Fait Main and Teeter Totter Napa Valley Wine Tasting with Special Guest Winemaker Benoit Touquette Thursday, April 23 7:30 PM
“I hope that some day (we are at a point where in California) we rate the great wines based on the terroir." – Jess Jackson
Jess was one of the pioneers of terroir in Northern California and the wineries he started are still making some of the best wines in the world.
Speaking of making some of the best wines in the world we have one of the stars of Napa Valley Benoit Touquette coming to Wine Watch in a few weeks.
Benoit Touquette’s journey from humble beginnings to Napa Valley was anything but linear. He was enriched by his travels — each place he visited added depth to his craft, shaped his palate, and sharpened his perspective. With 41 x 100-point wines, his work reflects not just technical mastery, but a world of influence distilled into every bottle. Now rooted in Napa, he channels that global insight into wines that are grounded, generous, and always driven by an uncompromising pursuit of excellence.
Benoit has consulted for several big names in the valley and we also is an owner of several labels most notably Fait-Main and Teeter Totter are his brands but he is also a co-owner of Realm. We will be focusing on the wines of Fait-Main and Teeter Totter but hey at Wine Watch you always get extra so there may be a bottle or two of Realm opened up also…
Join us as we welcome one of Napa’s top winemakers to Wine Watch on Thursday, April 23rd, the fee for this tasting which includes dinner and gratuity is $350 + tax. For reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.
Fait Main and Teeter Totter Napa Valley Wine Tasting
with Special Guest Winemaker Benoit Touquette
Thursday, April 23, 2026
7:30 PM
2022 Teeter-Totter Chardonnay, Napa Valley
2015 Fait-Main Toyon Vineyards Chardonnay Napa
2021 Teeter-Totter Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
2023 Fait-Main Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
2012 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
2015 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
2016 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
2017 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
2018 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
2019 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
2023 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
Menu
Selection of Cheese and Charcuterie
Seared Sea Scallop with Citrus Beurre Bland and Herbed Quinoa Salad
Danish Baby Back Ribs with Korean BBQ
Beef Bourguignon Served in Yorkshire Pudding
Chocolate Crème Brulee
The fee for this tasting which includes dinner and gratuity is $350 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com. Please let us know when you make your reservations if you have any dietary restrictions and chefs Toni and Dani will be happy to accommodate you.
A bit about Benoit Touquette:
“I grew up in Lyon thinking I would become a fighter pilot or an engineer. I never considered wine until I was in Bordeaux working mobile bottling lines to pay for graduate school. The infectious passion of the winemakers I met, showing up day after day with the same fire in their eyes, blew me away. I switched my focus to oenology and completed two degrees, then left France to intern with Andy Erickson and explore uncharted possibilities in Napa Valley. I worked hard, learned from everyone, and pushed myself to deliver the kind of winemaking I believe in. I’ve never missed a picking day, and I’ll spend as much time as it takes to get the wines right. I started Fait-Main because I fell in love with a vineyard… and then another, and another.
Benoit Touquette’s journey on the leading edge of fine winemaking spans continents. From Bordeaux to Napa, he built in his early years the foundation of his talents under world-renowned winemaker Michel Rolland. He soon became one of Napa Valley’s most sought-after winemakers, and now partner at Realm Cellars. He has pursued a balance of elegance and power in his craft, achieving 39 x 100-point ratings along the way.
“I don’t want anything handed to me, I want to take it. It’s only when you push yourself to the edge that you find out what you are truly capable of.” Benoit Touquette
All the wines from Fait Main and Teeter Totter on SALE!!
2023 Fait-Main Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA
Price: $105.00 Your Price: $94.50
The 2023 Fait-Main Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is our third release of this hedonistic blue label Cab. Assembled with fruit from all of Fait-Main’s acclaimed single-vineyard sources, plus some exciting up-and-coming vineyards mostly from Calistoga, this wine delivers a captivating expression of elegance and depth, with layers of ripe cassis, crushed stone, and graphite, accented by delicate floral nuances. Full-bodied and impeccably balanced, it boasts a rich texture, beautifully integrated tannins, and evolving notes of red, blue, and black fruits with hints of bouquet garni and chocolate. The finish is long and elegant, capturing remarkable concentration and finesse.
