The rage for Beaujolais Nouveau has surely crested. That perfectly enjoyable, light, incredibly young wine had come to represent the entire Beaujolais region for many consumers. This was hardly a tragedy. The wine was wonderfully fresh, easy to understand, and easy to afford. However, there is much more to the region of Beaujolais. There are wines of greater substance and longevity, wines of varying style and weight, even crisp, lean premium white wines. The marketing and distribution of these premium wines of the Beaujolais region lack the headlong pace of air shipment, “first day” tastings, and massive media coverage. These wines, which have the most to offer, often get the least attention.
Remember, Beaujolais is a place, the southernmost section of Burgundy. That fact can be obscured by the way we throw the name around. No wine from any other place should be called Beaujolais. Beaujolais is a particularly beautiful part of France, about 35 miles of rolling hill country south of the town of Macon and north of Lyon, the magnificent city that has some claim to being the center of French gastronomic culture. The geology and topography of Beaujolais vary greatly from the strikingly hilly northern section to the more fertile lowlands in the south. Furthermore, the soil composition and aspect toward the sun vary, not only from village to village, but even from vineyard to vineyard. Some especially important estate vineyards even segregate their crop according to position on the hill (there is almost always a hill).
Louis Jadot Beaujolais-Villages ($12.99) is our best selling wine of the region, with good reason. Year after year, this wine is a “best value”. Not the cheapest Beaujolais in the market, it is the best we know of for under $15. Designated “Beaujolais-Villages” the grapes must all come from the hilly northern portions of Beaujolais, which have historically proved best. Perhaps more importantly, the production of this wine is overseen by the staff at Jadot’s famous winery in the heart of the region’s finest vineyards. Although not estate bottled, this is far from an ordinary “shipper’s blend”. This vivacious wine is brimming with fruit aroma but finishes dry, with a hint of spice. Serve slightly chilled with backyard burgers or elegant summer dinners.
Chateau de Pizay Morgon ($16.99), Domaine de Quatre Vents Fleurie ($16.99), and Chateau des Jacques Moulin-A-Vent ($19.99) listed in order from lightest to heaviest are our current picks from the illustrious ranks of “Cru Beaujolais”. Each of these wines comes from a single vineyard in one the ten highest rated villages in northern Beaujolais. Pizay from Morgon is light and elegant with a berry and apricot finish. Quatre Vents from Fleurie is the smoothest of the lot, with lots of red fruit aroma and flavor. Chateau des Jacques from Moulin-A-Vent provides the same fruit flavors with a deeper, more complex, age-worthy, finish. From this same Jadot estate we have a limited quantity of Clos de Rochegres Moulin-A-Vent ($46.99). This single vineyard wine looks to antiquity when barrel-aged, long-lived wines were an important part of the produce of Beaujolais. This knockout of a great red wine dwarfs all but the biggest wines of Burgundy. Tons of red fruit flavor, finished to perfection with concentrated mature tannins and spice. Save this for a full blown steak dinner.
Chateau des Jacques Grand Clos de Loyse Beaujolais-Villages Blanc ($16.99) is currently our only white wine from Beaujolais. It is a superb white Burgundy from a single vineyard just outside the Macon region (home to Pouilly-Fuisse among others). This is an elegant, dry, expression of Chardonnay with pear flavors and a crisp finish, no hint of oak. This Beaujolais Blanc is the perfect aperitif wine, but it is also a match for herbed chicken dishes or just about any fish.
07/09` |