Too much Beaujolais?

originally posted by SFJoe:
I had some '07 Foillard Cote du Py tonight, it was great.
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My 07 Foillard Cote du Py last week was very good too. I also enjoyed one of the 09 Vissoux Fleuries, Les Garants - my favourite 09 so far but the remainder will be spread over quite a number of years. The Brun 09 Morgon was less immediately enjoyable - better the second day - and I will probably not try my next one for quite a while.

My regular Lapierre and Foillard Morgon orders have not arrived yet but I still have the 05s and 07s of those. The only 08s I have are the Coudert Clos de La Roilette and the Brun L'Ancien which have been good but not great. I am yet to open my 2010 Coudert Clos de la Roilette which I bought having missed getting some more of the [rapidly sold out] 09.

Last night I had the second half of a basic 05 Jadot Chateau des Jacques MaV which has developed into something between Gamay and Pinot Noir - more savoury and less fruity than a few years ago. I particularly enjoy the 02 single vineyard versions, Rochegres and Grand Carquelin, still have the full complement bar one of the 05s and hope that the 09s will be as good as the 02s are and the 05s will be.

If this sounds like too much Beaujolais it is due to the annual overnight stay at Hotel Les Maritonnes in Romaneche-Thorins for many years when en route to the South for family holidays. The hotel restaurant had a Michelin star in those days and a very extensive Beaujolais list and the conjunction led to an appreciation of good, sometimes aged Beaujolais and the realisation it is decent, relatively inexpensive wine that is pretty versatile with a variety of food. Of course there was plenty of poor quality stuff too but trial and error and a decent sommelier helped narrow the field and today there are [IMO of course] plenty of excellent producers who make Beaujolais in a wide variety of styles, most of which I find I still enjoy - a lot.
 
Tastes vary, but most of the folks who write here seem fairly judicious in their appreciation and bring a sense of proportion to their praise of wines they like. The many measured, specific notes on 09 Beajolais on WD are one of the benefits of reading here.

I have to admit, though, I'm a bit worried about the 13.8% abv for the Coudert CT.
 
originally posted by SFJoe:
I hate to dismiss a vintage with broad generalizations, my elevage was better than that, but if I had broad objections it would be to 2008. One frequently encounters green tannins that don't really delight.

I will be quite surprised if the 2009s turn out to match the negativity from certain austere quarters. I feel like Lenin discovering leftists! Who knew there were extremists on my other flank? Anyhow, many of them need a lot of time, IMO, and I'll give it to them. I mention in passing that many of the vignerons also feel that 2009 was an unusual, remarkable vintage with a lot of potential. I don't think of the Beaujolais gang as being much given to Bordelais-style marketing hype.

But I'm pretty excited for the 2010s.
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I agree with the generalities here, and I especially like vintage generalizations if used properly.

2008 is difficult. 2009s will be, and in some cases are, fine. I don't think they'll need more than a couple of years to come together, this isn't a replay of 2005, more like 2002.

With the doghead back, I feel like a full scale purge is in order.
 
originally posted by SFJoe:
originally posted by MLipton:

I hear you, Slaton, but surely you have some '05s that might be rounding into form now?
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Or '02s?
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A lot of 2002s have seen better days, including Coudert regular and Tete regular, much to my surprise. 2002 Desvignes Py has shown very strangely.
 
Haven't you heard the internet is dead?

And I'm wholly embarrassed at the way my merciless promotion of Beaujolais in my past life has been internalized by my former minions.

I'm saddened my past tendency to talk along with a few others about wine in terms of unexplained references to chemical compounds and winemaking techniques remains evident on the dead internet.

We reap what we have sown.
 
originally posted by VLM:
originally posted by SFJoe:
originally posted by MLipton:

I hear you, Slaton, but surely you have some '05s that might be rounding into form now?
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Or '02s?
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A lot of 2002s have seen better days, including Coudert regular and Tete regular, much to my surprise. 2002 Desvignes Py has shown very strangely.
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I think Coudert Tardive is the only one I have left.
 
I think the bottom line is if you like Beaujolais in its traditional light, crisp and crunchy style, clearly 2009 is not a vintage for you. That in no way means that 2009 is not an excellent vintage or that the wines won't age a spell. The top producers, which most of us drink here, made compelling wines in 2009. I, for one, am not worried about them because they're delicious, nor do I really worry about their long-term ageability because, frankly, who the fuck cares about 10 year old Gamay other than Kay Bixler?
 
