Dear Friends of Realm Cellars:
We are pleased to share this latest update with our Mailing List, Wait List and supporters in the trade. Pardon the length of this update but we have alot to share since our Spring update email back on February 27th. Enough said...on with the show!
2006 Vintage Ordering Deadline - November 17th
The ordering deadline for our 2006 vintage release will be Tuesday, November 17th at 11:59 PM (PDT) so if you intend to order please do so before this deadline. Please note there is a 3-bottle minimum for this release, which must be achieved from the wines that were allocated (as opposed to Wish List wines). We will be re-allocating any residual wine to our Mailing List shortly after this deadline. Please follow the links below or visit our web site for more details (realm is your login password until you personalize it). Orders placed by the November 17th deadline will ship by December 8th.
2006 Vintage Release Letter – http://www.realmcellars.com/2006VintageReleaseLtr/
2006 Vintage Wines Summary - http://www.realmcellars.com/2006VintageWines/
2006 Vintage Purchase – http://www.nexternal.com/busrealm
Future Allocations, “3 Strikes” Policy & Wait List
Allocations for our next release (2007 vintage) will take into consideration participation in our current 2006 vintage release. Please keep in mind our “3 Strikes” policy whereby active Mailing List customers who are offered allocations but elect to pass on 3 consecutive release offerings will be transitioned to the Wait List to make room for new customers (who are subject to the Wait List we introduced in February 2009). We are very appreciative of the high levels of customer loyalty Realm has experienced during these challenging economic times and we thank our Wait List members for being patient as we do our best to make wine available.
Shipping Resumes November 9th
We expect to resume shipping wine orders on November 9th with the assistance of our shipping partner (DDC Shipping in Napa). In late June we stopped shipping wine and we now believe the weather is conducive to resuming deliveries. We have begun consolidating all shipping information for all outstanding shipments so if you are awaiting delivery of an order that has been Paid (versus Unbilled or Authorized) please log into our online store to confirm the shipping information is accurate. If changes are required, please send an email to info@realmcellars.com with any revisions no later than Wednesday November 4th. On the departure date you will receive tracking information from the shipping company (UPS, FedEx, Golden State Overnight) and from Realm’s online ordering system.
Keep in mind that adult signatures are required and Realm cannot be responsible for wine shipments that are compromised, delayed, lost or returned due to customers providing incorrect shipping information when orders are placed. Realm does accept responsibility for damage resulting from handling issues or carrier negligence.
Recent Accolades from the Wine Press
During the last four months Realm Cellars has received a great deal of coverage, both in printed publications as well as popular online forums & blogs. Some highlights of these increasingly positive reviews from the wine press include the following:
- In Sunset Magazine’s Annual Wine Awards (November 2009 issue) our 2005 Farella Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon was chosen as one of the Top 10 “Deep Pocket Wines (>$50)” by a blind tasting panel of more than 30 wine trade professionals (sommeliers, editors, etc). It was also included in the “Top 50 Bottles to Buy” list, which included whites and reds. We love it when our wines are evaluated in blind tasting formats!
- Wine Spectator’s August 10th review of 12 California Merlots (by Tim Fish) awarded 2nd place honors to our 2006 The Tempest and awarded it 92 points.
- Wine Spectator’s August 5th Insider issue (by James Laube) featured “some of the hottest new labels in the state, such as Realm” and rated our 2005 The Absurd 93 points.
- Wine Spectator’s July 13th review of 12 Oakville Cabernets awarded our 2006 Beckstoffer To Kalon 1st place and rated it 96 points.
The steady flow of reviews by professional critics (James Laube, Robert Parker, Stephen Tanzer) as well as consumers (CellarTracker, Mark Squires’ BB, WineBerserkers, etc) convinces us we are on the right track.
2007 Vintage – Bottled & Introducing a New Blend
This past summer we completed the bottling of our 6th vintage and it’s hard to believe that time has gone by so quickly! We are ecstatic about the quality of this vintage but more importantly the finished wines. The 2007 growing season presented the most ideal conditions for red wines since we began in 2002 and our enthusiasm has only increased since we harvested the fruit more than two years ago. We are pleased to be adding a new Cabernet Franc-based blend (The Falstaff) to our portfolio beginning with this vintage.
2007 Vintage Release
We expect to release our 2007 vintage wines in early 2010 and anticipate dividing the release into two phases. The 1st release will involve our 3 proprietary blends (The Bard, The Falstaff & The Tempest) and the 2nd release later in the year will involve our 3 single-vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon wines (Beckstoffer Dr. Crane, Farella & Beckstoffer To Kalon). Given that our total production in 2007 was roughly 20% higher than in 2006, we’ll have more bottles to share with everyone next year!
2009 Harvest Update
After two hectic months we are thrilled to have all our fruit in-house at the winery – equally exciting is the potential for another great vintage. Our winemaker (Michael Hirby), cellarmaster (Scott Schultz) and harvest dynamo (Clayton Kirchoff) kept the proverbial wheels on the bus this year during another strong harvest that was characterized by generally moderate weather patterns, remarkably consistent temperature ranges and abbreviated heat spikes. Yields were moderately above average. Perhaps the biggest surprise was the 4-6” of rain in the 2nd half of October, but the fruit that hung through the rain developed riper flavors and more elegant tannins, and we were able to pick that fruit 10 days later under perfectly blue skies. We anticipate producing our first white wine under the Realm label (Sauvignon Blanc-based blend) from the 2009 vintage.
Calendar & Upcoming Events
The Realm team will be doing numerous private tasting events around the country between now and the release of our 2007 vintages wines in early 2010. In addition, we look forward to seeing many of you and meeting many new faces at some of the following events over the course of the next 6-9 months.
Capitol Cellars Annual Napa Valley Vintners Tasting – November 7th in Sacramento, CA
Triangle Wine Experience – February 4th- 6th in Raleigh, NC
Premiere Napa Valley Auction – February 20th in St. Helena, CA
UCSF Family House Cabernet for Connoisseurs – February 26th in San Francisco, CA
High Museum Wine Auction - March 25th-27th in Atlanta, GA
Pebble Beach Food & Wine – April 8th-11th in Monterey, CA
Destin Charity Wine Auction – April 22nd-24th in Destin, FL
Auction Napa Valley – June 3rd-6th in St. Helena, CA
Coming Soon: Web Site & Social Networking
Now that harvest is behind us we have a goal of getting our act together in terms of a fully functional web site as well as social networking feeds that will allow you to stay in touch with us.
Last but not least….Many Thanks!
On behalf of the entire Realm Cellars team, thank you for your continued interest in, and support for, our wines. Without your patronage our success to date would not be possible. We appreciate your enthusiasm, value your business, and will always encourage you to share your feedback with us. We look forward to having you on board as our magical journey continues!
Regards,
| Wendell Laidley Proprietor |
Juan Mercado Proprietor |
Michael Hirby Winemaker |
Scott Schultz Cellarmaster |