BEAUJOLAIS

CRUveau

An In-Store Tasting of Beaujolais Nouveau 2013 and

HIGHLY-RATED “CRU” BEAUJOLIS from

FLEURIE, MOULIN-A-VENT, MORGON,

BROUILLY and COTE-DE-BROUILLY

Thursday, November 21, 2013, from 4PM till 8PM

410.268.1961 www.bayridgewine.com

Located north of Lyon

in eastern France, Beau-jolais overlaps Burgun-dy in the north and Rhône in the south. The picturesque Beaujolais vineyards run along the Saône River, where winemakers have craft-ed deliciously supple and fruity wines since the days of Ancient Rome. Over mainly granite terrain, the Beaujolais Crus form a meander-ing path. From south to north, Brouilly is fol-lowed by Côte de Brouilly, Régnié, Mor-gon, Chiroubles, Fleurie, Moulin-à-Vent, Chénas, Juliénas and Saint-Amour. The region has ideal growing conditions. It receives lots of sunshine and has granite-based soils that lend excellent structure to the wines. The Gamay grape is used to make all Beau-jolais wines with the ex-ception of white Beau-jolais, or Beaujolais blanc, which is made of Chardonnay grapes. Only manual harvesting is allowed in the Beau-jolais region. Handpick-ing means that before being vatted, entire bunches are sorted to remove any bad grapes. This winemak-ing method is specific to the Beaujolais region.

Map and text from discoverbeaujolais.com

Stéphane Aviron has adopted an almost radical return to tradition; sustainable viticulture, extremely old vines and classic Burgundian techniques. His cru Beaujolais drink like fine Burgundy. Historically considered “poor man’s Burgundy,” a modern movement toward fruity, simple, quaffing wines boosted sales but eroded the region’s traditional quality. Potel-Aviron has reversed the trend. By focusing on the Beaujolais village crus, the best sites for unique, expressive wines, and finding old parcels of vines, Aviron creates very expressive, age-worthy wines relying on traditional and new methods, including organic and biodynamic vineyard management. All wines are labeled “Vieilles Vignes,” old vines, because the vines are at least 40 years-old. Potel-Aviron’s wines are authentic in every way. This is true Beaujolais. Stéphane Aviron Moulin-a-Vent 2011, List Price $19.99, BRWS Price $16.99. “Sourced from a single proprietor’s holdings in Rochegres and nearby Les Brasses – and tasted assembled from tank – Aviron’s 2011 Moulin-a-Vent

Vieilles Vignes features creme de cassis and black raspberry preserves with overtones of vanilla, nutmeg and caramel for the ripest and sweetest

impression of any of his current collection. Smoky black tea and pungent brown spices add welcome interest and invigoration to this broad, gripping

Gamay that happily retains sufficient primary juiciness to guarantee finishing refreshment. Plan to enjoy it through 2016.” Rated 89-90 Points, The

Wine Advocate

Stéphane Aviron Morgon Cote du Py 2011, List Price $19.99, BRWS Price $16.99. “I believe I’m permitted to point out that Aviron’s 2011 Morgon Cote de Py Vieilles Vignes comes from Jean-Marc Burgaud’s estimable estate (on whose outstanding 2001s I also report in this issue) and have in fact done so since Potel-Aviron’s 2000 inception. Ripe cherry accented with smoky black tea, subtly caramelized resin and piquant green herbs dominate the nose and broad, dustily tannic palate of this long-finishing effort that will probably gain in textural allure and finishing expressiveness after it has put a bit more distance between itself and its mid-November bottling. Look for satisfaction through 2016 if not beyond.” Rated 90+ Points, The Wine Advocate

