Rich, intense aromas of cassis, stewed blackberries, blueberry jam, cloves, black olives and cocoa. It’s full-bodied and mouth-filling with firm, velvety tannins. Impressive depth and fruit extraction. Mostly merlot. Drink from 2022, but already a beauty.

Score: 97 James Suckling (JS), JamesSuckling.com, January 2021

The 2018 Tempest, Realm’s Merlot-based wine, is powerful, inky and quite savory, more so than in the past. The blend of vineyard sources in Calistoga, Oak Knoll and Coombsville works so well here. Inky dark fruit, graphite, bittersweet chocolate, leather, spice and espresso are beautifully delineated. Strong savory and mineral inflections suggest there is quite a bit of fruit from cooler sites in the southern end of the valley in this blend. A move towards more neutral oak barrels with thicker staves, less racking in aging and earlier bottling yields a Tempest that deftly balances richness and energy. The 2018 is a very serious wine and a terrific start to this tasting of new releases from Realm. In 2018, the blend is 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Score: 96 Antonio Galloni (AG), Vinous Media (VM), January 2020

The 2018 The Tempest was bottled in February 2020. It is a blend of 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Sauvignon. Vineyard sources include the Realm Stags Leap District estate Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot along with Merlot from Orchard vineyard, Upper Range vineyard and Blair vineyard. It sports a deep garnet-purple color and—wow—jumps right out of the glass with vibrant notes of fresh black plums, wild blueberries and Morello cherries plus fragrant hints of candied violets and star anise. The medium to full-bodied palate offers beautiful purity, framed by firm, rounded tannins and a lively backbone, finishing with great length.

The team at Realm seemed to have played it ultra-cautious in 2017. In spite of all the challenges caused by the Labor Day heat wave followed by the October fires that year, they have produced a strong lineup of very impressive wines. Fans should note that no Falstaff, Farella Vineyard or Beckstoffer To Kalon Cabernet Franc labels were produced in 2017, due to the situation that fruit was still hanging in these key vineyards during the fires. "In 2018, we had a lot of time to pick. We had a lot of time to make the wines," winemaker Benoit Touquette informed me. "Not to get greedy with Mother Nature was the challenge. We didn’t have the huge crops that some people had. We could pick at our leisure. If you did the right viticulture, it was an easy vintage." Indeed, the Realm 2018s have an effortless, carefree purity about them, with all the bright, energetic, crunchy fruit that is a characteristic of this cooler vintage. This is not to say that that these wines do not possess that decadent personality fans have come to love. On the contrary, there is a lot of impactful intensity with these 2018s. Yet they seem to bear a cheery skip in their step, which is going to make you fall in love with this winery all over again.

Score: 94+ Lisa Perrotti-Brown (LPB), The Wine Advocate (WA), October 2020

Another multi-vineyard blend in the lineup, the 2018 The Tempest is based on 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Sauvignon brought up all in French oak. It has a Saint-Emilion-like bouquet of chocolate-covered black cherry and currant fruits interwoven with a beautiful, chalky sense of minerality. Damp earth, tobacco, and loads of floral notes all make an appearance, and this full-bodied beauty has wonderful purity of fruit, good acidity, and ripe, polished tannins. It´s beautifully done and will evolve for 15+ years.

Score: 96+ Jeb Dunnuck (JD), JebDunnuck.com (JD), August 2020