Wine of the Week: Louis Martini Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon 2006, $15

This wine offers a wonderful balance of fruit, oak and acidity at an amazing price. Generally it’s hard to find a California Cab that drinks well for under $30 – especially if you’re looking at the high-end appellations like Sonoma and Napa.

Fans of good California Cab, who can’t or won’t spend that kind of money right now, are in luck. This wine is on sale at $10.99 per bottle at Astor Wines. I think this is definitely a buy-by-the-case option.

James Laube from Wine Spectator recently called this "Tight, chewy and earthy. Full-bodied and complex, offering a mix of earthy currant, anise and dried berry fruit that ends up on the dry and tannic side. “

To avoid any confusion, finishing on the “dry and tannic side” is fine for a Cab, though if food were described that way I might run.