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Raise your glass at the Beaujolais Festival in Charlotte on Nov. 20
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Beaujolais Nouveau is enjoyed around the world beginning Nov. 19.
Charlotteans can take part in a tradition celebrated the world over, when they uncork the Beaujolais Nouveau and other vintages at the Beaujolais Festival on Fri, Nov. 20 at the Levine Museum of the New South (200 E. Seventh St.).
The Beaujolais Festival takes its inspiration from the French tradition of tasting the "premieres vendanges" or the first grapes harvested that year. While you can find other "vins de primeur" or new wines to sample, the most famous variety by far is the Beaujolais Nouveau, which comes from a region in France that spans along the Saone river in between Burgundy and Lyon. The tradition of making and drinking a quickly fermented wine has existed at least since the 19th century in the Beaujolais region. This young, red wine created from the gamay grape was enjoyed by the working class in bars and cafes in Beaujolais and neighboring Lyon but it was relatively unknown elsewhere.
By the 1960s, the popularity of celebrating this first wine of the year began to spread to Paris and beyond. In fact, during the 1970s, a media sensation was created as people started competing to deliver the first cartons of wine from Beaujolais to London. All sorts of attempts were made using sportscars, hot air balloons, and even airplanes. This New Beaujolais Run was ultimately outlawed because of the danger it was creating on French and British roads but the wine producers of Beaujolais could not have asked for better publicity.
These days, the arrival of Beaujolais Nouveau in France and around the world is as much a symbol of the fall as the changing leaves on the trees. By French law, the wine only becomes available at midnight on the third Thursday in November. Wine stores and cafés display banners declaring that the wine has arrived ("Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrive!") and people raise their glasses to celebrate with friends or family. Part of the pleasure is in getting a sneak peak of how the year's vintage will turn out, since it will be months or even years before other French wines are released.
Mark Vergili, Wine Manager at Total Wine on Park Road, describes the Beaujolais Nouveau as a very light bodied, fruity, and easy drinking wine, with a little bit of a "bubble gum taste." While the taste of Beaujolais Nouveau is not considered complex, other wines from the region are a different story.
"The other Beaujolais - the cru Beaujolais or Beaujolais-Village are excellent," says Vergili. He recommends pairing them with poultry and suggests trying a wine from Morgan, Fleurie or Brouilly with your Thanksgiving turkey. You can find many different Beaujolais wines at Total Wine, among the hundreds of other wines on display.
You can also sample Beaujolais wines and get in on the celebration at Charlotte's own 16th Annual Beaujolais Festival, co-sponsored by the Charlotte International Cabinet (CIC) and the Alliance Francaise of Charlotte (AF). It's a celebration of "all things French in Charlotte," says Alina MacNichol, Executive Director of the CIC.
Guests will have the chance to taste six different varieties of Beaujolais wine during the evening and pair them with food or pastries from some of Charlotte's best French establishments, including Lulu and Amelie's French Bakery. Lindt Master Chocolatiers will also be handing out chocolate samples. But the event is more than just eating and drinking, says MacNichol.
The Beaujolais Festival will feature live entertainment, cooking demonstrations, and the chance to win great prizes -- like two roundtrip tickets to Paris, provided by Air France. Expect to hear from a local jazz duo (Kevin Clark and Ethan Uslan) as well as from an Opera Carolina soprano, singing French art songs. Attendees will also have the opportunity to bid on a variety of items throughout the evening as part of a silent auction.
And while you are enjoying your wine, be sure to give a big "Merci" to Beaujolais Nouveau for giving us an excuse to celebrate!
Tickets are available at the door for cash or credit card and cost $25 for members of the CIC and AF or $30 for the general public. The event runs 5 - 8:30 p.m. on Fri, Nov. 20 at the Levine Museum of the New South.
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