After choosing to not make any red wines in 2020, we’re thrilled to have some Realm wines back in stock. The wines at Realm are the epitome of no expense spared, fanatical attention to detail, micro-lot winemaking. The Realm team is absolutely focused on perfection and will settle for nothing less. Fruit for the 2021 Bard comes from their own exceptional estate holdings in Stag’s Leap (Moonracrer) and Houyi Vineyard on Pritchard Hill, plus a list of the most highly regarded growers in the valley: Blair, Beckstoffer To Kalon, Beckstoffer Bourn, Larkmead, Farella and Bettinelli Upper Range. At a recent visit to Realm, the 21 Bard was showing beautifully! In fact it was perhaps even more expressive than some of their other higher-end wines designed for extended aging. If you're looking to see what all the fuss is about with Realm, The Bard is the perfect peek behind the curtain. A nose that dances between power and delicacy - there are lifted floral and dried herb notes, but also deeply saturated ripe fruits and base earth tones. Incredibly pure fruit on the palate with creme de cassis, ripe red currant, mulberry, baking spice, volcanic rick tinges, exotic oak spice and subtle pencil shavings. The texture is sublime, very fine, silky but tactile tannins are engulfed in luxurious ripe fruit. Full-bodied, but not cumbersome, rich but refined. The 2021 Bard showed very well even in the context of the seriously the stacked line up we tasted with Scott and Benoit that included upcoming releases of 2021 Hartwell XX, To Kalon, Houyi, and Absurd. By their own admission, a lot of thought, and time goes into making The Bard the strongest wine possible from their incredibly impressive range of fruit sources. Don't miss this one.

My notes for this one simply say "massive" with an exclamation point. It is that but, in a nice way. None of this over-extracted stuff. Loads of dark and ripe red and black fruits, dominated by cassis, blackberry, tea leaf and chalk. The chalk helps to brighten and enhance, keeping it balanced and interesting. A thoroughly great way to finish up a two dozen selection domestic wine tasting. Bravo!

Realm's 2021 "The Bard" continues the trend of delivering a cult-cab experience at a reasonable price, sometimes expressing the kind of depth and complexity of the single-site wines (each of which have their own unique, indelible character). It is striking aromatically, with floral, red fruit, and mint notes that are lined by hints of vineyard soil. A bright core of delicious red-to-black fruit leads to spicy, tangy tannins. Texturally it is rich but balanced, leading to a long finish lined with fruit and oak tannins, notes of baking chocolate, and a hint of acidity. Very expressive even though just recently bottled, this is one that I wouldn't hesitate to strongly recommend for the most discerning Cali Cab buyers, but will also take a few years to round into peak form. It is one for the long haul for sure.