March 24, 2024 - This is superb now. Definitely at its peak. We'll balanced but errs on the side of fruit still. Smooth tannins. Shows ripe blackberry and blueberry. Long finish with graphite and gravel. Fantastic.
May 28, 2023 - Decanted for 2 hours and probably could've used more. The wine really opened up over time. Dark brooding fruit with a medium body and decent balance of acidity and tannins. It's in a great drinking spot right now. Not sure if it will get any better though.
Last drank back in 2014 and I gave it an unusually high score...call it inexperience? Anyhow, with age comes wisdom from experience. This wine is still delicious, though not deserving of my original high score of 97.
April 16, 2022 - Delicious bottle. Smooth and rich but not cloying. Mature and drinking very well.
March 26, 2022 - Allowed one hour to open up. Great wine. Dark berries and chocolate notes. Drinking great now
July 19, 2021 - Dark plum, minerality and graphite with integrated tannin
December 12, 2020 - Opened in the bottle for about an hour. On the decline but still enough grip to keep it going. Dark berries, damp soil, and mineral. Straight forward and smooth. Sadly this won’t improve from here.
June 23, 2017 - Allowed one hour to open up. Spectacular wine, dark berries, chocolate, some earthy tannins. Can drink now or let sit for another few years
December 7, 2016 - Realm consistently delivers terrific wines across all their varietals and the Farella Cabernet is no exception. Fruit forward with rich plum, blackberry notes, cassis, mocha, and chocolate give this wine terrific complexity. My only issue with Realm and all their wines is they are starting to price themselves out of the market for even the most avid wine collector. Perhaps it's just me but while these are extremely well made, delicious wines, the price/value is declining.
October 5, 2016 - Pop and pour, then recorked and allowed to stand overnight. On the nose, camphor and a hint of prune. On the palate, powerful blackberry, black cherry, and bitter tobacco, with notes of black coffee and earthy spice on the medium to long finish, with moderate rough tannins and good acidity. On the second day the tannins had integrated, the bitter notes had disappeared, and this was much smoother and more enjoyable, with more noticeable red fruit up front and notes of savory herbs on the finish. The Cellartracker drinking window seems too early - this needs three to five years yet.
June 7, 2016 - A fantastic 100% Cabernet that offers depth with finesse. Dark purple in color, full in body, layered scents of blackberry, mocha, and spice. Rich tastes of dark chocolate, blueberry, gravel, and nutmeg, with a well-balanced, though still tannic, finish. 14.3% alcohol. Believe the hype: these guys really know what they are doing, and have known for quite some time. Drink now or in next year or so. Throwing off a decent amount of sediment, so decant before serving.