This is a fine Cabernet, but there’s too much baby fat covering up any distinctive qualities it might possess.

Features notes of creme de cassis, dark fruit flavors (blackberry, plums), lavender, and well-integrated oak. Having spent less time in new French Oak, this wine is ready for prime time now but will also age well for the next two years, peaking around 2010 in our estimate.

Opens with initial scents of raspberry, fig compote, nutmeg, cinnamon, and cardamom. Once decanted, aromas of cooking spices and pie crust burst from the glass. Upon entry, the mouth is stimulated by black cherries, white pepper, and a plush fine-grained minerality. dense richness crosses the breadth of the palate as fine tannins linger on the...