Realm 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon “The Bard” Napa Valley 97 Points*

TWI (Lisa Perotti-Brown) 97 Points: “CA blend of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot, and 1% Petite Sirah, the fruit for the 2021 The Bard comes from sites across the valley, including some estate fruit and some sourced fruit. Deep garnet-purple colored, it shoots from the glass with vibrant notions of crushed black currants, red currant jelly, black raspberries, and pencil shavings, giving way to notes of lilacs, dark chocolate, and a waft of spearmint. The full-bodied palate is firm with ripe, fine-grained tannins and a lively backbone framing the tightly wound red, black, and blue fruit flavors, finishing with great length and a real skip in its step.”

Winery Notes: “The flagship of Realm’s portfolio, The Bard is the Cabernet Sauvignon-dominated Proprietary Blend we’ve made since 2003. We consider The Bard to be the most dynamic expression of Napa Valley: a blend of grapes from Coombsville to Calistoga, from the east to the west sides, from the hillsides to the valley floor. Dense, weighty, and concentrated, The Bard always punches above its weight, and with multiple dimensions coming together in harmony, there is more than meets the eye in this complex wine. Outstanding vineyards such as Beckstoffer To Kalon, Beckstoffer Bourn, Blair, Houyi, Larkmead, Realm SLD Estate, Farella, Orchard and Bettinelli Upper Range have all found a place in the wine. While the composition of The Bard varies from year to year, Cabernet Sauvignon typically comprises over 70% of the blend, joined by lesser percentages of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.”

*WINE WILL ARRIVE EARLY OCTOBER 2023