Stéphane Aviron Fleurie Vieilles Vignes 2011, List Price $22.99, BRWS Price $18.39. “Aviron’s 2011 Fleurie Vieilles Vignes Domaine de la Madriere originates in his wife’s family’s estate, a fact that will only be indicated on some of the labels utilized for it in the U.S., while recognition of “La Madone” will not appear on Aviron Fleurie labels until 2012. (La Madriere was one among several Fleurie sources in the earlier history of Potel-Aviron.) Blueberry tinged with mint, buddleia and freesia inform a high-toned nose and infectiously juicy, sleek palate, with underlying suggestions of wet stone serving to set off the pure fruit and evocative floral notes while a streak of salinity serves for saliva and next-sip inducement. Plan to enjoy this excellent value through 2017. Incidentally, this was the one Aviron 2011 to have been matured in foudre rather than barrique.” Rated 91 Points, The Wine Advocate

Stéphane Aviron Cote de Brouilly Vieilles Vignes 2011, List Price $16.99, BRWS Price $13.59. “Aviron’s ripe, juicy 2011 Cote de Brouilly Vieilles Vignes originates, as it has for years, in south- and southwest-facing slopes from a single proprie-tor (whose entire holdings, in fact, Aviron has vinified since 2000). Fresh cherry shadowed by kirsch and laced with piquancy of its pits receives an alluring bouquet of iris and mouthwatering lick of salt add to the appeal of a wine whose mid-palate promise of juiciness and vibrancy is slightly perturbed by a faint hint of caramelized resin from barrel. Enjoy it through 2016 – and revisit it if possible in 2014. It wasn’t bottled until October, and Aviron insists it needs time in bottle to slough-off the effects of both barrel and bottling.” Rated 89 Points, The Wine Advocate

A Tasting of

the good stuff:

Cru Beaujolais

2011 & 2012

The historic Château des Jacques estate, located in the village of Romanèche-Thorins in the Moulin-à-Vent appellation, is widely rec-ognized as the most prestigious estate in Beaujolais. It was pur-chased by Louis Jadot in 1996, at which time Maison Louis Jadot became the first Burgundy house to own a major Beaujolais vine-yard. In 2001, Louis Jadot bought another well-located vineyard in Morgon. In 2008, both vineyards, which were under the same man-agement, were regrouped under one identity: the Château des Jacques Estates. Pictured, Guillaume de Castelnau, Winemaker. Chateau des Jacques (Louis Jadot) Moulin-a-Vent 2011, List Price $24.99, BRWS Price $19.19. “Reflecting (as explained in my introductory notes) the inclusion of all of Chateau des Jacques’s fruit from Champs de Cour and Clos des Thorins as

well as the usual selected lots from all of their other Clos holdings, a generic 2011 Moulin-a-Vent mingles ripe dark cherry, plum and cassis with mar-row-rich savory suggestions of meat stock. Salt, stone, iodine, mocha and toasted nuts add intrigue to a sustained finish in this lovely, tenderly tex-tured and relatively gentle offering that pales slightly only in comparison with the active impingement that characterizes this year’s Chenas and Fleurie tasted immediately before. Incidentally, this was brought-up in one-third each in new barriques, used barriques and tank, in contrast with the nearly 100% new barrels in which the estate’s single vineyard Moulin-a-Vents continue to be raised. An outstanding value, it should reward following at least through 2017 and quite possibly beyond.” Rated 91 Points, The Wine Advocate Chateau des Jacques (Louis Jadot) Morgon Cote du Py 2011, List Price $36.99, BRWS Price $29.59. “Chateau des Jacques’s 2011 Morgon Cote du Py – at only 13.4%, still the highest in alcohol of their vintage collection – leads with intimations of

charred, roasted red meats and crushed stone along with sandalwood- and fruit pit-tinged, concentrated, ripe dark cherry and purple plum. Infec-tiously juicy, palpably dense, and finely tannic, this finishes with a luscious, dynamic, sustained exchange of stony, carnal, peaty and fruity elements. Plan to follow through at least 2017.” Rated 92 Points, The Wine Advocate

