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Viinin Kuvailu
The Story
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.
Realm Cellars is one of Napa Valley’s biggest success stories of the last decade, but its journey was far from easy. Having gone from one crisis to another, Realm Cellars in 2011 was on the brink of collapse. That was before talented, Bordeaux-born winemaker Benoit Touquette and business partner Scott Becker resurrected it.
Before joining Realm, Becker had worked under Bill Harlan helping set up Promontory. Touquette had been helping make wines at Screaming Eagle and Dalla Valle and trained under Andy Erickson. The team admits they were standing on the shoulders of giants – but they knew where to source the best fruit and how to make world-class wines.
Wine Information
The Name
The Bard is our Cabernet Sauvignon-blend. As Sir William Shakespeare, aka The Bard, is the “king” of English literature, we thought it appropriate to name this wine, dominated as it is by the “king” of Napa Valley grape varieties – The Bard.
The Label
The label art is taken from a pocketsize edition of Shakespeare’s “King Richard II.” The edition is the “The Chiswick Shakespeare,” a text that first appeared in 1901. The label zeroes in on the opening of Act II, Scene I, on the page that contains the quote …”This blessed plot, this earth, this realm…” That was the quote that inspired us to look to Shakespeare for our proprietary blend names; it appeared on all of Realm’s original labels.