Bojo Knows Best!

If you ask most people about Beaujolais, they will say ‘Oh yeah, Beaujolais Nouveau. Good stuff.’ It is, but the Beaujolais region is so much more than just its Nouveau. Beaujolais is the largest wine producing region in Burgundy, France. Located to the south of Maconnais, it has over 50,000 acres of vines planted.

Beaujolais wines are made from the Gamay grape which is a cross between Pinot Noir and the white Gouais. With its close proximity to the Mediterranean Sea and its semi-continental weather, this cross ripens two weeks earlier than Pinot Noir and it isn’t as hard to cultivate. This resulted in a larger production of fruitier wines.  But everyone wasn’t always okay with planting Gamay. In 1395, the Phillipe the Bold outlawed the production of Gamay because he felt that it was taking away prime vineyard land from the more appreciated and respected Pinot Noir. So winemakers pushed Gamay further south out of mainland Burgundy into what is now known as Beaujolais, where it found itself in granitic soils where the grape flourished.

The region of Beaujolais is divided into two distinct soil types which also divide the region into Northern and Southern Beaujolais with Villefranche as the middle point. The hilly northern portion has most of the Cru Beaujolais communes and is made up of granite, schist and a little limestone. The southern half or Bas Beaujolais is a bit flatter and contains more clay-based, sandy soils with some limestone patches sprinkled throughout the region. These soil differences present themselves in the wine with the North producing wines with a fuller body and a more complex structure. The wines of the South have a crisper, more acidic flavor with loads of red fruit on the palate.

Back to Beaujolais Nouveau, it was actually created by George Duboeuf for marketing purposes. It’s a light, fruity style of Beaujolais that is meant to be drunk quickly and can be slightly chilled. The grapes are picked around late August, early September and the wine is only fermented a few days before it’s bottled. These wines are then released to t he public on the third Thursday of November at 12:01 am, Beaujolais Nouveau Day. This wine can last for a couple of years but it won’t develop any additional flavors or characteristics from bottle aging.

As for the actual wines of Beaujolais, they are divided into the following levels of quality:

Beaujolais AOC – all Beaujolais falls into this category

                Beaujolais Blanc – made from Chardonnay and Aligote  

                Beaujolais Rose

Beaujolais Villages AOC

Cru Beaujolais – the highest level of quality, 10 Crus

So when you’re thinking of a red wine for white wine drinkers, think Beaujolais!

 Article by Tanisha Townsend

Find out more on Tanisha in our About Section

Just Jura

With so many wines to write about, who knows where to start? With their region, that’s where. If you know about where a wine is from, the climate, what grapes are grown there…you can make a better decision about drinking the wine. You might even try something new.

 Jura

A lesser known region in France and the smallest, the 1600 hectare region known as the Jura, is situated between Burgundy and Switzerland. And therefore produces wine similar in style to those regions. There are four regional appellations: Arbois, Côtes du Jura and the smaller Etoile and Château-Chalon, plus two wine style appellations that cover the whole area, Crémant du Jura and Macvin (a Vin de Liqueur). The continental climate of Jura can get quite cold in the winter, so to lessen the threats of frost, vines are trained in order to receive a productive harvest.  

Due to the cool climate, chaptalization (adding sugar to unfermented grape must be in order to increase the alcohol content after fermentation) is permitted , sometimes even as a necessity to assist under-ripe vintages by boosting the levels of sugar.  Another difference between the wines of Jura and the wines of the rest of France is that most of Jura white wines are aged in oak for extended periods of time, while their red wines are aged in stainless steel bottled young.

While the Jura does harvest Chardonnay, locally known as Melon d’Arbois, and Pinot Noir, the local grapes Savagnin, Poulsard, and Trosseau are also grown. Poulsard is the primary grape for the sweet vin de paille and is also used to make a rosé. Savagnin is permitted for Jura’s most famous wine, vin jaune. 

Vin Jaune is made by picking the grapes as ripe as possible, oftentimes making this a last harvest wine. After fermentation, it’s stored in Burgundian barrels for over 6 years. In a style similar to sherry, the barrels are filled and allowed to evaporate, therefore reducing the amount of wine remaining in the barrel and a creating space for air at the top of the barrel. Due to this method of aging, over time the wine oxidizes and a film of yeast  develops on the top of the wine. The classic Vin Jaune flavours are of mild eastern spices, walnuts and sometimes honey.

When shopping for the wines of Jura, the following are producers of note:

·         Domaine André et Mireille Tissot

·         Role,

·         A & M Tissot

·         Domaine de la Tournelle

·         Jacques Gaspard Feuillet

·         Domaine Berthet-Bondet

·         Henri Maire

Submitted by Tanisha Townsend