Realm Cellars, Moonracer, Napa Valley

Great nose redolent of blackberries and some fresh cut flowers. A bit simple on the palate - lacks a bit of depth but finishes with soft long tannins. A bit of sour cherry on the finish.

2014 vintage

Still so young. Balanced but quite tannin forward. Could age this for another decade still

2015 vintage

Took an hour to smooth out. Full tannic finish that got really good with a little bit of time.

2015 vintage

Starting to mellow out but still feels a bit young. Needed about 3 hours of air to come into its own. Will sit on my last bottle for a few more years, hasn’t dethroned the 2014 Farella for my favorite wine out of Realm

2014 vintage

With Valerie, Rowena, Meredith and Charlotte at the Red Room, a fantastic Italian/red sauce place with BYO in Ventnor NJ. Purchased this at release. Decanted and rebottled about 1.5 hours prior to drinking. Dark garnet/purple color. Beautiful nose, jumps out of the glass, blue fruits, raspberry, mineral, graphite. Textured and fruit forward on the palate showing black cherry, blueberry pie, cocoa, cedar and espresso. Cherry and blackberry persist through the finish. Texture is notable, a fruit forward CA Cab that …

2014 vintage

A really good bottle of wine. Opened 3 hours to prior to beginning consumption. Dark red fruit on the nose leading to a palate of dark cherry, plums, fig, a little tobacco and chocolate. The finish was long and lush.

2014 vintage

Still young, this broad shouldered beauty was a bit shy for the first hour after opening but opened up so well in the second half of dinner. Oak, black fruit, black tea, licorice, bramble, and an iron backbone in this structured wine that is definitely built for the long haul. Could be a 96-97 point wine in a decade.

2015 vintage

Still a little oaky, even after a 2+ hour decant. That said, the fruit is luscious.

2015 vintage

In a fantastic spot! Tannins dropped. Good balance and long finish. Could drink up the aromatics - which is good - as the bottle disappeared quickly amongst friends

2015 vintage

For me the wine is at its peak as while the concentration is certainly there, the overall structure has rounded considerably with not enough for my palate to believe this will go the distance. Beautiful now- still very primary but so enjoyable. Drink now or in the coming years.

2015 vintage

Decanted for 1.5 hrs and consumed over the next 2 hours. Excellent balance with nice dark fruit flavors and little mocha. On the last glass started to open up a sweet and fine menthol on the nose. I often find that off putting but in this instance and quantity worked nicely.

2014 vintage

Might be my favorite wine of the year - everything is working for it right now!

2015 vintage

While a very good red blend, I was disappointed with this wine given its reputation and price point. While it was concentrated with dark blackberry fruit notes, it was a bit muted on the palate and not as expressive and complex as I expected. Hints of chocolate and mocha on the finish…there wasn’t that much complexity. Am hoping the next bottle drinks better.

2014 vintage

Bought this to drink in Realm’s latest library release, but still hard to be ok with opening this $300+ wine. Excellent nose from first opening, decanted 4 hours and probably best at 5+. Dark cherries and cinnamon on the nose, more dark fruit, chocolate, spices on the palate. Better without food and with attention. Oaky tannins still apparent and drying, alcohol not as integrated as I would like which is the only thing holding it back from a higher score. …

2015 vintage

PNP and drank over 3 hours. VG out of the bottle but got better with air till gone. Ultra smooth, well balanced, modern napa cab. Black and blue fruited and towards the end very floral perfumed. An excellent Realm - but quite pricey. Thanks, Gerry, for sharing. HMC easy 96 and given more time maybe higher.

2015 vintage

Not as good as it was last year- good color, nice body - nose was not as forthcoming as earlier- majority cedar notes for me- blue fruit subdued now with more of the red coming through. Not sure if it was what I ate but getting a slight off putting aftertaste- can’t quite place it. I think Cellar Tracker is right in saying these should be drunk now!!

