Gruet — Blanc de Noirs, NV

After a recent post about Blanquette de Limoux, a good friend of mine, Suzy, suggested I try a sparkling wine, Gruet, from the state where she lives, New Mexico. So I was delighted to find Gruet’s Blanc de Noirs when I was shopping at Balducci’s in Alexandria recently.

Made in the traditional methode champenoise, this is a remarkably refined sparkling wine. It has the tiny persistent bubbles that characterize very good bubblies. It also has that attractive toasty flavor with red berry notes — something between strawberries and raspberries. Its color is typical of blanc de noirs. Made mostly with Pinot Noir, this wine has a dark straw color with a suggestion that, if it blushed a little more, it would become pink — in the sparkling wine world, people talk about salmon!

This is an exceptionally nice sparkling wine at a very fair price (about $15.00). A highly recommended low-priced alternative to Champagne!

Thank you, Suzy, for such a wonderful suggestion!