Realm Cellars The Bard (1.5 Liter Magnum) 2016
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Robert
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Jeb
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Wilfred
Wong -
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Enthusiast
Product Details
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot from 21 different lots from 11 different vineyards, the 2016 The Bard is very deep purple-black in color and sashays out of the glass with strikingly beautiful violets, warm cassis, star anise and chocolate mint notes with hints of wood smoke, tobacco and kirsch, with blackberry compote at the core. Full, muscular and built like a brick house with layer upon layer of black, blue and red fruits, it finishes very long and savory.
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Jeb Dunnuck
The Left Bank Bordeaux-themed release, the 2016 The Bard checks in as roughly 70% Cabernet Sauvignon with the balance Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. This cuvée is sourced from sites such as To Kolan, Dr. Crane, Weitz, and Fortuna as well as a few others, and is brought up in plenty of new oak. It has a mammoth bouquet of crème de cassis and blueberry fruits intermixed with ground herbs, graphite, chocolate, and crushed rocks. Full-bodied, opulent and layered on the palate, with a powerful yet balanced, incredibly classic style, it has a certain approachability today but is going to cruise for two decades. It’s a brilliant wine.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The Bard Red Wine by Realm Cellars belongs to a select group of ultra, high-end Napa wines. The 2016 vintage is firm and long. Enjoy its intoxicating aromas and flavors of black fruit with aged cheeses and semi-serious conversations. (Tasted: April 29, 2019, San Francisco, CA)
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Wine Enthusiast
The Bard is 85% Cabernet Sauvignon this vintage, and the producer’s largest production wine, which still is small and devoted to detail. Sweet redcherry-liqueur flavor meets a grippy herbal undertone of forceful weight and power, the structure balanced and complex, yet immediately enjoyable
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Realm Cellars is one of Napa Valley’s most electrifying wine brands with estate vineyards in Stags Leap District, Pritchard Hill and Coombsville. In 2012, owner Scott Becker and his partner, winemaker Benoit Touquette teamed up to revive a nearly bankrupt brand. Since then, Realm has been transformed into one of the most collected wineries in Napa Valley, with a vineyard portfolio that today exemplifies the beauty and longevity of Napa Valley. Making wine at the very highest level is at the core of Realm Cellars. Since 2012, the wines have been awarded more 100-point scores from internationally recognized wine critics than any other producer in Napa Valley.
Formerly the Hartwell Estate, Realm acquired the property in 2015 and began initial construction and development phases of an endeavor that will take decades to realize. In 2022, Realm acquired Nine Suns and Houyi Vineyard in Napa Valley’s famed area, Pritchard Hill. Realm’s portfolio of wines includes estate, single vineyard wines and proprietary blends, unified by a “style” best described as a creative tension between richness and precision, density and finesse, purity of fruit and nuance. In addition to its estate vineyard sites, Realm partners with Napa Valley’s most prestigious and iconic wine growers and vineyard sites, including Beckstoffer Dr. Crane and Beckstoffer To Kalon.
Undoubtedly proving its merit over and over, Napa Valley is a now a leading force in the world of prestigious red wine regions. Though Cabernet Sauvignon dominates Napa Valley, other red varieties certainly thrive here. Important but often overlooked include Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties well-regarded on their own as well as for their blending capacities. Very old vine Zinfandel represents an important historical stronghold for the region and Pinot noir is produced in the cooler southern parts, close to the San Pablo Bay.
Perfectly situated running north to south, the valley acts as a corridor, pulling cool, moist air up from the San Pablo Bay in the evenings during the hot days of the growing season, which leads to even and slow grape ripening. Furthermore the valley claims over 100 soil variations including layers of volcanic, gravel, sand and silt—a combination excellent for world-class red wine production.