100% Cabernet Sauvignon
1,300 Cases Produced
2012 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
Price: $295.00 Sale Price: $239.00 Quantity in Stock: 2
(95 Points) The 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Las Piedras has turned out beautifully. Here, too, the wine is not particularly expressive of site, but there is less heaviness than in the 2013, and the ripeness is more measured relative to the wine's overall structure and weight. Silky tannins give the 2012 much of its succulence and near term appeal. Black cherry, mocha and sweet spices are pushed forward, but the Piedras is above all else a wine that captures the radiance and sexiness of the vintage. (AG) Review Date: 10/2015 Vinous
2015 Fait-Main Sleeping Lady Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
Price: $199.00 Your Price: $179.10 Quantity in Stock: 1
(96 Points) The 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon Bettinelli Sleeping Lady Vineyard is more finesse driven and elegant, with a gorgeous sensuality in its weight and texture. Loaded with notions of red plums, cassis, incense, and dried flowers, this beauty is full-bodied, seamless and super elegant, with fine, fine tannin, and a great finish. It’s just another sensational wine from Benoit Touquette that’s more than worth your time and money. Bravo! Jeb Dunnuck, Review Date: 12/2017
2014 Fait-Main Sleeping Lady Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
Price: $199.00 Your Price: $179.10 Quantity in Stock: 3
(95 Points) Made from several Cabernet Sauvignon Clones, the 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Sleeping Lady Vineyard is a head turner that has incredible focus and precision, with an almost 2013-like style in its tannin and structure. Offering lots of black and blue fruits, spring flowers, graphite and wet rock aromas and flavors, this beauty is medium to full-bodied, concentrated and layered, with sweet tannin and an unctuous style. Given the prices of most Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons today, this is unquestionably a value. It will be even better with 2-3 years of bottle age and drink well for 15+. Jeb Dunnuck, Review Date: 07/2017
2015 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
Price: $313.00 Sale Price: $249.00 Quantity in Stock: 3
(97 Points) Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon Las Piedras is scented of freshly crushed plums and blackberries with a loam, underbrush and crushed rock undercurrent, plus a waft of allspice. Full-bodied and tightly wound in the mouth, it has a rock-solid backbone of ripe, grainy tannins and great freshness, finishing long with serious mineral layers. (LPB) Review Date: 10/2017 Wine Advocate
2016 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
Price: $312.00 Sale Price: $249.00 Quantity in Stock: 3
(97 Points) Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Las Piedras is redolent of black cherries, wild blueberries, plum preserves and cassis, plus suggestions of crushed rocks and black olives. Full-bodied, ripe and wonderfully expressive it the mouth, the generous black and blue fruits are well-supported by firm, ripe, fine-grained tannins, finishing with fantastic length and purity. (LPB) Review Date: 11/2021 Wine Advocate
2017 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
Price: $285.00 Sale Price: $225.00 Quantity in Stock: 3
(93 Points) Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Las Piedras reveals a lifted, floral nose of rose oil and lavender over a core of warm cassis and redcurrant jelly, with a waft of dusty soil. The elegantly styled, medium to full-bodied palate is filled with perfumed red and black fruits, featuring soft tannins and a refreshing line, finishing long and layered. (LPB) Review Date: 11/2021 Wine Advocate
2018 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
Price: $285.00 Sale Price: $225.00 Quantity in Stock: 3
(96 Points) Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Las Piedras gallops out of the the glass with energetic scents of blackcurrant pastilles, Morello cherries and blueberry pie, with hints of fragrant earth, chocolate box and violets. Tightly wound, fine-grained and lively in the full-bodied mouth, it has bags of crunchy black and blue fruits and a long, beautifully pure finish. (LPB) Review Date: 11/2021 Wine Advocate
2019 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
Price: $307.00 Sale Price: $245.00 Quantity in Stock: 3
(96 Points) Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Las Piedras explodes with vibrant scents of blackcurrant preserves, wild blueberries, candied violets and Indian spices, plus wafts of potpourri and tobacco leaf. The full-bodied palate is packed with rich, perfumed black fruit preserves flavors, framed by firm, grainy tannins and plenty of freshness, finishing long with a whole array of mineral and exotic spice sparks. (LPB) 96+ Review Date: 11/2021 Wine Advocate
2023 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
Price: $262.50 Your Price: $236.25
The Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard in Saint Helena marks the first site ever produced by Fait-Main. The stony, tough soils in the middle of a typically soft and rich valley floor, create a full-bodied wine with sumptuous complexity. The richly layered palate that each vintage has expressed thus far, shows the site’s compelling interplay of fruit and structure, bound together with graceful minerality. It was a walk through the vineyard that lies just a few blocks west of his home in Saint Helena that inspired Benoit to start Fait-Main: “I never felt compelled to make my own wine until I visited Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard. It felt like coming home.”
