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May 20, 2007
Beaujolais
Beaujolais is a great spring/summer/fall red wine - fruity and bright but not "sweet," it's full of flavor but not heavy. It's good for sipping on its own, and pairs nicely with a wide range of summer foods, including grilled chicken, lamb, seafood, sausages and vegetables. It also goes well with salads, chilled soups, and other warm weather fare. In the fall, the Beaujolais Nouveau arrives just in time for Thanksgiving, and is a fabulous choice for the traditional turkey-based feast.
Here's a summary of Karen MacNeil's take on this fun varietal:
Beaujolias is made from gamay groups grown in the southernmost part of Burgundy, France. 39 villages have the right to the designation "Beaujolais Villages." The grapes from these villages are considered superior. Even finer quality are the "cru Beaujolais," coming from just 10 villages where the granitic soil is ideal for the gamay grape. These villages are: Fleurie, MOrgon, St.-Amour, Regnie, Chiroubles, Moulin-a-Vent, Chenas, Julienas, Cote de Brouilly, and Brouilly.
Louis Jadot, Georges Duboeuf and Kermit Lynch are top producers of this wine.
I buy the Nouveau every year, and each year it's a little bit different. It's always a close cut for Thanksgiving, because the release date (by law) is the third Thursday in November, giving it just a week to make it to the states in time for the holiday. Thank goodness for air freight! The '05 Nouveau was just luscious, full of fruit, not overly sweet, just delightful. The spring release of the '05 Beaujolais Village was also very good. I've had both the Louis Jadot and the Duboeuf. I like the Duboeuf better, but not for any specific reason. I've had three differnt cru's, all by Duboeuf, and each was fabulous.
Even though it's an import, Beaujolais is extremely affordable - from right around $8 to $16 or so for the finer cru's. Certainly worth a try if you haven't before.
Posted by cageyer at May 20, 2007 02:51 PM
Comments
A foodie post! In addition to your future as a bed and breakfast proprietor, I also vote you take up food writing. :)
Posted by: madeline at May 22, 2007 08:30 AM