Chris BerryFounder, Wine Underdogs — chasing the world’s overlooked grapesCommandaria is a sweet wine made from grapes dried in the sun, from two native grapes, in a small set of delimited villages on the southern slopes of the Troodos mountains. It is also the easiest Cypriot wine to buy in the United States. If you only ever try one, it will probably be this.
Say it: koh-mahn-dah-REE-ahrecorded by Anastasia Konstantopoulou
How it is made
The rules, as set out in the PDO specification:
- Two grapes only: Xynisteri and Mavro.
- Thirteen villages, by the PDO rules: Agios Konstantinos, Agios Mamas, Agios Pavlos, Apsiou, Gerasa, Doros, Zoopigi, Kalo Chorio, Kapilio, Laneia, Louvaras, Monagri and Silikou, at roughly 500 to 900 meters. The 2021 WIPO registration counts 14, and the extra name is Agios Georgios, which the 2017 rules record as renamed Agios Georgios Sylikou and still inside the area. No official page explains why one count lists it separately and the other doesn't.
- Old-fashioned vines: bush-trained, unirrigated, at least four years old.
- Sun-drying: the picked grapes dry in the sun for about two weeks until their sugar is highly concentrated.
- Oak: at least two years in oak, under the PDO specification. Some producers age theirs longer; Kalamos gives its own four.
- Fortification allowed, not required. Zambartas's Melusine, for example, is unfortified.
The history, and the claim to be careful with
The name goes back to the Crusades. In 1210 the Kolossi estate passed to the Knights Hospitaller, whose headquarters there became the Grand Commandery (Wikipedia: Kolossi).
Commandaria is often called the oldest named wine still in production. Treat that as a claim, not a fact. The dates offered range from 800 BC to 2000 BC depending on who is telling it, and Guinness World Records lists the holder of its related record as "Unknown." The story about Richard the Lionheart calling it the wine of kings is, by every careful account, a legend.
What a good one tastes like
For a long stretch Commandaria meant something heavy and oversweet. Anastasia Konstantopoulou, Head Oenologist at LionSpirit Winery & Distillery, says the fix is not less sugar:
The best modern examples, in my view, are not trying to remove those characteristics. They are managing them more carefully. Greater attention to fruit quality, harvest and drying time, more controlled fermentation and more deliberate ageing can preserve more fruit and freshness while still producing something that is unmistakably Commandaria.
In the interest of disclosure: LionSpirit is itself among the island's Commandaria producers (Wikipedia). She declined to name any label, including her own. Her test instead: enough age to show complexity, enough acidity to carry the sweetness, oxidation that adds rather than dominates, and alcohol and oak that feel integrated.
How to drink it
Small pours, just cool. It suits blue cheese, nut desserts and dried fruit.
Where to find a bottle
wine.com carried no Commandaria on 25 September 2026; its search returns French "Commanderie" wines instead. Wine-Searcher's US listings showed 28 prices that day, most of them KEO St. John in a 500 ml bottle at around $18 to $30. Whether a seller ships to you depends on your state.
Read more in Cyprus wine grapes, from a head oenologist.
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Frequently asked questions
What grapes are used in Commandaria?
Only two: Xynisteri and Mavro, both native to Cyprus, grown in designated villages on the southern slopes of the Troodos: 13 in the 2017 production rules, 14 in the 2021 WIPO registration.
Is Commandaria the oldest wine in the world?
It is often called the oldest named wine still in production, but the claim is hard to verify. Sources give dates from 800 BC to 2000 BC, and Guinness World Records lists the record holder as unknown.
Is Commandaria fortified?
It may be, but it does not have to be. Fortification is permitted under the rules, and some producers, such as Zambartas, make an unfortified version.
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