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BEAUJOLAIS NOUVEAU
Georges Duboeuf - Beaujolais Nouveau
What did you drink last night? We -- along with thousands of other people -- were enjoying the 2015 Beaujolais Nouveau. To be honest: Beaujolais Nouveau doesn't enjoy a good reputation with many wine geeks so, if you drank it and liked it, you might want to skip telling any oenophiles you might know. But more importantly, don't ever drink it -- or, at least, admit that you drink it -- after December. As the slogan says "It's Beaujolais Nouveau time!", and this is for a reason. It's Beaujolais Nouveau time now, so don't wait.
Beaujoulais Nouveau -- a French Tradition
So what exactly is Beaujolais Nouveau? To put it simply: it's just a red wine produced in Burgundy, France. The sub-region within Burgundy is called Beaujolais and is located approximately 30-40 minutes by car north from Lyon. Winemakers in the region also produce AOC Beaujolais Village, which is a much more complex and elegant wine than Beaujolais Nouveau. Don't make the mistake of thinking that the Beaujolais region only produces this one type of wine, because you'd be missing out.
The only grape variety used in Beaujolais Nouveau is the Gamay grape. Gamay is one of the two grapes traditionally used in Burgundy red wines, along with Pinot Noir. The region produces nearly 65 million bottles for each vintage distributed worldwide. That's a lot of bottles, and it's also why most wine lovers see it as more of a commercial event than anything else. By tradition, Beaujolais Nouveau is released on the 3rd Thursday of November. This has become known as "Beaujolais Day" and is heavily marketed both in France and abroad.
Wine and...bubble gum?
Most harvests in the Beaujolais region occur in mid-September -- the wine is bottled approximately six to eight weeks later. This means that, on average, the wine spends two to four weeks in the bottle before being released on the US market. It's not a wine that's meant for aging and will not develop complex flavors with time.
Every year, people debate about the flavors they detect in the new Beaujolais Nouveau variety. Oftentimes, they can smell banana, strawberry, pear, grape, and any number of different flavors. So what did we detect with this vintage? Bubble gum, bubble gum, bubble gum! It might sound like a strange aroma for a wine, but it actually wasn't unpleasant. In fact, the bubble gum on the nose was eased by an aromatic finish of red cherries. Doesn't sound too bad, right? Just drink up now and don't wait.
We recommend drinking Beaujolais Nouveau chilled to about 50°F. Enjoy!
Fadi -
Beaujoulais Nouveau -- a French Tradition
So what exactly is Beaujolais Nouveau? To put it simply: it's just a red wine produced in Burgundy, France. The sub-region within Burgundy is called Beaujolais and is located approximately 30-40 minutes by car north from Lyon. Winemakers in the region also produce AOC Beaujolais Village, which is a much more complex and elegant wine than Beaujolais Nouveau. Don't make the mistake of thinking that the Beaujolais region only produces this one type of wine, because you'd be missing out.
The only grape variety used in Beaujolais Nouveau is the Gamay grape. Gamay is one of the two grapes traditionally used in Burgundy red wines, along with Pinot Noir. The region produces nearly 65 million bottles for each vintage distributed worldwide. That's a lot of bottles, and it's also why most wine lovers see it as more of a commercial event than anything else. By tradition, Beaujolais Nouveau is released on the 3rd Thursday of November. This has become known as "Beaujolais Day" and is heavily marketed both in France and abroad.
Wine and...bubble gum?
Most harvests in the Beaujolais region occur in mid-September -- the wine is bottled approximately six to eight weeks later. This means that, on average, the wine spends two to four weeks in the bottle before being released on the US market. It's not a wine that's meant for aging and will not develop complex flavors with time.
Every year, people debate about the flavors they detect in the new Beaujolais Nouveau variety. Oftentimes, they can smell banana, strawberry, pear, grape, and any number of different flavors. So what did we detect with this vintage? Bubble gum, bubble gum, bubble gum! It might sound like a strange aroma for a wine, but it actually wasn't unpleasant. In fact, the bubble gum on the nose was eased by an aromatic finish of red cherries. Doesn't sound too bad, right? Just drink up now and don't wait.
We recommend drinking Beaujolais Nouveau chilled to about 50°F. Enjoy!
Fadi -