2015 vintage

Opened and decanted for my daughters birthday wine. Dark fruit on the nose. The palate is blackberry, cherry, a touch of chocolate, caramel and spice. The finish is long and smooth.

2015 vintage

The glory of this wine is still obscured by the oak, but the depth and length are evident.

2015 vintage

Probably drank a little early, but my wife love younger Realm. Great balance and depth. Pricey, but worth it for a special bottle...

2014 vintage

A bucking bronco that needs at least a three hour decant. Once done, the bouquet is of dark dusty fruit and spices. The dark jammy fruit is rich with tannins that are strong but well integrated into the massive fruit. The mid palate reveals star anise, vanilla, dried violets, dried orange peel and well used sweaty leather. Brilliant.

2015 vintage

Opened and drank at Maple & Ash, tasted unbelievable an hour later, wish I had waited

2015 vintage

Decanted for three hours and then put back in bottle for an hour. Served slightly cool between the 4th and 5th hour. Wine was perfect. Super big nose of sweet fruit. Wine was full bodied with candy apple, predominately black cherry, plumb, and overall jammy. Just a delight with a one to two minute finish. Perfect timing and great time to open bottle. Had with tenderloin and duck. The wine stood up nicely with the spice sauce on the tenderloin. …

2015 vintage

Drinking really well after 60-90 minutes and didn't quit even 4 hours later. More smooth than powerful at this stage but all of the depth to enjoy throughout an evening.

2015 vintage

Needs 4 hours in wide bowl decanter to hit its stride. Loads of oaky chocolate, vanilla, cloves and a hint of cinnamon envelop a full gambit of fruits ranging from black cherry, red cherry, maraschino cherry, black plum, blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries. All the chocolate-covered fruit is accentuated by flavors of espresso, licorice and menthol. The tannins are super soft and ripe, there’s enough acid to balance out the richness of the fruit and the oak, and high alcohol delivers …

2014 vintage

Opened for 30 minutes, then double decanter for 30 min inside the fridge and left in the bottle for about 1 hour before Valentine's Dinner at Crazy About You. The wine is dark ruby-purple, full body, firm tannins and good acidity. Lots of dark fruits with mocha and tobacco. The finish is elegant and long. This wine will gain more complexity as years pass by. The best part of it was in the last glass (as so often happens with …

2014 vintage

Needs 30-60 mins of air to open up along with a slight chill (maybe just below cellar temp). Gorgeous black cherry essence along with white chocolate. Beautiful mouthfeel...plush, oily, jammy (but not cloying) with a long lingering finish. It has a substantial weight but without heaviness. Has that signature Realm creaminess. At peak for fruit lovers but can last years.

2014 vintage

PNP and drank over 4 hours. Gorgeous nose. Black and blue fruit. Mineral, graphite. Decent tannic backbone, but I may have preferred this a year or two younger. QPR???

2014 vintage

Boy this was a great, evolving wine. Drank periodically over 15 minute increments- improved over time. Definite cedar/oak throughout. Blue fruits in the beginning but slight red fruit in the end. Full palate- great finish. Full bodied- well integrated. Definitely a nicely put together wine

2015 vintage

Second flight of reds was a winner with the 2015 Realm “Moonracer” Cabernet hitting on all cylinders. Dark black fruit with cinnamon, star anise, graphite and spice box on the nose that just doesn’t quit with its complexity. Luxurious finish. Everything you want in a Napa Cab. -DD97.

2015 vintage

Another lost Friday afternoon gathering - mostly French (Jailbreak Brewery, Laurel, MD) : Expressive nose displaying rich sweet red fruit, cherry, blackberry jam, milk chocolate, caramel, toasted oak, vanilla and earth. Excellent concentration, layers upon layers of ripe red fruit with a hint of black, rich and ripe yet polished and fluid, medium acidity, no noticeable tannins and a long ripe red fruit driven finish. This is a delicious very modern well crafted Napa cab with a red fruit profile.

2015 vintage

Freaking delicious. Big fruit, but in balance.

