Looking to Celebrate Nature's Bounty?
The third Thursday in November which is tomorrow,
November 15th, is Beaujolais Nouveau Day!
You know the French love any excuse for a fete AND
since I am somewhat Frenchified, I'll be raising
my glass too.
Millions of cases of this young wine from the
Beaujolais region of France is making it's way
across the globe today via plane, train, boat,
elephants, camels and backpacks.
It has become a worldwide race to see who
can be the first to serve the new harvest, but
by French law it can be released no sooner
than the third Thursday of November.
Some interesting facts about Beaujolais
* The Gamay grape is the only grape
grown in the Beaujolais region. It has
a black skin and white juice.
* The grapes must be harvested by hand
* It owes its easy drinkability to a winemaking
process called carbonic maceration, also called
whole berry fermentation. This technique preserves
the fresh, fruity quality of the wine, without
extracting bitter tannins from the grape skins.
Therefore, it's a good red wine for those that
prefer white's.
*It needs to be served cool, at 55 F.
*Traditionally served from a 1.2 gallon jug, it is
a carafe wine or as the French would say in Lyon,
a "bouchons" wine.
* There are many small growers in the region who
sell their grapes to companies (négociants) who make,
bottle and market it under their own labels.
Some of the best négociants are Georges Duboeuf,
Louis Jabot, Joseph Drouhin and Mommessin.
* Beaujolais Nouveau contains 10% alcohol and
mainly comes from the Beaujolais-Bas (lower region).
The Beaujolais-Haute is reserved for better
wines, (the cru's), due to the topography.
* I've never tasted a Beaujolais Nouveau that I
liked. They taste like crap!
BUT, I will be popping a cork!
For those of you that live near Louisville, Ky.
Brown & Forman will be hosting a soiree at
the Speed Museum from 6 - 9pm.
Additional info available at
can go to George Duboeuf's website at
http://www.winewithoutrules.com/, click on
the event section and find out who's hosting
events in your town.
santé, amitié, amour
Bonne Soiree !
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