L.A. WINELINE BEAUJOLAIS MALAISE?Byline: - Larry Lipson Beaujolais Nouveau Beaujolais nouveau is a red wine made from Gamay grapes produced in the Beaujolais region of France. It is the most popular vin de primeur, fermented for just a few weeks then officially released for sale on the third Thursday of November. Day is almost here and a lot of us are saying, ``So what?'' The hubbub caused by the release of the current vintage of Beaujolais Nouveau in previous years seems to have dissipated dis·si·pat·ed adj. 1. Intemperate in the pursuit of pleasure; dissolute. 2. Wasted or squandered. 3. Irreversibly lost. Used of energy. markedly. Some wine merchants are reporting that the public's interest has waned over the past two vintages to the point where only a quarter of the inventory has been ordered for this year's Nov. 20 release date. No one seems to care about the primeur wine of Beaujolais anymore. But there are still some who want to be the first to taste the young, fruity red of 2003 and there are those who maintain it's the best wine to drink with roasted Thanksgiving turkey. Also, it's one of the few red wines that experts recommend should be chilled somewhat before being opened. BUYING IT: Beaujolais Nouveau of the 2003 vintage will be on the shelves of your favorite local wine merchant on Nov. 20. This year, as usual, most wine retailers are carrying the perennial big seller, Georges Dubeouf. Dubeouf has a regular nouveau and higher-quality nouveaux, one named Chateau de Vierres. Prominent labels likely to be seen this year include Dominique Piron, Henri Fessy, Joseph Drouhin, Michel Picard Michel Picard (Born November 7, 1969 in Beauport, Quebec) is a professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League with the Hartford Whalers, San Jose Sharks, Ottawa Senators, St. Louis Blues, Edmonton Oilers, and Philadelphia Flyers. , Louis Tete and Trenel. Wally's, 2107 Westwood Blvd., West Los Angeles
Duke of Bourbon Duke of Bourbon (French: Duc de Bourbon) is a title in the peerage of France. It was created in the first half of the 14th century for the eldest son of Robert of France, Count of Clermont and Beatrice of Burgundy, heiress of the lordship of Bourbon. , 20908 Roscoe Blvd., Canoga Park, (818) 341-1234, also has Georges Dubeouf at $8.99. Woodland Hills Wine Co., 22622 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills, (818) 222-1111, has Piron at $9.99, Dubeouf (Villages) at $9.99 and Louis Tete at $8.99. Red Carpet, 400 E. Glenoaks Blvd., Glendale, (818) 247-5544, has Piron at $9.43, Piron (Villages) at $10.22 and Henri Fessy at $8.87. SERVING IT: A few restaurants are celebrating Beaujolais Nouveau Day this year. One of them, Cafe Provencal, 2310 E. Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. Blvd., Thousand Oaks, offers a prix-fixe dinner for $35 per person and live entertainment on Nov. 20. Both Duboeuf and Henri Fessy (Villages) Beaujolais nouveaux wines will be served at $5 per glass or $20 per bottle. Information and reservations: (805) 496-7121 or www.cafeprovencal.biz. Also Morels French Steakhouse, Third and Fairfax in The Grove, (323) 965-9595, presents a cheese and Michel Picard Beaujolais Nouveau event ($20) at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 20 featuring four Burgundy-area cheeses. EASY ON THE WALLET: My bargain of the month is a really nice 2000 vintage reserve Cotes du Rhone from Perrin - they're the brothers Perrin of the highly esteemed Chateau de Beaucastel - for a mere $6.99 a bottle at Trader Joe's Trader Joe's is a privately held chain of specialty grocery stores headquartered in Monrovia, California. As of September 2007, Trader Joe's has a total of 284 stores.[1] . This is a lightly fined wine, which means there may be some sediment, but not necessarily. Its cuvee Cuvée (or Cuvee on some English language labels) is a French term used on wine labels to denote wine of a specific blend or batch. The word originates from the French word cuve meaning "vat". is 60 percent grenache, 20 percent syrah, 10 percent mourvedre and 10 percent cinsault, these grapes being typical of the region. Offering a promising nose, the Perrin has plenty of fruity tones, dark cherry and cassis cas·sis n. 1. A Eurasian currant (Ribes nigrum) bearing black berries. 2. A cordial made from the berries of this plant. being the most prominent features, with a touch of spiciness. It's from Trader Joe's, 11976 Ventura Blvd., Studio City, (818) 509-0168 along with another bargain, a bottle of Harvey's Bristol Cream Harveys' Bristol Cream is a leading Spanish sherry, which has been imported into and bottled in Bristol, England since 1796 by Harveys of Bristol. Contrary to popular belief, Cream Sherry is so called not because of any dairy ingredients. sherry for $8.99. Larry Lipson, (818) 713-3668 larry.lipson(at)dailynews.com |
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