Brief , informal notes . Medium garnet , garnet terracotta rim . Quite mature and tertiary with coffee , cacau , dark cassis and smoky notes . On the palate there are some sweet ripe dark fruits, meaty notes and a tobacco , soy tinged finish . Quite rounded sweet tannins and balanced acidity . Medium length finish , though just a little one dimensional , this shows pretty well overall . Drink now and over the next 5 years . — a month ago
Medium deep ruby , quite narrow rim . Touch of earthy menthol , tobacco , spicy blackcurrant, grafite . On the palate quite dusty , with earthy sous bois , blackcurrant, ripe blackberry , grafite and tobacco , cocoa hints. Quite rich but balanced , good acidity, quite dusty tannins . This is probably at peak now though will last well another decade perhaps . — 6 days ago
As always, a wonderful wine, great for Thanksgiving dinner at Gary’s. — 8 days ago
Rich and ready — 7 days ago
Light, acidic, fruity, and slightly earthy. Floral on the nose. Really nice. — 11 days ago
Good smoke, black berries, cherries and a slight hint of vanilla. A bit pricey at $32 but does not disappoint — a month ago
2023 vintage. Maan, do I feel old reviewing this! Sourced from some eminently notable vineyards. Wine rolls up and down and back up again throughout the palate...almost as if you are tasting each vineyard source as stages vs a blend. Def interesting. Light-medium body. May hafta pick this up as a list placement as it is drinking nicely. Absolutely blowing through Oregon pinot tho. Resto pricing at $19 btg (waay too low) and woulda jumped on it but have another CA pinot currently btg that's an even better deal. 11.27.24. — 9 days ago
Jay Kline
Poured into a decanter about two hours prior to service and enjoyed over the course of several hours. The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon pours a deep ruby color with a near opaque core; medium+ viscosity and significant staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with a lovely mix of dark and red fruits, cassis, black and red brambles, tobacco, eucalyptus, leather, cedar box, green herbs, some cocoa, and beautiful baking spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long. The texture is silky, in fact, down right sexy. Brilliantly balanced. This is a profoundly sensual wine and one of the best young Rafanelli Cabernet Sauvignons I’ve had in many years. These will age for a very long time and I can only imagine how epic the 2021 Terrace Select is going to be. Drink now with an extended decant and through 2051+. — 5 days ago