Wines are often treasured for their longevity. We hear enchanting stories of Champagne and Sherry from the Napoleonic era, ancient bottles of Barolo discovered at the back of cellars, even Chardonnays that have been aged for over 20 years. But what about the opposite end of the spectrum—- the new wines, the ones meant to be drunk within months of being bottled?
The most famous of these is the Beaujolais Nouveau, which comes from the eponymous region of France, found just north of Lyon and south of Burgundy.
Originally, as early as the beginning of the 1800s, the “nouveau” wine was bottled and drunk right after harvest time as a celebration of the cycle of work.
The Beaujolais nouveau wines are made with Gamay grapes – a less robust grape than the pinot noir from Burgundy, which matures earlier in the season.
The fascinating aspect of this wine is the method used to produce it. Usually grapes are destemmed, separated from their bunches and pressed. For these new wines the grapes are left on the stems and put into fermentation tanks which are then filled with carbon dioxide. (obviously in the 1800s it wasn’t possible to add CO2 to the vats, but a similar effect was achieved through creating oxygen poor environments).
The gas stimulates fermentation inside each individual grape, and as alcohol starts to be produced, the grapes burst, and the natural yeasts on the grape skins contact the juice, resulting in a normal fermentation.
The traditional release to market date for these wines is the third Thursday in November.
Italy began producing its version of nouveau, “novello” in the 1970s. While the first “novelli” were produced in the Veneto region (north-east Italy) now we can find novelli from every region. The most commonly used grapes are Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Nebbiolo, Pinot Noir, Sangiovese and Grignolino.
These wines are meant to be drunk young. In Italy there is a saying that they have to be consumed before the “giorni della merla” (the days of the blackbird) which are 29-31 January. The traditional release to market date in Italy is 30 October.
All wines of this type have a much shorter fermentation period than most wines which means they have a slightly sweeter taste and fruitier aroma than their aged siblings. Their characteristics include lower tannin levels, lower alcohol, aromas of cherry, blackberry, violet, freshly acidic. These wines are light, fresh and very easy to drink!
They pair well with white meat, cold cuts, pâté, mushrooms, chestnuts, and cheese such as camembert, brie, gorgonzola and pecorino.
Question answered… and now you know!