2014 vintage

Decanted for 2 hours, delicious

2015 vintage

Opened up nicely over 2 hr. Dark fruit, dry and smooth mouth feel. good acidity

2015 vintage

Wine Night in Charlotte -- Cork Vault Bottle Share Returns! (Charlotte, NC) : Big wine, big nose, big flavors. This wine was politely divisive among the crowd as its stark contrast versus most of the wines on the night created at times a halting change of pace. For some it was “wine of the night”, for others it was an easy “pass”. Classic Thomas Rivers Brown in sight, smell, taste, and structure. Dark opaque purple in color, nose of raspberry, …

2014 vintage

So good, especially over time. Brought by James to the tasting....nice weight, depth and length. Lots of barrel char that lessens a tad over time. Excellent quality fruit. 95+ bordering on 96 for me. There is some dark fruit that rocks!

2014 vintage

Drank next to a Schrader CCS tonight and was the favorite. Beautifully balanced, long finish, dark fruit with hints of cedar, anise and a hint of black pepper.

2014 vintage

Improved with time, Very dark and brooding, evolving past primary flavors, very long finish. Tasting more like a To-Kalon version.

2015 vintage

Amazing voluptuous nose full of red and dark berries. On the palate dark plum and cherries, black currant, blueberries, blackberries, dark chocolate, cinnamon and licorice. Stil in its primary phase. Full bodied with a medium acidity. Tannins are not integrated yet but they fit perfectly to the wines structure. Very complex fruit structure. Not overdone just really deep with lots of different fruit layers. Very long and juicy finish. I’m missing some more elegance here but I don’t think it …

2015 vintage

Rich and creamy but with enough grip to keep fresh. Blueberry pie and floral elements with a long finish. Decanted half and let half stay in opened bottle. Wine in bottle peaked at 5-6 hour mark and was better than the 3-4 hour decanted portion which lost some of the sweet fruit at that point

2014 vintage

Still a killer bottle. I think it sits pretty squarely in a 96-97 range for me. I also frankly think this is in a drinking spot now and for a few more years, but not sure it's built to lay down for an extended time. Enjoy in its prime.

2014 vintage

Outstanding

2015 vintage

deep garnet, smooth slightly tannic, earthy w dark fruit

2015 vintage

Same note as before. Opened for 4-5 hours. A step above Farella and the blends but a notch below the Beckstoffer’s. Plenty of time left here but likely no better than 95.

2014 vintage

It tastes like stoniness, black currant (cassis), oak, chocolate, raisin, cool/menthol, fig and hazelnut.

2014 vintage

Nose: Covid Taste: blackberries, blueberries, charcoal, light oak, an amazingly long finish where you can savor for a long time every drop. Wow this is REALLY good.

2014 vintage

So good. First time I've had this wine and we loved it.

2014 vintage

Easter Sunday wine. Excellent balance and structure even when young. Dark berries, almost opaque in color, with wet oaks, light tax and cement notes. Tannins and structure are there but should get even better over time. 45 second finish - will be a great bottle down the road I am sure

2014 vintage

This ripe and earthy blend has become more subdued and grainy in the two years since I tasted it last (2/18 - 97 points), but it's still a tasty and layered wine. Like many 2014s, this has become more open-knit and diffuse, but it's also developed a hint of tea-bag bitterness that makes it less appealing than it once was. Dark purple in color; medium in body; nose of boysenberry, cocoa powder, and gravel. Tastes of blueberry tart, black cherry, …

2014 vintage

First day of quarantine, Ashley's Bday, incredible wine, one of my Realm Favs, decanted for 2 hours

2014 vintage

Coravin pour. Viscous glass-staining dark opaque purple color. Nose of blue fruit and leather. Intense full bodied flavor explosion on first sip. Classic Realm rich mouth feel and smooth mid palate. Nice balance of ripe dark fruit and sweet grippy tannins. Incredible wine.

2014 vintage

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Realm Cellars, Moonracer, Napa Valley

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