Chateau des Jacques (Louis Jadot) Moulin-a-Vent La Roche 2011, List Price $36.99, BRWS Price $29.59. “Chateau des Jacques’s 2011 Moulin-a-Vent La Roche offers lightly cooked purple plum and dark cherry tinged with nutmeg, toast, and mocha from

barrel. Rich and caressing, it somehow (as usual for this domaine) manages to stay both creamily textured and persistently juicy despite elevage in all-new barriques. Nor does a sense of density preclude one of levity in this Gamay of barely over 13% alcohol. I miss the carnal and incisively mineral dimensions exhibited by the very best wines from this address, but there is a diffuse sense of stoniness helping perhaps to set-off the wine’s luscious finishing fruit. Plan to enjoy this through at least 2017.” Rated 91 Points, The Wine Advocate

Chateau des Jacques (Louis Jadot) Moulin-a-Vent Clos du Grand Carquelin 2011, List Price $36.99, BRWS Email Price $29.59. “The Chateau des Jacques 2011 Moulin-a-Vent Clos du Grand Carquelin reveals scents of nutmeg, almond extract, and vanilla as well as lightly

cooked ripe cherry. It comes to the palate expansive and rich yet, felicitously, juicy and buoyant as well as possessed of alluringly bitter-sweet and elusive inner-mouth iris perfume. Along with saliva-drawing salinity and savory shrimp shell reduction, the merest hint of caramelization is incorpo-rated in its long, succulent finish. Here is a classic instance of virtually 100% new wood at this estate scarcely sapping textural allure or primary juici-ness, a phenomenon that de Castelnau is more inclined to attribute to the quality of grape tannins and sheer extract of vinous raw material that re-sults from long but gentle, watchful fermentative extraction (usually followed by malo) as opposed to crediting the provenance or treatment of the estate’s barrels (though surely these represent a glove-fit). “The wine has to be completely constructed before going to barrel” is how he puts it, ech-oing Jean-Marie Guffens’ well-known and far more than just clever adage that “a wine can take as much new wood as it doesn’t need.” Plan to follow this one through at least 2019. Rated 93 Points, The Wine Advocate

Jean-Claude Lapalu assumed control of just under 30 acres of Gamay from his father in 1996, and made his first com-mercial wines in 2000. His eight parcels of east and southeast facing vines are scattered from Mont Brouilly south through the rolling hills of Odenas and his hometown of Saint-Etienne-la-Varenne. Jean-Claude's most significant early influence came from the writings of Jules Chauvet, France's Father of Natural Winemaking. Like his bon copain Matthieu Barret in Cornas (Domaine du Coulet), Jean-Claude is committed to a strict biodynamic regimen. The domaine received its organic certification from Ecocert with the 2010 vintage and Jean-Claude is in the process of gaining the Biodyvin seal of ap-

proval.

Domaine Lapalu Brouilly La Croix des Rameaux 2012, List Price $36.99, BRWS Price $29.59. The 2012 is not yet rated; the 2011 scored 93 in The Wine Advo-cate.

Domaine Lapalu Brouilly Vieilles Vignes 2012, List Price $23.99, BRWS Price $19.19. The 2012 is not yet rated; the 2011 scored 91 in The Wine Advo-cate.

Domaine Lapalu Cote de Brouilly 2012, List Price $32.99, BRWS Price $26.39. The 2012 is not yet rated; the 2011 scored 92 in The Wine Advo-cate.

Domaine Lapalu Beaujolais-Villages Vieilles Vignes 2012, List Price $23.99, BRWS Price $19.19. The 2012 is not yet rated; the 2011 scored 91 in The Wine Advo-cate.

Le Beaujolais Nouveau Est Arrive! Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau 2013,

List Price $10.99, BRWS Price $8.79.

Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau 2013, List Price $11.99, BRWS Price $9.59.

Bay Ridge Wine & Spirits, 111 Hillsmere Drive, Annapolis, Maryland 21401 Email: office@bayridgewine.com Web: www.bayridgewine.com Phone: 410-268-1961