The 2023 Fait-Main Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon yields a Cabernet of striking structure and refinement, where vivid red-skinned plums and ripe cherries meet crushed stone and subtle spice. Layers of raspberry, graphite, and licorice weave through the palate with mineral notes. Full-bodied yet refined, it lingers with creamy depth and a velvety resonance that speaks to both power and grace.
100% Cabernet Sauvignon
300 Cases Produced
2015 Fait-Main Toyon Vineyards Chardonnay Napa
Price: $115.00 Your Price: $103.50 Quantity in Stock: 16
(93 Points) "A fresh white with sliced apple and pineapple as well as pear and yogurt. Full body, round yet vivid and intense. Tight and classical in style." James Suckling. (3/2018).
2023 Teeter-Totter Cabernet Sauvignon California
Price: $36.00 Your Price: $32.40
Aromas of red currants with terra-cotta, lead pencil and iron shavings. Violets. Medium body, medium round tannins and a savory finish. Hint of black pepper. Drink or hold.
2021 Teeter-Totter Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, USA
Price: $75.00 Your Price: $67.50 Quantity in Stock: 12
Winery Notes With every vintage, we aim for superior quality-price ratio, approachability, and irresistible charm. Powerful, well-balanced, and unapologetically juicy, you’re sure to enjoy a rich and full-bodied experience. Surrender to the savory black fruits, raspberry chocolate, espresso, and dash of spice – they will not steer you wrong! The perfect plus one for any occasion.
2022 Teeter-Totter Chardonnay, Napa Valley, USA
Price: $39.00 Your Price: $35.10 Quantity in Stock: 12
Winemaker Notes: The 2022 vintage will be remembered as a beautiful growing season with intensely flavored fruit, as we picked before the severe September heat spell. Sourced from a single vineyard site, this vintage is our ninth Chardonnay release,” explains Benoit Touquette. The 2022 Teeter-Totter Chardonnay delivers on the characteristics this wine is known for – pure, bright, and powerful fruit, paired with toast, honey and brioche – and adds new layers of lemon, apricot, white peach and stunning minerality. The full-bodied palate rolls into a smooth, lingering finish that keeps you coming back for more. It comes from Napa Valley and was aged in 50% new French oak and 50% stainless steel to bring refreshing acidity to the glass.
A bit about Realm Cellars:
Making wine at the very highest level has always been at the core of Realm Cellars. Through “these blessed plots” – vineyards that we own and sites that we carefully curate – our aim is nothing less than to illuminate and reflect the pinnacle of Napa Valley winegrowing. But our vision for what Realm can be encompasses more than creating fine wine. Securing an enduring place in the history of Napa Valley, that is also our aspiration.
Realm Cellars is a journey, built upon the dreams and ambitions of people willing to risk everything in the pursuit of beauty and quality. We have come a long way, but there is always so much further to go. Drawing on a shared ethos of entrepreneurship and relentless perfectionism, the Realm team will never be satisfied with the status quo. Every success - and every failure - is an opportunity to learn, adapt and evolve. With grit and determination, we strive to create a legacy greater than any one individual, one that will last for generations.
