It's Time for Beaujolais Nouveau Again!

Beaujolais Nouveau. Its name literally means 'new Beaujolais.' This wine is named for the village of Beaujeu in France, which is a small region just south of Burgundy.

On the third Thursday of each November, France releases Beaujolais Nouveau wine to the world. That means that it will be available on Thursday November 19th this year.

The 'new' part of this wine is due to the fact that the grapes used to make this wine are picked from the vineyards just a couple of months prior to its release! That's compared to most wines that spend a year or more going through the fermentation and aging process before being bottled and shipped to market.  But Beaujolais Nouveau gets from the vineyard to you in about two months!

Word has it that this wine was originally produced for the harvest workers in France to immediately thank them for all their hard work just after harvest was complete. But now its production is somewhere between 30-60 million bottles so that the entire world can enjoy.

Although there are more than 100 Beaujolais Nouveau festivals held each year in the Beaujolais region, the 'Les Sarmentelles' multi-day festival is said to be the biggest and most famous for celebrating the release of Beaujolais Nouveau. The festival includes music, dancing, fireworks and, yes, plenty of wine.

This wine is produced entirely from handpicked Gamay grapes and because it is so new, it is very fresh and fruity. Many describe Beaujolais Nouveau as having flavors of candied cherries, strawberries, red plum, bananas and bubble gum.

Beaujolais Nouveau is meant to be enjoyed young, not critiqued. So, pick up a bottle or two next week and give it a slight chill. Then raise a glass of Beaujolais Nouveau to the French harvest workers. It's Beaujolais Nouveau time! Cheers!

Apple Wine versus Apple Cider

Did you know that there is such a thing as apple wine? Well, indeed it exists!

While the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) states that fermented apple juice that is under 8.5% alcohol by volume (ABV) is cider or ‘Hard Cider’, it considers any fermented apple juice above 8.5% ABV as wine. So, the really hard cider is technically wine!

It turns out, not just any ordinary apple is used in the production of most hard cider and apple wine. Their production requires apples with higher tannin and higher acid levels. Most apples used for cider and wine are little known varieties that are grown just for fermentation. And, unlike fermenting grapes into wine, apple wine requires sugar be added to the juice for it to end up with 12% alcohol or higher.

You may find that Apple wine will taste a little harsh at bottling time. It needs time to age in the bottle. Typically, an apple wine will be very drinkable at around three months of aging and at its best at around nine months. Beyond that it will slowly fall off in flavor.

So, there you go. Who knew? A glass of apple wine just may be in your future. Cheers!

Ever Wonder What it Means for a Wine to be Organic?

When it comes to organic wines, there are two major categories: ‘Organic Wine’ and ‘Wines made with Organic Grapes.’ Here’s a quick overview of each.

Organic Wines

For a wine to be labeled as ‘Organic’ it must only use organically grown grapes and avoid synthetic additives. Both the growing of the grapes and the winemaking process must be certified. This includes making sure the grapes are grown without synthetic fertilizers. Other agricultural ingredients that go into the wine, such as yeast, also have to be certified organic. And then, any non-agricultural ingredients must be specifically allowed and can’t exceed 5% of the total product. Finally, while the winemaking process naturally yields some sulfur dioxide (sulfites), the winemaker cannot add sulfites to an organic wine. (Note: Sulfites are commonly added to wines to stop the fermentation process and/or as a preservative in the bottle).

Wines Made with Organic Grapes

Wines made from organically grown grapes are much more common. This means there were no synthetic pesticides or herbicides used in the vineyard. Yeast and any other agricultural ingredients used in winemaking aren’t required to be organic, but have to be produced without excluded methods (like genetic engineering). Finally, sulfites may be added to these wines.

Natural, Bio-Dynamic and Sustainably Produced Wines

Wine labels may also carry the terms ‘Natural,’ ‘Bio-Dynamic,’ or ‘Sustainably Produced.’ As you might have guessed these wines are not the same as organic wines. We’ll explore them in the next post. Cheers!

Ever Wonder What is Considered a "Picnic" Wine?

During a past trip to the local grocery store it was pointed out to me that there is a section of wines with a sign above them referring to them as “Picnic Wines.” So, I was asked ‘What makes these picnic wines?’

Well, technically speaking “Picnic” is not a wine classification or category. But, lots of wines come to mind when I think of a picnic. And, since picnics are usually in warm weather, chilled refreshing wines are the most obvious to choose.

So, here are few suggestions of wines to take on a picnic:

• Rosé — What could be more refreshing and light than a well-chilled rosé. And if you still think rosé means ‘sweet’ then you’re wrong. In the past that might have been true but today there are lots of great dry rosé wines.

• Sauvignon Blanc — Here’s another great wine that can be the perfect refresher on a warm day. Lots of great flavors of grapefruit, peach and honeydew melon.

• Pinot Gris/Pinot Grigio — This is another great wine to chill for a picnic. This one has good acidity with flavors of lemon, peach and cantaloupe

• Sparkling Wines — Always a crowd pleaser, goes with most all foods and perfect for a picnic (no cork screw required!)

• Vinho Verde — This Portuguese wine is fresh, has great minerality and lively acidity that make it a great picnic wine

• Riesling — This is a bright and refreshing wine with flavors of green apple and lime

• Grüner Veltliner — This white wine is best known in Austria. It’s dry and full bodied, with high acidity and flavors of apple and pear

Now you may be asking ‘What about red wines?” Well, of course, they too can be very enjoyable on a picnic. Just ensure that they are kept at ‘cellar’ temperature (60-65 degrees F) and they’re also wonderful to enjoy.

Oh. And don’t forget the corkscrew and glasses. Cheers!

Ever Wonder? - What is Grappa?

Last time we looked at brandy. Brandy is made from distilling wine with or without the solid grape matter. Grappa, on the other hand, is made solely from distilling the ‘leftovers’ from making wine - the fermented skins, stems and seeds from the grapes (the pomace).

Producers of Grappa typically use the grape skins, seeds and stems that sat in the fermentation tank with the grape juice during the making of red wine. They may also make Grappa from the white wine by-products, but since the pomace isn’t fermented with the juice during white wine production, distillers must first ferment the skins and seeds.

The distillation process allows Grappa makers to separate the volatile parts of the fermented product, based on their different boiling points. In practice, the distillers heat the fermented product to allow the alcoholic vapors to evaporate together with the aromas. This way, the quantity of alcohol contained in the fermented product becomes quite concentrated. When these vapors are cooled, they condense into a liquid of high alcoholic content. And we call it Grappa.

Grappa is usually produced clear but color can be attained with aging in wood barrels.

Grappa is typically served neat from straight-sided shot glasses, but specialty flutes (as shown in the photo) and large tulip glasses have been designed to showcase a grappa’s bouquet.

Grappa isn’t for everyone. It too is an acquired taste. But, now you know - Grappa is a distilled product from the wine ‘leftovers.’ Cheers!