This Lightweight Moisturizer From Santorini Made Me Look (and Feel) Like I've Been Vacationing in the Mediterranean

Every summer my mother took me and my five siblings to Greece. We'd go to Athens for a couple of days before flying to Chania, Crete for a month. During our time in Chania we'd take ferry trips to Santorini. The experience was as picturesque as it sounds and the sun-basked memories remain etched into my mind. Part of those memories, as the years went on, became the Korres products we stocked up on before flying back to the U.S.

We discovered Korres in a Greek pharmacy where we started buying bottles of body lotion to hydrate our summer sun-kissed skin. And that initial experiment became a full-fledged obsession. The Greek brand arriving stateside meant an end to the hoarding and bulk buying of products, but not to the affinity we had developed, an affinity I find myself feeling strongly with the new Korres Santorini Grape Poreless Skin Cream.

I think of Korres products the same way I think of Greek, and generally Mediterranean, food. The products are simple but made with the most divine ingredients, and with the type of technique and expertise that is passed down through culture and community.

To buy: korres.com, $36

The selling point of this moisturizer is simply that it works, and it does everything it claims to. Before we really dive into the how, a little bit about my skin type — I have combination / oily skin. Even in the winter, I can feel that it's dry regardless of the sheen. My skin is also sensitive and I am wary of over exfoliating, which means I struggle with enlarged, congested pores.

The consistency starts out lotion-like, but as it's massaged into the skin begins to feel like a gel. Although the consistency is light I found that it deeply penetrated my skin within less than two minutes. The natural oiliness of my skin was surprisingly tampered down without leaving behind a tight feeling of chalkiness — a common tradeoff I experience. My complexion looked more balanced and felt supple. I was especially surprised when I followed up with SPF and other skincare products and experienced no pilling or pooling of product.

There is also a very delicate fragrance. If you hold the tub up to your nose you may not get much, but as I spread it across my face I got very light and gentle whiffs of a difficult-to-describe grape scent that did not irritate my sensitive skin at all.

Although you could use this product day, night, or both — in the opinion of someone who tests beauty products for a living, it thrives as a daytime product because it not only moisturizes but also leaves behind a visibly plump complexion.

In the dead of an increasingly cold and frigid winter, applying Korres Santorini Grape Poreless Skin Cream in the mornings feels like a nourishing and nostalgic flashback into happy memories.