Dan Abel > wrote:

> Beaujolais Nouveau is wine that isn't ready to drink yet.

Oh, what rot! Here is what I posted some six years ago:

Beaujolais (nouveau) may not be seriously good, but then it is not meant
to be. It's meant to be a simple wine and, as such, it often gives
great pleasure. Besides, Beaujolais, by virtue of being produced by the
carbonic maceration method, is a wine very different from any that is
not produced by such method. One just can't compare it to other wines
in a way one does when one compares various Merlots and Cabernets to
each other, for example. In a sense, it is a situation similar to that
of traditionally made German Riesling (a truly serious wine, unlike
Beaujolais), which is misunderstood by a lot of misguided wine lovers.
It is a wine made differently, with a different premise and a different
result. Expectations should be adjusted accordingly. Beaujolais is
prized for its freshness, its pear-drop bouquet and jamminess combined
with some acidity. As is the case with other wines, quality depends on
the vintage, to a very great extent. It is generally only in poor
vintages that one hears complaints about too much Nouveau being
produced. Beaujolais, like other wines, can be good or bad. Ditto its
nouveau versions.

Only a very small proportion of all Beaujolais can benefit from aging -
mostly a few of the Moulin-à-Vent and Morgon crus. Most Beaujolais
wines are better drunk in their first year. It is true that Beaujolais
Primeur or Nouveau is rarely the best, for better grapes are generally
used for other kinds of Beaujolais, but it can nevertheless be very
good, if one chooses carefully. Besides, many of the Beaujolais and
Beaujolais-Villages (always a much better bet) wines sold later in the
year are just relabeled Beaujolais Nouveau - a legal practice. A good
young, fresh Beaujolais, even if it's just a 'Nouveau' is immensely
enjoyable. It's a light, fragrant, zesty, juicy, thirst-quenching
fruit-in-a-bottle. It is not an age-worthy 'serious' wine. Not what
the Italians would call a 'vino da meditazione', but a simple 'vino da
pasto'. It is not meant to be sipped delicately - it is to be gulped,
quaffed, glugged with abandon. And it goes well with most any food. Of
course, it has to be wine made more or less traditionally, i.e. in a
light style. Too often Beaujolais is overchaptalised nowadays,
resulting in a flat, overly alcoholic wine. So, choose carefully.
Choose Beaujolais-Villages or any of the crus, rather than a simple
Beaujolais. Such producers as Jean-Paul Brun, Jean-Charles Pivot
(brother of Bernard) or Charvet rarely disappoint. Even the widely
available wines of Georges Duboeuf, especially those from their own
vineyards, are generally rather good, even though Duboeuf are the
leaders of the 'modern' overly alcoholic style.

And, lest you forget, one of the best things about Beaujolais is, of
course, its beetroot colour...

Victor