As we look to the future, we see only possibility. Our Estate in the Stags Leap District is our foundation, ensuring that Realm Cellars will be here for decades to come. There is much work ahead: a property to revitalize, vineyards to re-plant, a hospitality concept to be realized, and of course, wines to be made. As we map our course, our promise - to our customers, our growers, ourselves - is that Realm Cellars will never be static, never complacent. We will make our mark in the firm belief that the best is always yet to come.
When people visit Realm Cellars today, they don’t see what we see.
To them, Realm is an established winery in the Stags Leap District, with vineyards stretching from the Silverado Trail to the top of Wappo Hill, a modern wine cellar with shiny new equipment, and wines served in elegant glasses by a staff of professionals. They see something that’s smooth around the edges, they see success...
We see the road that got us here.
A rough road with potholes and unexpected turns. A grand experiment in risk taking, a string of fits and starts with more than its fair share of setbacks. We see going into debt, begging growers for fruit, working with borrowed equipment, harvesting until three AM, selling bottles one at a time. We see losing an entire vintage to fire, divorce, debt, more debt, near dissolution, and then finally, finally... a break, a rebirth. Even with our successes, we’ve never been short of challenges, and we’re certain that more lay ahead.
When we look at Realm today, we see it in its entirety, and that’s the story we present here. It’s not short and it’s not fluffy. It’s real. If you want to understand how we got to where we are today, this is the place to do it.
We closed on the Hartwell property on December 30, 2015, and a new chapter began for Realm Cellars. After thirteen years of making wine, we had a home. A winery and a vineyard -- an Estate! It kind of blew our minds. Benoit had worked on this property for over ten years, so it wasn’t exactly new to him. What was new to him - and to us – was the concept of owning the place. We went from renters to owners overnight, with all the responsibility that entails. When the reservoir got clogged with leaves from a heavy rain, Andy and the team went and shoveled it out. When the front gate wouldn’t open, Eden figured out how to get it fixed. When a falling branch knocked out the electricity, Juan called PG&E. There was no landlord, no property manager. And to be honest, there’d been some delayed maintenance.
February 2, 2016. The day of our Spring 2016 release. It was not a good day, to be honest. The wine sold out in three hours, but a lot of our long-time customers weren’t happy. We had never been a wait-listed, high-demand brand that sells out in a few hours; it caught us all by surprise. We knew there was momentum, but we didn’t anticipate how quickly people would be on the computer to order wine, and we didn’t allow enough time for the customers who would normally place an order. Talk about growing pains. We felt terrible. We did a video to apologize. And we changed our allocation approach.
We always knew Realm needed its own winery. It was the logical and necessary next step. We’d made wine at Boswell since 2007, and it had been a good home, but it was like sharing a kitchen - a little out of our control. We started looking around in 2014 and considered a lot of properties. But none of them were quite right. About the same time, Benoit proposed the idea of approaching Bob and Blanca Hartwell about the Hartwell Estate Vineyards property in Stags Leap. Benoit had made wine for the Hartwells since 2004, and had been viticulturist for the estate since 2008. He knew the property well and understood its potential. He also knew the family was thinking about downsizing their operation.
In the winter of 2014 Realm held its first annual Grower Dinner. It was the first time we were able to formally recognize and thank the growers who supply us with grapes. Some of these growers had been with us since the very beginning. They’d stuck with us through some pretty tough times. Without them, there would be no Realm.
2023 Realm Cellars The Tempest Napa
Price: $150.00 Your Price: $135.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
The Tempest was one of the first wines, and the first Proprietary Blend, we produced. At the time, it seemed almost uncanny that we were able to access three grape varietals at the same time, from the same vineyard; it was blind luck, or perhaps the proverbial “perfect storm.” In 2002, our equipment was borrowed and the winery we occupied was just half finished, but the grapes were sound that year and the resulting wine reflected a fierce determination to brave the storm. The Tempest is still made with outstanding grapes, from vineyards such as Blair in Calistoga and cooler sites like Farella and Orchard. Predominantly Merlot with lesser amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot depending on vintage, The Tempest is a roiling cauldron of fresh red and blue fruit and silky tannins – a wine that shows what Merlot can be in the right hands, from the right vineyards.
