1990 Guigal Hermitage ($35)

Just for Christmas, we'll step out of the moderate price category to recommend a special wine for a gift or Christmas dinner. This red Rhone wine is a classic of its kind -- an exceptionally intense wine with flavors of black pepper, blackberry, roast meats, herbs and those indefinably warm earthy flavors you only find in the Rhone. For all its robustness and aging potential, it's supple enough to enjoy young. Go on, splurge.