From news wires…
November marks the highly-anticipated release of the season’s “first wine of the harvest” -- Georges Duboeuf 2019 Beaujolais Nouveau. As is customary and per French law, Beaujolais Nouveau is released at 12:01 a.m. on the third Thursday in November (this year on November 21).
Last summer’s temperamental weather made for an unusual and unpredictable growing season in the region’s vineyards, where nearly all the grapes grown are Gamay. The 2019 wines—Beaujolais Nouveau, Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau and Beaujolais Nouveau Rosé—are the expressive and impressive results. “This vintage was strongly shaped by the weather, which means our 2019 Beaujolais Nouveau will be unique and full of individual character,” said Franck Duboeuf, who leads Les Vins Georges Duboeuf, founded by his father Georges in the early 1960s. Georges introduced the region’s local tradition of toasting the harvest with the young wines to a global audience in the 1980s.
The 2019 Beaujolais Nouveau displays a shiny, deep ruby color with dark purple tints. The red berry, crushed strawberry, raspberry and cherry aromas are pure and elegant. This delicious fruitiness also washes over the palate, fresh and appealing, with a pleasing fullness and a very fresh finish. Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau is a dazzling garnet in color and intensely aromatic with decadent notes of red and dark berries. The well-bred Gamay is immediately expressive and hearty, with a full-bodied fruitiness that is fresh on the palate. The rose-petal pink Nouveau Rosé is a welcome reminder of the warmth of summer in the midst of winter. Its exotic fruit palate is ripe with notes of vine peach and fresh grapefruit.
“With the three Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau wines, friends and family have more options this holiday season to gift, share and enjoy the first 2019 vintage wines from the Northern hemisphere,” says Dennis Kreps, co-owner of Quintessential with his father, Stephen D. Kreps. “We are delighted that last year’s introduction of Nouveau Rosé was so well-received. It is a popular choice for those seeking a lighter, more refreshing wine in the winter months, or for those kindred spirits who believe rosé is a wine to be enjoyed year round,” Dennis explains. Quintessential is the exclusive importer of Les Vins Georges Duboeuf in the US.
The 2019 vintage Nouveau bottles sold in the US feature the artwork of this year’s Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau Label Artist’s Competition winner, Texas native Laura Runge. Her Joyous Crush painting will appear on over one million bottles of Duboeuf’s three 2019 Nouveau wines. The artwork, selected from nearly 700 pieces from around the world, is a representation of the celebratory harvest in France with deep pinkish-red and purple tones to mimic the colors of the wine, and greens and blues to reflect the earth and sky. In its third year, the competition received a record-breaking number of votes, likes and comments on social media – thus far, the highest levels of engagement the contest has seen.
Since the 1900s, grape growers and vintners from Beaujolais have gathered to celebrate the harvest with the just-made wines during a festive gathering of family and friends. In modern times, this “first wine of the harvest” has kept the economy alive in Beaujolais. Les Vins Georges Duboeuf always pays a premium price for the grapes and the juice of over 300 growers. A lot of time, thought and effort goes into making this youthful, easy-drinking wine that Georges Duboeuf has declared, despite its modest price, “the most complicated wine to make.” It has come to symbolize a turn of the seasons and the beginning of the holidays, pairing perfectly with a Thanksgiving turkey or Christmas ham, as well as all the trimmings.
In keeping with the wine’s spirit of celebration, hundreds of tastings and parties are being held around the nation at restaurants, wine bars and wine retailers to welcome the 2019 vintage, including harvest-themed parties thrown by the French-American Chamber of Commerce in many major markets. To find a Beaujolais Nouveau party in your area, visit http://www.quintessentialwines.com/Wine-Events.
The wines are perfect for gift-giving and holiday entertaining, and available at most wine retailers nationwide, with a suggested retail price of $12.99 for the Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau and Beaujolais Nouveau Rose, and the Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau at $14.99.
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