But Greek reds — made from unfamiliar grapes like xinomavro and agiorgitiko, mavrotragano, limnia and mandilaria — can be thoroughly delicious. Most fit squarely among the world’s mainstream reds, with local signatures that might take the form of earthiness here, an exotic floral or fruit aroma there, and in quite a few those, firm tannins.

Not only were the wines tannic, but many had a lively acidity as well, which, as Phil said, gave them freshness and lift.

Our favorites combined many of these characteristics. They were juicy, fresh and structured, with earthy floral, herbal and fruit flavors. The best kept these elements in balance, resulting in wines with tension and energy.

Problems arose when this delicate balance faltered, allowing one element to dominate. We also found a number of wines that were either too ripe and fruity, or simply tasted generic, as if they could have come from anywhere. We rejected these bottles.

The No. 1 bottle in our tasting was a 2016 Alpha Estate xinomavro from the Hedgehog Vineyard in Amyndeon, in the northern Greek region of Macedonia. We found the wine to be spicy, savory, floral and complex, with all the elements in balance. At $23, this wine was our best value in a tasting of overall excellent values.

The original idea had been to taste only wines made with xinomavro, but we were unable to find enough bottles. Still, this wine and others illustrate the potential for this grape, which can often seem like a combination of the Italian grapes nebbiolo and aglianico, with aromas and flavors of menthol, licorice and flowers.

No. 2 was a balanced, energetic 2017 from Domaine Sigalas in Santorini, made of two grapes: mavrotragano, an almost extinct Santorini variety that has been revived in recent years, and mandilaria, which originally came from Crete.