Realm Cellars Moonracer 2019
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Jeb
Dunnuck -
Robert
Parker
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Moonracer comes from south-facing blocks on the estate in Stags Leap and is 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Merlot. The tannins here are a step up, and this beauty boasts a gorgeous nose of red and black fruits, tobacco leaf, violets, and spice. It’s a more elegant, medium to full-bodied, seamless wine, accurately described as an iron fist in a velvet glove by winemaker Benoit Touquette. The balance is spot on, and it has plenty of up-front appeal, yet it’s going to evolve gracefully for 20-25 years with no issues. Best After 2021
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Moonracer comes exclusively from Realm’s Stags Leap estate vineyard, completely farmed by the Realm team. The blend this year is 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Merlot.
Other Vintages
2021-
James
Suckling
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James
Suckling -
Jeb
Dunnuck -
Robert
Parker
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Robert
Parker
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker
Realm Cellars is one of Napa Valley’s most electrifying wine brands with estate vineyards in Stags Leap District, Pritchard Hill and Coombsville. In 2012, owner Scott Becker and his partner, winemaker Benoit Touquette teamed up to revive a nearly bankrupt brand. Since then, Realm has been transformed into one of the most collected wineries in Napa Valley, with a vineyard portfolio that today exemplifies the beauty and longevity of Napa Valley. Making wine at the very highest level is at the core of Realm Cellars. Since 2012, the wines have been awarded more 100-point scores from internationally recognized wine critics than any other producer in Napa Valley.
Formerly the Hartwell Estate, Realm acquired the property in 2015 and began initial construction and development phases of an endeavor that will take decades to realize. In 2022, Realm acquired Nine Suns and Houyi Vineyard in Napa Valley’s famed area, Pritchard Hill. Realm’s portfolio of wines includes estate, single vineyard wines and proprietary blends, unified by a “style” best described as a creative tension between richness and precision, density and finesse, purity of fruit and nuance. In addition to its estate vineyard sites, Realm partners with Napa Valley’s most prestigious and iconic wine growers and vineyard sites, including Beckstoffer Dr. Crane and Beckstoffer To Kalon.
Undoubtedly proving its merit over and over, Napa Valley is a now a leading force in the world of prestigious red wine regions. Though Cabernet Sauvignon dominates Napa Valley, other red varieties certainly thrive here. Important but often overlooked include Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties well-regarded on their own as well as for their blending capacities. Very old vine Zinfandel represents an important historical stronghold for the region and Pinot noir is produced in the cooler southern parts, close to the San Pablo Bay.
Perfectly situated running north to south, the valley acts as a corridor, pulling cool, moist air up from the San Pablo Bay in the evenings during the hot days of the growing season, which leads to even and slow grape ripening. Furthermore the valley claims over 100 soil variations including layers of volcanic, gravel, sand and silt—a combination excellent for world-class red wine production.