Realm Cellars
The Bard Cabernet Sauvignon Blend
Napa Valley, California, USA
Deep and dark ruby red. Jammy nose with boysenberries and a smoky undertone. Tons of fruit on the palate. Well integrated moderate tannins (6.5/10) and full bodied. Some savoriness in the midpalate, smoky and spiciness in the finish. Long finish. Drink till 2023.
Deep and dark ruby red. Jammy nose with boysenberries and a smoky undertone. Tons of fruit on the palate. Well integrated moderate tannins (6.5/10) and full bodied. Some savoriness in the midpalate, smoky and spiciness in the finish. Long finish. Drink till 2023.
Feb 4th, 2017
Late into our Zoom Happy Hour, we decided to open up The Bard. Since I only have older vintages of Realm (yeah, I know: poor me), I decided on the 2008. From the nose and palate I would have bet anything that this had a fair amount of cab franc in the blend, but it’s mainly cab sauvignon with about 15% petite verdot and a little malbec, I think. Anyway, this is holding up really well - and never lost a beat over several hours. I know their more recent vintages are knocking it out of the park in terms of scores, but if you have any bottles from their earlier years (first vintage of Realm was 2002), do yourself a favor and pull out one of these older bottles. They’re really good and will remind you that they were still making some pretty damn good juice before they got too cool for school.
Late into our Zoom Happy Hour, we decided to open up The Bard. Since I only have older vintages of Realm (yeah, I know: poor me), I decided on the 2008. From the nose and palate I would have bet anything that this had a fair amount of cab franc in the blend, but it’s mainly cab sauvignon with about 15% petite verdot and a little malbec, I think. Anyway, this is holding up really well - and never lost a beat over several hours. I know their more recent vintages are knocking it out of the park in terms of scores, but if you have any bottles from their earlier years (first vintage of Realm was 2002), do yourself a favor and pull out one of these older bottles. They’re really good and will remind you that they were still making some pretty damn good juice before they got too cool for school.
Mar 27th, 2021
Superb. Hard to imagine a better pairing with rib eye steak.
Superb. Hard to imagine a better pairing with rib eye steak.
Apr 1st, 2017
Expected a bit more. For me to much on the fruit and not really complex.
Expected a bit more. For me to much on the fruit and not really complex.
Feb 3rd, 2016
Other than the cork disintegration upon opening, a perfect Cab in every conceivable way. Best bottle of wine I have had in quite a long time. Unfortunately, my last bottle of the '08. Definitely improved over the last taste 2 years ago.
Other than the cork disintegration upon opening, a perfect Cab in every conceivable way. Best bottle of wine I have had in quite a long time. Unfortunately, my last bottle of the '08. Definitely improved over the last taste 2 years ago.
Sep 4th, 2015
The Bard is a nice rich Cali Cab blend.
The Bard is a nice rich Cali Cab blend.
Jan 18th, 2015
Have to thank the roulette table for this one tonight. 2008 vintage.
Have to thank the roulette table for this one tonight. 2008 vintage.
Oct 26th, 2014