1 | Wine | $10 to $20, 2005

"The 2005 Reserva displays aromas and flavors of smoke, mineral, leather, spice box, and blackberry. This leads to a ripe, sweetly fruited, medium-bodied wine that can be enjoyed now through 2020."

"Smoke, cedar, dried cherry and spice flavors mingle in this traditional red. Supple, with light, firm tannins and crisp acidity, this is clean and fresh through the tea-touched finish."

"It has an intense minty nose of blackberry, smoke and grilled meats that is well-defined, but surprisingly taut considering the vintage. The palate is medium-bodied with a tarry, leathery entry. The tannins are fine and linear, the finish classic in style with a dash of white pepper and tar. This is a very well-made Gran Reserva drinking beautifully now, but certainly it has the substance to keep."

"Since my last note on this, in which, for whatever reason, I fear I seriously underrated this wine, it has evolved slowly, but it shows well enough to be less disjointed, with additional fruit intensity on the finish and plentiful hints that better integration of its parts will definitely be in its future. There is also the occasional whiff of game, while the oak nuances are very modest, giving this some earthy complexity. It is still a powerful and somewhat rustic wine, which is not necessarily a bad thing in my book, and indeed, this continually grew on me. Elegant in the mid-palate, it opened easy and then packed an increasingly tannic punch on the finish, adding some crisp, tart notes early on. It was not the most charming Xinomavro at that point, but it evolved slowly and relentlessly, drinking beautifully the next day, still a prime time wine with plenty of time left. If you like its somewhat rustic but appealingly earthy style, this is for you, and quite well priced in light of the quality and ageworthiness."

"Bright cherry red in color, the nose reveals smoke, mineral, leather, and black cherry. This leads to an elegantly styled wine with nicely integrated oak, wild berry flavors, excellent depth, and enough structure to evolve for another 2-3 years."

"One of the least expensive wines from Gerard Perse’s three Cotes de Castillon estates, this is unquestionably the softest and most immediately accessible. Its dark ruby color is followed by a concoction of ripe, sweet black currant and cherry fruit, incense, spring flowers, and spice."-Robert Parker