Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau

[Kazak]

I am a Beaujolais-Virgin. I have had one bottle in my life, and could not finish it (no name brand). To be honest, I am not sure if it was the brand or the wine in general that I do not like. I would like to try two or three different brands over the weekend ($8-$15 range, readily available). Any suggestions? Also, how long can you hold these before they lose the Nouveau?
Thanks,
Kaz

[Innkeeper]

Hi Kazask, and welcome to the Wine Board. First, be sure we are talking about year 2000 Nouveau here. It'll hold for about six months. The Georges Duboeuf seems to be a big hit this year. Scroll down to the Beaujolais thread to get more reviews.

[Kazak]

Inkeeper,
The 2000 is what I am asking about. Let's say, hypothetically, that the 1999 GD was the one that I had. Whould the 1999 be typical/representative of a nouveau?

[Drew]

Hello, Kazak, and welcome. I'm not a big Beaujolais fan myself and opened a bottle yesterday at the in-laws of the Georges Duboeuf 2000 Nouveau and apart from the beautiful color, to coin a phrase from the show,In Living Color - Men on....., "Hated it". Too grapy with a petrol taste. I know what the style of the wine is but I just don't care for the non-maturity at $7 to $15 a bottle. MRDutton is a big fan.....maybe we can encourage a response.

Drew

[Kazak]

Drew,
So I guess that it is safe to say that if I hated the 99, then I will hate the 00? By the way, I thought that people from Maryland only drank Natty Bo. Just kidding.
Kaz

[Innkeeper]

We are talking about the regular Beaujolais Nouveau here, not the Villages. Have not seen any notes on the Villages. The regular is the best ever IMHO.

[mrdutton]

For my Thanksgiving dinner I had a Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau. It had a heavier mouthfeel and seemed a bit more acidic than the GD Flower Label or the Maison LaMartine (both of which I've already purchased two cases of each).

Since it was Thanksgiving dinner with my better half, I did not pay much attention to the label for the Villages Nouveau, but it was NOT GD or LJ.

As I noted in my Thanksgiving post, I've asked for a half-case of the Villages Nouveau so I can do a horizontal between the three. So far it really is, for me, a toss between the GD and the Maison LaMartine (maybe because I just can't get over the strawberries and banana's in the LaMartine; I think that is quite good and not bubble-gum at all).

I am looking at these tastings as something kinda like a barrel sample. As I've noted before, I think, if these nouveaus are indicative of what may come from the Crus, then the 2000 Crus Beaujolais could really be some darn good wine - for those who like light-bodied fruity wines without a lot of tannin.

I do like them with the right foods.

But, I also like those really heavy zins that always manage to scrape the enamel off of my teeth (to quote IK and others) and then there are those cabs, the really good ones...... oh my.......!!!!

[Drew]

I think Beaujolais is the Natty Bo of France.... N'est pas?

Drew

[mrdutton]

Oh my yes....... (cuz I can't spell mais ouis or whatever the hell it is.......)

Heck I can't even spell........ WW help me here!!!!!

Naw on second thought........ I'd suspect you would shy away from the nouveaus, not enough of the tongue lapping stuff in them things, eh?

[This message has been edited by mrdutton (edited 11-24-2000).]

[Kazak]

I purchased the Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau on accident Friday, but corrected it yesterday by purchasing the regular Beaujolais Nouveau. I fully expected to simply taste it last night before dinner, but things did not go as planned. I loved it! I finished the bottle. To me it was a 180 degree turn around from the 99. My wife will be purchasing a case for me as a Christmas present. Thanks to all for your input. Drew, even Natty Bo is good at the right occasion. Cheers.

[This message has been edited by Kazak (edited 11-28-2000).]

[mrdutton]

Well you see, Kazak, you have learned a valuable lesson about this crap-shoot called figuring-out-wine.

The ONLY way to figure out if you like a particular wine is for YOU to pop the cork and taste it; regardless of what all the experts and wine snobs say.

Your palate is the primary judge for any bottle of wine you ever taste.

Oh, by-the-way, I am glad you like the 2000 Nouveau! Now give the Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau a try and see what you think...... I also like it.

[winoweenie]

My only input on this is I graded the labels of the Duboueuf a solid 95 and the Drouhin only an 89. WW