BEST WINE SELECTION

Friar Tuck

2930 Constitution Drive, 698-1116 For the second year running, readers have decreed Friar Tuck to have the best wine selection, and it’s hard to argue. Friar Tuck, which has seven outlets in Illinois and Missouri, prides itself on having the largest adult beverage selection available, and that is certainly the case in Springfield. From Scrubby Rise to Shiraz Sultry Red to Trivento Malbec Lujan de Cuyo Golden Reserve (try saying that three times fast), Friar Tuck has about every kind of wine you can imagine, and many that you can’t, which is what one should expect from a place that also carries single-malt Irish whiskey and several varieties of moonshine. Wine takes up more floor space than any other kind of beverage in this beverage emporium the size of a supermarket. The store boasts a huge selection of Illinois wines, well over 100 in an aisle devoted to creations from the Land of Lincoln. But we love champagne, and so our favorite is Dom Perignon, which is a proverbial steal at just $139.99 a bottle, nearly $20 cheaper than the average price as reported by www.wine-searcher.com. Drink up.

Runner-up: The Corkscrew