It really is a shame that great names like Lapierre and Foillard participate is this travesty. The nouveau stuff is what keeps Beaujolais treated as a second class wine by most of the wine world. I guess it makes money for the producers, but at the cost of most people thinking their real wines are this insipid stuff. Sorry about the soap box. ![[soap.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/a/a7ea1fffd3ef237e8f19d17a83270ad8452218ca.gif "soap"){kind=small}
John, have you tried the nouveau’s from Lapierre and Foillard?
You are miles off the mark. Its a celebration of the new harvest and a window into what the vintage holds.
Just because its been bastardized in the US with millions of bottles of industrial swill, doesn’t make the celebration and intent any less relevant or acceptable.
Thank you for framing Nouveau so succinctly. It is a celebration. Complaining that Nouveau isn’t as noble as Cru is analogous to complaining that turkey isn’t as tasty as pheasant. Nouveau is a ritual celebration not unlike thanksgiving. Celebrating harvest. The wine and the food are a part of those celebrations but not the focus of the celebrations. Nouveau, like thanksgiving, is about much more than grape juice or birds.
Keeping the spirit of the celebration the bar in Beaune offered the glass of Nouveau and toasted to another harvest finished. It isn’t meant to be a wine that impresses or amazes those who drink it. It is meant to be a wine that is shared amongst friends…a celebration that brings people together.
I won’t apologize for being dogmatic. I believe wine should be much more than what is in our glass. I hope that drinkers on this board find something beyond the bottle that is wonderful about wine.
I haven’t and don’t plan to. I think the explanation of a celebration of the new harvest is a bit of a red herring. It was originally embraced as a marketing gimmick to bolster sales of Bojo. That’s too bad, because good Bojo can sell on it’s own, but now needs to fight the impression the average consumer has based on the plonk shipped every November. It really damages the brand, bottling something that is dead by February. If it was such a good idea, you would see it in all the other wine regions of France.
That’s because the wine is dead and undrinkable by February of the next year. Hard to put something on a restaurant list that has a life span of 60 days.
Actually there are 55 regions that permit a Nouveau, there are nouveaus produced from all over, I had a couple of other ones this week in Japan, seems to be very popular here.
Good article here on BN:
This thread repeats itself every year, chronicling those who appreciate the celebratory emphasis concerning the new vintage, and those, such as John Danza, who don’t buy or drink the wine but seemingly must add their negative perspective on this wine. It will likely be thus next year as well. Too bad that the Nouveau, which was demanded by Americans wanting to get in on the party in France and the U.K, has seemingly fallen out of favour with the new “wine savvy” consumers ( dare I say wine snobs? )in North America.
As Duboeuf’s label announces “Celebrate”; ignore the knockers and party in the sense that brought this delightful beverage to market many years ago ! I remember 25 to 30 years ago, people holding such parties and having a wonderful time.
Hank ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
John,
I would argue that the reason many of the top producers are doing Nouveau is a) to honor a tradition that goes far longer than the marketing fad and b) to reclaim a little of the furor that goes to Dubouef for the rest of the region.
Having, you know, actually tried a couple of the wines, I can tell you that what the top producers are making and what Duboeuf has done is the difference between Storybook Mountain Zin Gris and Sutter Home White Zin.
And, based on pouring Dupeuble and Brun for customers, the response has largely been “I didn’t know Nouveau could be good.”
Hank,
Younger wine drinkers love Beaujolais. I blew through a ton of it this year, mostly to 35 and under drinkers.
Next we will discuss which mailing lists are about to offer allocations.
I thought the Brun was very good. It is very much in the style and profile of their regular L’Ancien VV bottling, so it is not surprising that they share the designation. If anything the Nouveau '13 is simply a fresher and more accessible version of the '12 L’Ancien. It in no way felt like a gimmick wine.
As has been pointed out, this is not true. Its origins go back beyond that.
From Oxford Companion:
“The Beaujolais producers themselves are keen to point out that their Nouveaux are not simply un phénomène ‘marketing’, but that they owe their origins to the 19th century, when the year’s wine would complete its fermentation in cask while en route to nearby Lyons, where the new wine provided a direct link with village life in the Beaujolais hills.”
Absolutely right, it’s an old tradition(though bottle as opposed to barrel is much more recent) and a noble one.
Though who knew that there was a Leroy version??!
Certainly not I. Does it cost $100+?
Seems you can get it in Taiwan for $40. I must admit I’d be fascinated to taste it.
When I lived in a couple of the wine regions of Germany it was a blast to attend the Neuwein festivals. The Beaujolais Nouveau is similar in spirit for me, if not as fun as being there. And it goes with overcooked Turkey!
Not a true Bojo, but on Sunday I popped open a 2013 Gamay Nouveau (Willamette Valley) from Bow & Arrow and it was very nice, especially for $12.
In the early 90s I worked for a tiny tech PR agency in NYC and our local wine shop would call us when the nouveau arrived. We’d run over, grab a few bottles and drink instead of work for the rest of the day. It was just good fun and the wine was as well - no one expected it to be brilliant, just a little party. I still pick up a bottle each year and we drink it at thanksgiving with the same spirit - just some fun with friends.
Much to my surprise, my nearest wine shop yesterday said they were out of nouveau! a friend is bringing this year’s bottle so we’ll see.
Love or hate nouveau I encourage everyone to read this article. If you still think you would HATE nouveau at a venue like Augé then I will agree that we disagree. But I have to think even the most discerning wine aficionado would enjoy the spirit of these events. So, you don’t like the way your local shop celebrates by using the gimmick as a marking and sales device? Encourage them to create a celebration of the year / new vintage. Tell them not to push the bottles out of the door but to try and keep the bottles and the people in the shop. You might lose sales for a day but you’ll gain customers and friends for the long haul. Rethink customer service…think customer relationships. That’s the beauty of nouveau…it’s a venue to establish relationships with other enthusiasts.
That’s my soapbox and I’m sticking to it.
There’s no question Paul that this would be super cool to attend, no matter what’s being poured! 