Beaujolais Nouveau – the young, freuity red wine from Burgundy

July 17, 2011

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Beaujolais Nouveau is the most famous “vin de primeur” in the world. Giant Beaujolais producer, Georges Duboeuf, is largely responsible for the young wine’s rise to fame. He came up with an idea to capitalize on the growing popularity of the wine by challenging other producers of Beaujolais Nouveau to a race to see who could be the first to get their newly fermented wine to the Paris market. By the 1980‘s the race had become somewhat of a huge deal and, in 1985, the third Thursday of November became the official release date of Beaujolais Nouveau.

Beaujolais, the wine producing region in the east central area of France, is technically part of Burgundy. However, its winemaking practices, grapes, soil composition, and even climate are quite different. Most of the wine produced in Beaujolais is made from the grape Gamay Noir à Jus Blanc (black Gamay with white juice), known simply as Gamay, and undergoes carbonic or semicarbonic maceration.

Carbonic Maceration Makes Light, Fruity Wine

The region of Beaujolais is distinguished by the method of fermentation it uses to produce light, fruity, almost candied wines – carbonic maceration. It is essential that the grapes used for Beaujolais be picked by hand as the grapes must arrive at the winery in whole bunches (machines tend to damage grapes). Beaujolais Nouveau undergoes what is known as semicarbonic maceration which is faster and enables the wine to be ready for the market much more quickly.

In semicarbonic maceration the whole bunches are put into a fermentation tank. The weight of the grapes at the top crushes the grapes at the bottom of the tank, allowing them to release their juices. Yeast is then able to do its work by converting the sugar in the juice to alcohol and carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide saturates the atmosphere in the tank, eliminating any oxygen. The whole grapes in the upper part of the tank then undergo intracellular fermentation. That is, fermentation takes place within the grape berry itself, with no yeast present, and in anaerobic conditions. The grapes own respiration converts the sugar to alcohol, and the resulting wine may take on flavours of pear drop, bubble gum, and candied fruit.

Fermentation for Beaujolais Nouveau can take as little as 4 days, while it usually takes ten days or more for regular Beaujolais wines. Beaujolais Nouveau is then bottled by the beginning of November in order for it to be ready for the market. The more concentrated longer-lived Beaujolais may not be bottled until the following Christmas.

The Taste of Beaujolais Nouveau

Beaujolais Nouveau is a light-bodied red wine with a purplish-pink colour. It is fruity in flavour with very soft tannins making it quite quaffable. The aromas and flavours associated with the wine are pear drop, banana, bubblegum, and sweet red berries, such as raspberries and strawberries.

Food Pairings for Beaujolais Nouveau

Beaujolais Nouveau can be served with a wide variety of dishes including, salmon and trout, smoked ham, hotdogs, pizza, and roasted chicken. With the holiday season now upon us, Beaujolais Nouveau is also a great match with turkey and all the trimmings!

Due to the wine’s fruity character and low tannins, it is quite acceptable to serve Beaujolais Nouveau slightly chilled (13-15 degrees Celsius). Many call this wine “summer in a glass.”Nouveau While Enjoy Beaujolais It’s Still Young

This is not a wine meant for aging. It should be enjoyed at the time of purchase when it still has it’s young fruitiness. Ideally, Beaujolais Nouveau should be consumed within 6 months.

It’s important to remember that Beaujolais Nouveau is an unpretentious wine not to be taken too seriously. It is known by many in the wine industry as “lollipop wine” for its almost candy-like character.

Source: http://www.suite101.com/content/beaujolais-nouveau-a175978

Clark Wine Center was built in 2003 by Hong Kong-based Yats International Leisure Philippines to become the largest wine shop in Philippines supplying Asia’s wine lovers with fine vintage wines at attractive prices. Today, this wine shop in Clark Philippines offers over 2000 selections of fine wines from all major wine regions in the world. As a leading wine supplier in Philippines, Pampanga’s Clark Wine Center offers an incomparable breadth of vintages, wines from back vintages spanning over 50 years. Clark Wine Center is located in Pampanga Clark Freeport Zone adjacent to Angeles City, just 25 minutes from Subic and 45 minutes from Manila.

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