($225, Moët Hennessey USA):  Wines trying to achieve “greatness” by relying on power alone fail because they lack elegance.  Power will get a wine noticed, but it is not the component that determines the wine’s quality.  Numanthia’s Termanthia, their top of the line wine made from vines that are over 100 years old, succeeds because it delivers great concentration while retaining elegance. Its power comes from low-yielding, less than a ton per acre, vines that are over 100 years old, planted in just the right locale (As Doug Frost notes, if it weren’t the perfect locale the vines wouldn’t have survived so long).  Concentrated and mineraly, it has enormous complexity in the finish that seems to change with every sip.  For all its oomph, it’s neither overdone nor alcoholic.  That’s a marvelous combination that’s hard to achieve. 97 Michael Apstein Mar 27, 2012