2013 Realm Cellars The Bard Proprietary Blend Napa
Price: $495.00 Sale Price: $395.00 Quantity in Stock: 15
(100 Points) The perfect 2013 The Bard is a blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Petit Verdot, coming from four vineyards that Realm uses consistently -- B Weitz, Houyi, Blair and of course, the Beckstoffer Dr. Crane in St. Helena. There are 950 cases of this extraordinary wine, which has it all. Notes of graphite, blackberries, roasted espresso and chocolate are followed by a wine of enormous, massive extraction, richness and intensity, but no hard edges. This seamless work of vinous haute couture is staggeringly rich, very long, but not the least bit heavy or overbearing. (RP) Review Date: 12/2015 Wine Advocate
2012 Realm Cellars The Bard Proprietary Blend Napa
Price: $430.00 Sale Price: $349.00 Quantity in Stock: 3
(99 Points) The 2012 Proprietary Red The Bard, a 500-case blend of 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petit Verdot, is meant to showcase the finest Cabernet Sauvignon grapes they access from such great Napa Valley sites as Beckstoffer To Kalon, Beckstoffer Dr. Crane, Fortuna and Weitz. Beautiful notes of pungent baking spices, licorice, melted chocolate, espresso, blackberries and cassis soar from the glass of this ostentatious, flamboyant, classic, locked-and-loaded Cabernet Sauvignon. (RP) Review Date: 10/2014 Wine Advocate
2023 Realm Cellars Farella Vineyard Red Napa
Price: $210.00 Your Price: $189.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
The Farella Estate, nestled within the cooler Coombsville region of Napa Valley, has served as a cornerstone for our wines. Spanning over a decade, the vertical tasting of these wines reveals not only the evolution of vineyard management and winemaking techniques but also the character and adaptability of this extraordinary site.
We started purchasing fruit from the Farella family back in 2003. It was always a beautiful site, but the coolness of the region combined with the row orientation sometimes hindered the ripening process. In 2018 we took over the farming when Farella Vineyard became our second estate vineyard and began implementing changes to unlock the vineyard’s full potential. First, we added cross arms to the trellis in 2018—a pivotal adjustment that contributed to more consistent ripening. Another key development was the focus on specific blocks within the vineyard. Blocks 7 and 8, affectionately referred to as "The Rock Pile," emerged as the core blocks, producing fruit that embodies the essence of Farella.
2018 Realm Cellars Houyi Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
Price: $375.00 Sale Price: $315.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(96 Points) The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Houyi Vineyard Pritchard Hill is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Nine Suns property. Opaque purple-black in color, it leaps from the glass with exuberant scents of warm cassis, black cherries and boysenberries plus hints of cloves, mocha, lilacs and bay leaves. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers striking purity with well-defined blackcurrant and cherry flavors accented by floral and exotic spice notes. It has a solid foundation of firm, fine-grained tannins and bold freshness, delivering a long, mineral-laced finish. (LPB) Wine Advocate, Review Date: 10/2020
2019 Realm Cellars Levensohn Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, St. Helena
Price: $375.00 Sale Price: $295.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(96 Points) The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Levensohn Vineyard has been made only in 2018 and 2019, and there won’t be any produced in 2020 (nor in 2017). The vineyard was recently sold, so this will be the swan song from this site just beside Bourn Vineyard. Lots of blackcurrants, tobacco, chocolate, and chalky minerality emerge from the glass, and it’s another flawlessly balanced, full-bodied, beautifully textured wine from this team that has another 20+ years of prime drinking ahead of it. Jeb Dunnuck, Review Date: 12/2021
2019 Realm Cellars Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville
