2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Good Times, Bad Times

(entirely cabernet sauvignon): Ruby-red. Brooding aromas of kirsch, cassis, minerals and dusty earth. Intensely flavored and juicy but not hard, with more successfully integrated acidity than the Crossfire. Precise, soil-driven flavors of dark fruits and bitter chocolate really carry on the finish, which features suave, mounting tannins and the structure for extended aging. These are the top-tier single-vineyard wines from the new California project of Jonathan Maltus, previously best known to American wine lovers as the force behind a collection of limited-production bottles from Saint-Emilion (Le Dome, Les Asteries, etc.).