Thibaut-Janisson Winery, a collaboration between fifth-generation French winemaker Claude Thibaut (who has also worked in California and Australia) and Manuel Janisson of the Champagne Janisson & Fils, is the premier sparkling wine producer in Virginia and one of the top in the East.

Made with 100% chardonnay one-third of which was aged in oak this wine smells of fresh, clean orchard fruit melange of apples and pears with layers of toasted hazelnuts, saline minerality and just a hint of toasty oak and roasted pear.

The medium-bodied palate shows nice richness and concentration as well as nice linearity in the mouth thanks to a beam of fresh acidity that runs right through the middle. It’s bone dry without being austere in the least. The finish is long and nutty with just a hint of oak and more of that roasted tree fruit character.

This is benchmark-type stuff for Virginia sparkling wine.