The fresh-squeezed Beaujolais that’s released every third Thursday in November was still ripening on the vine just a couple of months earlier. How, in so short a time, grapes transition into wine that is not only drinkable but delightful is a kind of miracle in a vat. The agents of this mad, annual race against the clock are enzymes, nature’s little speeder-uppers, who initiate their own proprietary fermentation in the cloistered environment of an intact grape before yeasts can even get started.
To facilitate the process, winemakers take pains not to damage fruit by either removing the stems (which leaves a tiny hole in the crown) or by crushing. The enzyme-driven fermentation that begins spontaneously in berries still on the bunch only achieves 2-3% alcohol, but it has the effect of tenderizing the tannins to such a degree that, once a subsequent yeast fermentation consumes all remaining sugars, the new wine needs only a little time to settle itself down before it’s ready to bottle, ship and sip.
A kind of ersatz Beaujolais Nouveau is made in industrial quantities with the aid of coloring, heavy doses of sulfur dioxide and the assistance of commercial yeasts specifically cultured to pump up fruity flavors, notably banana. Thanks, but we’ll take our nouveau sans additives and flamboyant tropical fruit, made with nothing but healthy, ripe grapes and grown by folks dedicated to producing the most natural, delicious wine possible. How did our folks do 2019? Let’s taste and find out.
Taste, talk and learn about wijne this week in the FKC wine corner . . .
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 21 3-6 PM – NOUVEAU RICHE
2019 Laurence et Remi Dufaitre Beaujolais Nouveau, $18.95
2019 Beaujolais Primeur “Pierre Chermette,” $15.95
2019 Isabelle et Bruno Perraud “Brut de Cuve” Beaujolais Villages Nouveau, $21.95
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 22 3-7 PM – ENZO IN THE HOUSE
Claire Beliard and Enzo Schiano founded Poggio La Noce in 2000. The 50 acre estate in the hills of Fiesole sits right at the doorstep of the city of Florence. The chatty, amiable Enzo made many friends when he visited around this time last year, and we’re thrilled to have him back for an afternoon tasting of two of their sturdy and delicious Tuscan reds.
2017 Poggio la Noce Toscano Rosso “Gigetto,” $27.95
2016 Poggio la Noce Toscano Rosso “Gigino,” $38.95