Ixsir, Grande Reserve Red, Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, 2013

This darkly coloured, high-grown ‘grand vin’ (a Syrah-Cabernet blend) has red plum and cherry fruits in round-contoured style.  It’s rich, mouthfilling and seamless, with lighter tannins than its ‘valley’ peers; the fruit qualities are bright, supported by vivid though soft acidity and relatively dry in style, though the spice, date and chocolate finish is still distinctively Lebanese.