balanced.

The summer was cooler than normal and the natural acidity in the grapes remained high. As the end of August came we got a hot spell for a few weeks and this helped to push the sugars up in the grapes and we ended up with very ripe, full flavored fruit with great acid balance!

In late October a large rain storm hit but thankfully we had harvested the last of our Estate Cabernet Sauvignon just one day before! The 2004 vintage will be one of our best to date!

A small crop, due to the growing season, the Chardonnay has nicely concentrated fruit flavors and well-balanced acid in the juice.

The wine completed 100% malolatic and the yeast lees are stirred bi-weekly to add creaminess to the finish. We will bottle a limited 425 cases in the fall.

The warm spell in September really pushed up the sugar levels with great fruit and balanced acidity. We fermented all the grapes in small lots and the wine is currently in barrel. Early tastings show ripe fruit and great structure. Estimated production 245 cases.

The Cabernet hang time on the vine was as long as possible this year and we believe this will pay off with a fuller mouthful and rounder flavors. We also used more of new French oak to add rich tannins and toasty vanillin in the finish. A recent barrel tasting in January 2005 shows the wine is well balanced with forward fruit and great acidity. An estimated production of 425 cases.

The Zinfandel sugar at harvest was 26-29 brix with only a few raisins and the wine is incredibly rich and dark. Flavors of Raspberries, currants and spice are showing through and our 2004 Estate Zinfandel will be a great wine. Very limited production of 350 cases.

With our Syrah, we are looking to bring out the full spectrum of Syrah fruit and our vines are now five years old. We harvested the fruit at 27 brix and the resulting wine is big, dark and very well structured. This will be a Big-style Syrah with that great Westside balance between fruit and acid. We plan on aging this wine a little longer in barrel for 18-22 months and with about 35% new French oak Very limited production of 275 cases.




	In conjunction with the Harvest Wine Tour Weekend Join the owners and winemakers from the eclectic group of 16 Far Out Wineries for an educational seminar, wine tasting and a whole lot of fun! Each winery will showcase their ‘favorite’ wine of the year as they impart insight into their winemaking philosophy and vineyard operation. It is sure to be an impressive line up of wines! Attendees will be wowed and amazed by the insight, candor and oftentimes amusing banter between the panel participants as they discuss their wines and experiences in the “far out” hills west of Paso Robles. Watch Bob Dunning explain Chardonnay product here. Awards For Our Wine *2005 Private Reserve Zinfandel* Gold Medal Orange County Fair *2005 Vin De Casa* Silver Medal Orange County Fair *2003 Estate Zinfandel* Gold Medal Orange County Fair *2004 Vin De Casa* Silver Medal Orange County Fair *2004 Private Reserve Cabernet Franc* Silver Medal Orange Country Fair *2004 Estate Chardonnay* Bronze Medal Orange County Fair *2003 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon* Bronze Medal Orange County Fair *2003 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon* 87 Points Wine Enthusist Magazine *Cabernet Sauvignon Paso Robles Westside 2001 - 88 pts from the Wine Spectator* Focused, with fine intensity and concentration on black currant, black cherry and violet character, with roasted herb tones, minerals and generous cedary oak framed by solid structure. Drink now through 2009. *Dunning Vineyards Syrah 2002 - 87 pts from Parker's Wine Advocate* The reasonably priced 2002 offers Syrah character (blackberries, cassis, earth, and licorice), medium body, supple tannin, and a generous mouthfeel. Drink it over the next 3-4 years. *September, 2002: Dunning Vineyards 2000 Select Ranches Zinfandel* won a Silver medal at the Orange county fair. June 2001: Dunning Vineyards 1999 Estate Cabernet Sauvinon won a silver medal at the Orange County Fair in the $24 and up category. *March, 2001: Dunning Vineyards 1999 "Select Ranches" Zinfandel Paso Robles Westside* has won a Silver Medal at Jerry D. Mead's New World International Wine Competition. Harvest 2004 Report The 2004 growing season gave us a mix of great and unusual weather. Spring was a little warmer than normal on the Westside of the Paso Robles appellation.. At the highest elevation (1500 feet) our mountainside vineyards had an early bud break with the new shoots getting a fast start in the spring. We are cooler on the Westside and a warm spring can give the grapes a longer hang time. But if the weather turns cold again you can have a burn back and the new flower cluster can be damaged. Mother Nature decided to "Shake us up Again" just as we were recovering from the Earth Quake of December 2003. Cold weather in late April did some natural crop thinning for us. May produced a normal weather pattern and the crop looked well balanced. The summer was cooler than normal and the natural acidity in the grapes remained high. As the end of August came we got a hot spell for a few weeks and this helped to push the sugars up in the grapes and we ended up with very ripe, full flavored fruit with great acid balance! In late October a large rain storm hit but thankfully we had harvested the last of our Estate Cabernet Sauvignon just one day before! The 2004 vintage will be one of our best to date! Tasting notes on our the new wines currently in barrel: Our Estate White *2004 Estate Chardonnay* A small crop, due to the growing season, the Chardonnay has nicely concentrated fruit flavors and well-balanced acid in the juice. The wine was barrel fermented in 100% French oak with 45% new barrels. The wine completed 100% malolatic and the yeast lees are stirred bi-weekly to add creaminess to the finish. We will bottle a limited 425 cases in the fall. Our Estate Reds *2004 Estate Merlot* The warm spell in September really pushed up the sugar levels with great fruit and balanced acidity. We fermented all the grapes in small lots and the wine is currently in barrel. Early tastings show ripe fruit and great structure. Estimated production 245 cases. *2004 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon* The Cabernet hang time on the vine was as long as possible this year and we believe this will pay off with a fuller mouthful and rounder flavors. We also used more of new French oak to add rich tannins and toasty vanillin in the finish. A recent barrel tasting in January 2005 shows the wine is well balanced with forward fruit and great acidity. An estimated production of 425 cases. *2004 Estate Zinfandel* The Zinfandel sugar at harvest was 26-29 brix with only a few raisins and the wine is incredibly rich and dark. Flavors of Raspberries, currants and spice are showing through and our 2004 Estate Zinfandel will be a great wine. Very limited production of 350 cases. *2004 Estate Syrah* With our Syrah, we are looking to bring out the full spectrum of Syrah fruit and our vines are now five years old. We harvested the fruit at 27 brix and the resulting wine is big, dark and very well structured. This will be a Big-style Syrah with that great Westside balance between fruit and acid. We plan on aging this wine a little longer in barrel for 18-22 months and with about 35% new French oak Very limited production of 275 cases. *Archived Harvest Reports:* *2001* *2000*