Good to know, thanks for the feedback. I have heard there are multiple factors but was curious what people’s experiences have been. I definitely buy as much and often as I can to hopefully get access one day. I love Realm wines, but have not had the chance to try either but definitely can’t wait to hopefully try one day! 
Hi everyone, here we go with another harvest and another fall release! Unfortunately we are also facing another Labor Day heat spell…
Things will be a bit different for this fall release. First, allocations will be relatively small given the smaller volumes of wine. I think on average allocations are around 3 bottles total. We are trying to make sure everyone has at least one bottle each of two different wines. For the Nine Suns wines, we are giving preference to past supporters of those wines in order to preserve continuity.
Utilizing the wish request feature will be critical for this release since we don’t have historical order data on any of the particular Realm wines being offered. Allocations were once again based on factors like tenure, purchase history, referral activity, etc. With so few bottles spread across so many different wines, we had to make tough tradeoffs about who gets what. Some people may get one bottle of 2019 Hartwell XX, for example, but won’t have a guaranteed allocation for 2018. Or the reverse may be true for 2018 and 2019 Levensohn Vineyard. If you are allocated one of those bottles, we at least created the opportunity for someone to wish for the other vintage. There simply aren’t enough bottles to give everyone both vintages. I expect we may disappoint some members with this approach and we will do our best to accommodate special requests wherever we can.
Jeff, I’m afraid The Bard spin-off will be at a higher price point. There are two ways to look at this. On the one hand, The Bard Blair Edition is just one piece of the overall Bard puzzle…and indeed, half of the “blend” from the Blair vineyard went into 2019 The Bard. The Bard could be considered a more complex blend because it includes many other components from around Napa Valley. Seen through this lens, we aspire for The Bard to deliver extraordinary value…perhaps a better value than the Blair Edition. On the other hand, the Blair Edition is a special edition, single vineyard expression from a unique vineyard in Calistoga sandwiched between Larkmead and Three Palms. The volume of this wine is less than 1/10 the size of The Bard and the profile is quite distinct from its larger sibling. It’s hard to say if we will ever have the chance to make something like this again – the Merlot from the vineyard was ripped out to be replaced by Cabernet. This may be a one-off or it could be the start of a special series of Bard-related wines. (Nothing in the works for 2021 or 22.) Is it a better wine? Well, I think I have to leave that to each member to decide.
I’m personally very energized by the potential of Hartwell XX. There’s a lot more we can do to highlight some of the heritage clones in Napa Valley and we see an opportunity for Hartwell XX to become a showcase for that. You’ll hear more from us in the future about this.
We are excited to include the 2019 Nine Suns wines as well as some library vintages. We’ve never sold wines that weren’t made by Realm/Benoit before so this will be new. I think the 9S wines are compelling - pedigree of site, stewardship by the Chang family, winemaking talent, great vintages. Who knows, maybe this release opens the door for us to “curate” other wines in the future.
Lastly, I’m trying to make good on a pledge discussed here on WB in the past. Starting with this release, we are including shipping for all wines delivered in the USA. The standard will be two-day UPS but a member can select FEDEX if preferred. For California shipping, it will be ground because those packages are all delivered within two days anyhow. For warm states, we will be using our insulated packaging and cold gel packs year round – the same format and method used to ship The Absurd in summer. Members will have an option to upgrade to overnight shipping for a supplemental fee. International delivery fees will be subsidized to align with the same benefit for US-based members. I’m sure it won’t be perfect as we roll out this program and, as always, we are open to feedback so please call or email us anytime.
Thanks to so many of you for your support of the wines. We never take that for granted. The loss of 2020 will be especially felt in the next 12 months…that’s true at Realm and many others around Napa Valley. It feels like a delicate time in the winegrowing community and your support is what inspires us and encourages us to keep going.
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Thanks for the notes, Scott. As always, your participation and candor on this board is appreciated. Sounds exciting, looking forward to my allocation!
A note on the shipping. I believe my Absurd shipped overnight to NJ but when it arrived it was freezing (not literally!). I was pleasantly surprised and relieved.
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Spreading allocations around so as many people as possible get some slice of the pie seems like a pretty fair way to make lemonade out of the lemons 2020 produced. Looking forward to the release!
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I’ve just begun my Realm collection. Very excited for these!
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I’m very much looking forward to this release, especially with the new and one-off wines.
Scott, what does the XX in the Hartwell XX stand for, and is it pronounced like the letters, or as the Roman numeral?
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Thanks for the background Scott. You don’t always see wineries being so open. The wines in this release sound amazing, looking forward to next week!
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I am most fired up for the Levensohn wines.