Price: $595.00 Sale Price: $495.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(99 Points) The 2019 Realm Beckstoffer To Kalon Cabernet Sauvignon is a total beauty. This outstanding wine delivers on all levels as it begins with striking aromatics of ripe blackberries and blackcurrants, which are laced with spices, violets, graphite shavings, tobacco and crushed gravel all taking shape. The palate is just as impressive, offering a gorgeous full-body that is impeccably structured with beautifully polished tannins and notable tension. Everything works together as it shows incredible purity and freshness all the way through the long expressive finish. While this is already impressive on release, however it will become even more dazzling as it reaches maturity in about a decade. This is an absolute beauty and clearly one of the most captivating wines from this amazing vintage. (JD) Int'l Wine Review, Review Date: 11/2022
2011 Realm Cellars Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
Price: $295.00 Sale Price: $225.00 Quantity in Stock: 3
(94 points) The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard wraps around the palate with serious depth and density. Here, too, the French oak is a bit pronounced, but those qualities marry better with the qualities of To Kalon as opposed to Dr. Crane. Layers of dark fruit build to an imposing, tannic finish as this brooding yet opulent Cabernet Sauvignon shows off its personality and pedigree. Vinous Media 11/2013
2019 REALM CELLARS BECKSTOFFER BOURN CABERNET SAUVIGNON NAPA
Price: $795.00 Sale Price: $625.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(97 Points) The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Bourn Vineyard is dark, sumptuous and inviting, with no hard edges, stunning balance and tons of sheer allure. Silky contours make it one of the most accessible wines in the lineup of 2019s. Here the fruit profile tends towards the more blue/purplish end of the spectrum. Bittersweet chocolate, cloves and lavender add gravitas. The 2019 is positively stellar. The blend is 93% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Petite Sirah. A drop in Petite Sirah and increasing age in the replanted Cabernet at Bourn yielded a wine that is quite suave and sumptuous compared to its predecessors. (AG) Vinous, Review Date: 08/2021
2018 Realm Cellars Beckstoffer Bourn Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
Price: $375.00 Sale Price: $310.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(96 Points) Deep garnet-purple in color, the nose of the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Bourn leaps from the glass with a stunning perfume of violets, dark chocolate, clove oil, star anise and incense over a lifted core of crème de cassis, blueberry pie and stewed black cherries. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has great tension and energy, featuring tightly wound black fruit and spicy layers plus a firm backbone of nice, ripe tannins, finishing long and fragrant. This is a very exciting new vineyard expression from Realm! (LPB) Wine Advocate, Review Date: 10/2020
2019 REALM CELLARS HARTWELL XX, STAGS LEAP DISTRICT NAPA
Price: $900.00 Sale Price: $750.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(99 Points) Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Hartwell XX has an irresistibly fragrant nose, opening out to reveal notes of lilacs, Indian spices and fragrant soil over a core of blackcurrant jelly, boysenberries and licorice with a hint of beef drippings. The palate is a big, rich, full-bodied behemoth, with the most gorgeous velvety tannins and fantastic freshness, finishing very long and opulent. (LPB) Wine Advocate, Review Date: 09/2021
2021 Realm Cellars Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Cabernet Sauvignon Napa
Price: $775.00 Sale Price: $650.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(100 Points) The 2021 Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard, with 5% Petit Verdot in the blend, is deep garnet-purple in color. Quite closed to start off, it requires a lot of shaking to wake up notes of blackcurrant pastilles, juicy blackberries, and fresh plums plus suggestions of crushed rocks, candied violets, dark chocolate, and licorice with a touch of iron ore. The full-bodied palate delivers a firm, fine-grained texture and seamless freshness supporting the taut, muscular black fruits, finishing with a firework display of mineral, floral and chocolaty notes. (LPB) The Wine Independent, Review Date: 02/2024
2011 Realm Cellars Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Cabernet Sauvignon Napa MAGNUM
Price: $1200.00 Sale Price: $999.00 Quantity in Stock: 3
(91 Points) Unusually supple and refined for the vintage, almost Pinot-like in silkiness, this is fun and easy to drink. Complex, graceful and deftly balanced, offering ripe currant and red berry flavors, with touches of cedar and licorice. Long and lingering on the finish. (JL) Review Date: 11/2014 Wine Spectator
2022 Realm Cellars The Absurd Proprietary Red Napa
