Shopping for wine in Pennsylvania can be tough. It’s not just the sluggish bureaucracy. It’s not just the on-average-higher prices. It not just the communist-era fluorescent lighting. It’s the fact that the PA Wine & Spirits stores don’t hire much wine talent. One of the rare gems is the wine specialist Max, whose store is featured in our Top Wine Shops In Philly page.
With this wine, he’s managed to do something no other wine store in the state has managed to do: offer a $10 bottle of bubbles that drinks like a decent bottle of Champagne in a modern Moët & Chandon style. Made in Burgundy, this Blanc de Blanc is a blend of Chardonnay and Aligote. Fresh flavors of ripe peaches and hazelnuts, the pin-point bubbles bring a fine mousse and a pretty honeysuckle aroma to the experience.
This is the bottle I’ll be drinking on Sunday afternoon, possibly with Oysters Rockefeller.