Realm Cellars The Bard Napa Valley 2015

JD98+: Last of the blends, the 2015 The Bard checks in as 73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Like the Falstaff, it has a terrific purity and freshness as well as full-bodied richness and depth. Blackberries, currants, liquid rock, and tobacco all give way to a gorgeous, deep, layered Cabernet Sauvignon that’s still tight, backward and reserved on the palate. Give bottles 3-4 years, count yourself lucky, and enjoy over the following two decades.

WA97: Blended of 73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot, the 2015 The Bard offers up a very deep garnet-purple color and highly perfumed scents of violets, dried Provence herbs, lavender and tapenade over a core of cassis and blackberry preserves. Full-bodied and loaded with perfumed black fruit layers, it has a solid frame of rounded, plush-textured tannins and a provocatively earthy finish. 2,000 cases were made