Realm Houyi Vineyard Napa Valley Red 2021 750 ML

Details

The Wine Independent: 98 Points

The 2021 Houyi Vineyard 100% Cabernet Sauvignon is deep garnet-purple in color. It comes barreling out with powerful notes of blackcurrant jelly stewed plums and fruitcake followed by hints of charcoal wild sage mossy tree bark and black olives. The full-bodied palate delivers a rock-solid frame of firm grainy tannins and plenty of freshness to support the densely packed black fruits finishing long and earthy. Just under 1000 cases were made. Reviewed by: Lisa Perrotti-Brown Review date: 2024-02-01 Source: Realm?s 2021 Spring Releases

Vinous: 97 Points

The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Houyi Vineyard is silky delicate and very pretty. In that sense it is a classic wine for this year. Crushed red berry fruit cedar mint tobacco and a kiss of French oak all grace this unusually supple racy Cabernet Sauvignon. Beautifully persistent the 2021 is all understatement and class. This is an especially mid-weight style for Pritchard Hill. Perhaps because of that the new oak is a touch prominent. The 2021 is a blend of five blocks off this site all Cabernet Sauvignon. I expect this wine will become more complex as Realm now has access to the entire property. – By Antonio Galloni on December 2023 Realm is without question the most ambitious winery in Napa Valley today. Realizing the perils of depending solely on purchased fruit principals Scott Becker and Benoit Touquette have put together an enviable collection of estate vineyards starting with Hartwell in Stags Leap then Farella in Coombsville and most recently Houyi ensuring that Realm will always have a dependable supply of estate fruit. It?s a bold move that has been matched by very few other players in Napa Valley and only one on a large scale that I can think of. I tasted the 2021s at Houyi a spectacular site on Pritchard Hill that also affords striking views of the area. The wines are seriously impressive and also show a gradual move towards a style that favors a bit more vibrancy than in the past. “It was a year with very small berries and high tannins” Touquette explained. “We had to be careful to not extract too much.”

Jeb Dunnuck: 97 Points

The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Houyi Vineyard comes from a great vineyard (which is now owned by Realm) on Pritchard Hill. Lots of gravelly earth and mineral as well as blue fruit chocolate leather and violet notes emerge on the nose and it’s full-bodied on the palate with beautiful tannins and flawless balance. It’s incredibly complex and brings plenty of mountain structure and concentration on the palate while holding onto a beautiful sense of finesse and elegance. It needs 4-5 years and will shine over the following two decades or more.