10-Flavor Double Dipped Buttermilk Fried Chicken
A secret of the sommeliers, nothing goes better with fried chicken than champagne. There is something about the way the bubbles clean off the grease from your palate and make you want to take another bite and the flavors all work so well together. But champagne can be really pricy, so I like to look toward other regions such as Cremant de Bourgogne, Cremant d'Alsace in France and even Cava in Spain. One of my favorite Cava producers, Raventós, recently made the dramatic step to leave the Cava appellation since he was unhappy with the general standard. His wines are still truly great and offer incredible values. I'd check out the Raventós "de Nit" Rose for less than $20; it has a lot of the character and quality of champagne, since it is made in the same method, but for half the price!