Price: $1250.00 Sale Price: $999.00 Quantity in Stock: 11
(98 points) "A barrel selection, Realm's 2022 The Absurd boasts compelling aromas of black cherries and red raspberries. It exhibits unusual brightness and lift, while still being full-bodied and richly textured. Sure, it's slightly open-knit, but it's intense, vibrant and characterful, with delicate shadings of violets, stone fruit and spice on the lingering finish. (JC)" (06/2025) Wine Advocate
2021 Realm Cellars The Absurd Proprietary Red Napa
Price: $1500.0 Sale Price: $1195.00 Quantity in Stock: 3
(100 Points) The flagship 2021 The Absurd from this team (the blend is never specified) is another absolute monument of a wine from Realm. Incredible blue fruits, redcurrants, liquid violets, dark chocolate, and scorched earth all emerge on the nose, and it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a seamless, flawlessly balanced mouthfeel, beautiful tannins, and the purity, focus, and elegance paired with incredible levels of concentration that define the greatest wines of the 2021 vintage. Do your best to hide bottles for 4-5 years if you can, and it should hit prime time in 2030 or so and keep for over two decades. Review Date: 12/2023, Jeb Dunnuck
2019 Realm Cellars The Absurd Proprietary Red Napa
(Price: $1650.00 Sale Price: $1275.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
100 Points) This ultimate vintage expression is always a mystery blend of grape varieties and vineyard sources, representing the cream of the crop, aspiring to the extent of proprietor Scott Becker’s and winemaker Benoit Touquette’s imagination, and beyond. Deepest purple-black colored, the 2019 The Absurd captivates the mind straight away, offering a perfume so infused it requires great focus to pick out scents of blackberry preserves, juicy black plums and crème de cassis, needing some swirling to unlock the undercurrent of Indian spices, cracked black pepper, iris and chocolate mint, plus a hint of cast-iron pan. The taut, muscular, full-bodied palate is jam-packed with black fruit preserves and fragrant accents, supported by a rock-solid foundation of ripe, grainy tannins and fantastic freshness, finishing with all the generosity and shimmer that is the signature of the great 2019 vintage in Napa Valley. A breathtaking triumph! Allow it to unwind and expand over the next 5-7 years, then drink it over the following 30 years+. (LPB) Review Date: 09/2021, Wine Advocate
2017 Realm Cellars The Absurd Proprietary Red Napa Valley
Price: $1250.00 Sale Price: $1040.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(98 Points) Winemaker Benoit Touquette, owner Scott Becker and consultant Michel Rolland had a debate about whether to make a 2017 The Absurd—the estate's über-blend of the best elements from that vintage. In the end, they made just two barrels. As per usual, they do not declare what the grape varieties or vineyards are that compose this blend. Deep garnet-purple colored, it needs a little swirling to coax out notions of ripe, juicy blackcurrants, black plums and warm blueberries, plus hints of licorice, unsmoked cigars and tilled black soil. Full-bodied, the palate has a solid structure of firm, finely-grained tannins and compelling freshness supporting the tightly wound, earthy layers, finishing long with loads of persistent, soft-spoken nuances. A little restrained and still incredibly youthful, it will need a good 3-5 years in bottle to begin to unfurl and should cellar for at least 30 years after that. (LPB) Wine Advocate, Review Date: 10/2020
2013 Realm Cellars The Absurd Proprietary Red Napa
Price: $1350.00 Sale Price: $1099.00 Quantity in Stock: 1
(100 Points) Another perfect wine (but very limited in production at 200 cases) is the 2013 The Absurd, a blend of 17 components dominated by 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc. Winemaker Benoit Touquette told me that this wine is produced with no rules and no restrictions, and is considered their super-blend of the best they have in any given vintage. (I guess I would look stupid if I didn't give it 100 points, given the fact that two other Realm wines already hit that maximum score.) There is something different in this wine, with an opaque purple color for sure, but then there's the cassis, the blackberries, the roasted meats, some spicy pepper, and then an extravagantly rich, cascading palate that seems to be built like a skyscraper, but without one hard edge. This is a seriously endowed, super-rich, incredibly well-balanced wine that should drink well for 25 or more years. (RP) Review Date: 12/2015 Wine Advocate
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