Desert Wine (1980–2003) was an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

best known for his three-year-old season that included a runner-up finish in the

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () on ...

and four stakes wins in California, including the

Strub Stakes The Strub Stakes is an American race for thoroughbred horses run at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California Arcadia is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, located about northeast of downtown Los Angeles in the San Gabriel ...

Background

A descendant of

Nearco Nearco (January 24, 1935 – June 27, 1957) was an Italian-bred Thoroughbred racehorse described by ''Thoroughbred Heritage'' as "one of the greatest racehorses of the Twentieth Century" and "one of the most important sires of the century." He ...

, he was sired by U.S. Hall of Fame inductee

Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...

, himself the son of another Hall of Fame horse, Sword Dancer. He was bred by

Brereton C. Jones Brereton Chandler Jones (born June 27, 1939) is an American politician from the Commonwealth of Kentucky. From 1987 to 1991, he served as the 50th lieutenant governor of Kentucky and from 1991 to 1995, he was the state's 58th governor. He now ...

out of the mare Anne Campbell, whose sire was

Never Bend Never Bend (1960–1977) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who was the 1962 American Champion Two-Year-Old and later became a leading sire in England. Racing Career 1962: Two-year-old season Foaled at Claiborne Farm for owner/bre ...

Two-year-old season

At age two, Desert Wine won the grade two

Hollywood Juvenile Championship Stakes The Hollywood Juvenile Championship Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually in early July at Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California. Open to two-year-old horses, the Graded stakes race, Grade III event is contested on ...

at six furlongs and the grade three Sunny Slope Stakes during the Oak Tree at Santa Anita meet. He also placed second in the grade one Norfolk Stakes at a mile and one sixteenth at Santa Anita and won the grade one

Del Mar Futurity The Del Mar Futurity is a seven-furlong American Thoroughbred horse race held annually at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. A Grade I event since 2007, the race is open to two-year-old horses and offers a purse of $300,000. In 1971, it was ...

and the grade two

Hollywood Futurity The Los Alamitos Futurity is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-olds run over a distance distance of one and one sixteenth miles ( furlongs) on the dirt held annually in early December at Los Alamitos Race Course in Cypress, ...

while placing third in the

Hollywood Prevue Stakes The Bob Hope Stakes is a Grade III American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-olds over a distance of seven furlongs on the dirt track scheduled annually in November at Del Mar Racetrack in Del Mar, California. The event currently carries a pu ...

Three-year-old season

Desert Wine started his three-year-old season at

Santa Anita Park Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during early fall, winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious races ...

in the winter of 1983. In February, he won the grade two

San Felipe Stakes The San Felipe Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. It is a Grade II event open to three-year-old horses. Normally held in early -March, it is raced at a distance of one and one ...

at one mile and one sixteenth under jockey

Chris McCarron Christopher John McCarron (born March 27, 1955, Boston, Massachusetts) is a retired American thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey. He mounted his first horse ever at 16.5 years old and was racing professionally by 18. At only 19 years o ...

at Santa Anita. In March, Desert Wine won the grade three

San Rafael Stakes The San Rafael Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run at Santa Anita Park, located in Arcadia, California. The race was a Grade III event with a purse of $150,000 and was open to three-year-olds willing to race one mile (8 furlongs) ...

at one mile at Santa Anita, guided again by jockey

. Then Desert Wine ran second in the 1983

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...

Preakness Stakes

After the Derby, trainer

Jerry M. Fanning Jerry M. Fanning (born November 23, 1932, in Colorado Springs, Colorado) is a trainer of Thoroughbred racehorses. He grew up in Texas and began his career in horse racing as a groom for his father, trainer Lev Fanning. In 1958, he took out a trai ...

entered Desert Wine in the second jewel of the

American Triple Crown In the United States, the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, commonly known as the Triple Crown, is a series of horse races for three-year-old Thoroughbreds, consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes. The three r ...

in the $250,000 grade one

. He was listed as 4-1 second choice behind Derby winner

Sunny's Halo Sunny's Halo (February 11, 1980 – June 3, 2003) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1983 Kentucky Derby. In 1986, Sunny's Halo was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame. Background Foaled at Oshawa, Ontario, Sunny's Halo wa ...

. Desert Wine broke second in the field of twelve colts on a muddy track. He had speed from the start, and Chris McCarron used it to take the lead going into

Pimlico Pimlico () is an area of Central London in the City of Westminster, built as a southern extension to neighbouring Belgravia. It is known for its garden squares and distinctive Regency architecture. Pimlico is demarcated to the north by London V ...

's famous "Clubhouse turn." Despite the off track, Desert Wine set fast early fractions of :23-1/5 for the first quarter and :46-4/5 for the half mile. He led by one and a half lengths down the backstretch and around the final turn. At the top of the lane, 15-1 longshot Deputed Testamony slipped by on the rail and pulled away from the field. The Maryland bred won by 2-3/4 lengths while Desert Wine finished over four lengths ahead of the show horse, High Honors. Desert Wine took home 20% of the purse that day, equalling $50,000.

Later career

However, he is probably best remembered for the 1984

Hollywood Gold Cup The Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for horses age three and older over a distance of miles on the dirt held at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California in May. The race currently offers a purse of $400,000. ...

when

rode him to victory over the great John Henry. Desert Wine died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

at age twenty-three on October 15, 2003, at St. Hilaire Farm near

Yakima, Washington Yakima ( or ) is a city in and the county seat of Yakima County, Washington, and the state's 11th-largest city by population. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 96,968 and a metropolitan population of 256,728. The uninco ...

, owned by Gary L. and Christine Jackson, where he had stood at stud since 2000. His progeny included Flamenco Wave, a successful racemare in Europe who produced three

Group One Group One, Group 1, Grade I or G1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. In Europe, the level of races for Thoroughbred racing is determined using the Pattern races, Pattern race sys ...

winners as well as the dam of

St Nicholas Abbey St Nicholas Abbey is located in Saint Peter, Barbados, and is a plantation house, museum and rum distillery. Colonel Benjamin Berringer built the house in 1658. This house is one of only three genuine Jacobean mansions in the Western Hemispher ...

. {{reflist
Desert Wine's pedigree and partial racing stats

Desert Wine's offspring at the Triple Crown database by Kathleen Irwin and Joy Reeves
1980 racehorse births 2003 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Kentucky Racehorses trained in the United States American Grade 1 Stakes winners Thoroughbred family 16-h