The 2015 Salice Salentino Riserva Aiace is the flagship wine of Castello Monaci. The wine is named after Ajax the Great, a colossal figure in Greek mythology who commanded armies in the Trojan War and, at least according to Homer, was an epic hero in that legendary battle. The blend in this Riserva is 80% Negroamaro and 20% Malvasia Nera di Lecce, and the grapes come from a site with clay soils rich in limestone. The vines are planted in the traditional alberello method, or head-pruned growing system, and this vintage offers loads of dark fruit flavor with some distinctive spice and smoke on the close. Pair it with suckling pig or porchetta.