Had the 2014-16 vintgages when Benoit was making them, and that little plot of earth in St Helena next to Las Piedras and Abreu Capella is a slice of heaven…
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Hoping I get allocated some! Love the cemetery wines from that area as well. And obviously Capella as well.
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Cemetery is I think a baseball throw or two from that site…
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Hoping for some SVD Bard! 
Hi David, there are two meanings to XX. The first is a roman numeral reference to the year we acquired the property…fairly straightforward. When we acquired the property in 2020, we also acquired the wine in barrel which we had been making for the Hartwell family since we acquired the first parcel (winery) in 2015. So, even though we acquired this land in 2020, we are able to offer a wine we produced from the 2018 and 19 vintages.
The more important meaning (to me anyway) has to do with the history and the future of this vineyard. Bob Hartwell used cuttings from his friend Dick Grace’s vineyard to plant this vineyard in 1986. Dick Grace first used cuttings from Bosche Vineyard in Rutherford to plant his vineyard. Many other vineyards were planted with the Bosche selection using budwood from Grace around that time. The first few vintages of Hartwell were produced at Grace Family Vineyard and the Grace Family logo even shows up on the Hartwell label from those days. So as we thought about the history of this vineyard we were acquiring, the heritage and legacy goes back even further than Bob Hartwell and 1986. Metaphorically speaking, the vineyard we were acquiring was a cross between Hartwell’s vision and land, Grace Family’s knowledge and quality, and Bosche’s pedigree and history, etc. I spend a lot of time talking with our team internally about how we stand on the shoulders of others, and that is quite literally the case with this vineyard.
We are working on a long-term replant plan for Hartwell XX (and the Moonracer blocks) and immediately we knew our future plans would be a nod to the past. We are securing clean plant material from the vineyard to propagate in the replant, thus maintaining the continuity of the heritage. We think we will also be able to plant a couple of additional acres up top and we want to continue the tradition of Bob Hartwell. We are in discussions with a few other growers/vineyard owners around the valley about using their cuttings from legendary sites. Imagine someday if we have 5-6 acres of Hartwell XX and each one-acre block is based on budwood from some of the iconic sites/selections that make up Napa Valley’s history. That’s the idea. And that’s why we thought XX was a nod to those names and places and traditions that provide continuity to the vines.
I’ll never forget Bart Araujo telling me once, “Scott the land was here before us and it will be here after us. We are just passing through.” There’s a whole topic here around making sure in fact the land is still here and producing world-class wines in a changing climate…but that’s a topic for another day. The point here is that Bart’s perspective resonates with us and that’s why we want to keep some of these heritage clones/selections alive to pass along for generations after us.
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I should have added I pronounce the XX like the letters.
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Thanks Scott! Very exciting and sounds like it’s only going to get better as the expansion takes place.
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I believe Absurd ships priority overnight, correct? Is the packaging designed to survive 2 day shipping to Florida or would you suggest an overnight upgrade? IME: 2 day shipping usually means the wines tend to spend a half day or so in Memphis or Louisville (depending on carrier), then fly overnight to my local airport and then ride around on the truck most of the day in Florida.
Thanks - look forward to the release.
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We ship Absurd overnight because we can take advantage of the UPS Summer Solutions guarantee. That service expires in September so it’s not an option for fall shipping. The insulated packaging plus cold gel packs we use is actually rated to remain at 75 or below for 3 days after outside exposure to temperature swings up to 100 degrees for several hours. If you choose a late season shipping date to Florida, the 2-day air option will be sufficient under normal conditions. If things are extremely hot (mid 90’s or above), we will hold shipments anyway. We ended up holding some Absurd shipments this summer out of an abundance of caution.
Having written all that, we give folks an option for the overnight upgrade for a reason. Some people only ship that way and I can understand that. When we made the decision to include shipping, we wanted to establish a baseline we could stand behind…and I believe that’s the case with 2-day plus our insulated packaging. Don’t hesitate to contact us at the winery to discuss further as we get closer to your next shipment.
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Allocated single bottle of Levensohn 2018, then some Nine Sun for rest. Was really looking forward to trying out the one-off Bard 
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Yep was allocated one 19 Levensohn. Wish listed 2 more. Nine sun for the rest. Glad I got a 19 though.
Levensohn and Bard. Passed on the Nine Suns. Great wine but want to save my money for these others.
Happy to be allocated 1 of the Bard and able to wish list 2019 Levensohn. On the fence for the one 2018 Hartwell I was allocated but might be out of my price range.
Somewhat tempted by the 2020 Missing Label Art Print. I love Realm label art haha.