Me. I lean towards Moulin a lot just because of the way it gets with age.

But it'll be fun in any event to open these bottles over the coming decade and join in the quarrels over just how much they've exceeded or fallen short of expectations.
 
originally posted by Brad Kane:
I think the bottom line is if you like Beaujolais in its traditional light, crisp and crunchy style, clearly 2009 is not a vintage for you. That in no way means that 2009 is not an excellent vintage or that the wines won't age a spell. The top producers, which most of us drink here, made compelling wines in 2009. I, for one, am not worried about them, because they're delicious, nor do I really worry about their long-term ageability because, frankly, who the fuck cares about 10 year old Gamay other than Kay Bixler?
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Well I do but not because I want to wait 10 years but simply because I am old[ish] and getting forgetful and wines that drink well young and later and are relatively inexpensive [like good Melon and Sauvignon Blanc from Muscadet and Sancerre/Pouilly] are something of a bonus since I occasionally misplace them in the cellar.

OTOH the 2002 Chateau des Jacques 'Clos' wines really are rather good now even though they don't taste much like most [good] mainstream Beaujolais. When they were younger they were different too [made differently than most except people like Brun and Potel-Aviron et al] but as I said earlier I like the variety between e.g. Lapierre and Jadot with Chermette and Coudert and others somewhere in the 'middle'.
 
originally posted by Brad Kane:
. . . frankly, who the fuck cares about 10 year old Gamay other than Kay Bixler?
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I no longer care about 10 year old gamay.

Fifteen year old gamay, on the other hand, is a growing concern.
 
I wonder if there's some enzyme that can be added to prevent gamay from pinoting; it's a varietudinal cheat when that happens, even though some consider that particular bait 'n switch desirable.
 
originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
I wonder if there's some enzyme that can be added to prevent gamay from pinoting; it's a varietudinal cheat when that happens, even though some consider that particular bait 'n switch desirable.
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So you advocate an intervention to prevent grapes from getting riper than you prefer? Would you also like it disclosed on the label?
 
originally posted by Kay Bixler:
originally posted by Brad Kane:
. . . frankly, who the fuck cares about 10 year old Gamay other than Kay Bixler?
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I no longer care about 10 year old gamay.

Fifteen year old gamay, on the other hand, is a growing concern.
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Somebody's not drinking fast enough.
 
originally posted by David M. Bueker:
originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
I wonder if there's some enzyme that can be added to prevent gamay from pinoting; it's a varietudinal cheat when that happens, even though some consider that particular bait 'n switch desirable.
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So you advocate an intervention to prevent grapes from getting riper than you prefer? Would you also like it disclosed on the label?
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Riper? Do you need reading glasses?
 
originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
I wonder if there's some enzyme that can be added to prevent gamay from pinoting; it's a varietudinal cheat when that happens, even though some consider that particular bait 'n switch desirable.
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if it happens naturally, why is that a problem?
 
originally posted by Bill Lundstrom:
originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
I wonder if there's some enzyme that can be added to prevent gamay from pinoting; it's a varietudinal cheat when that happens, even though some consider that particular bait 'n switch desirable.
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if it happens naturally, why is that a problem?
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Good question, but even knowing that the transformation happened naturally, I would still feel kind of cheated because if I had wanted a pinot I would have opened a pinot.

In practice, of course, some producers (in my experience, Diochon MaV has been an example) vinify in such a way as to emulate Burgundy, for who knows what reasons, maybe envy. That would still qualify as happening naturally, but it might be the natural consequence of an "unnatural" (i.e., uncustomary) process...
 
originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
I wonder if there's some enzyme that can be added to prevent gamay from pinoting; it's a varietudinal cheat when that happens, even though some consider that particular bait 'n switch desirable.
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Somebody's not drinking fast enough.
 
originally posted by SFJoe:
originally posted by Kay Bixler:
originally posted by Brad Kane:
. . . frankly, who the fuck cares about 10 year old Gamay other than Kay Bixler?
Click to expand...

I no longer care about 10 year old gamay.

Fifteen year old gamay, on the other hand, is a growing concern.
Click to expand...
Somebody's not drinking fast enough.
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Yes, yes, but then when they're gone I miss them.
 
originally posted by SFJoe:
originally posted by Oswaldo Costa:
I wonder if there's some enzyme that can be added to prevent gamay from pinoting; it's a varietudinal cheat when that happens, even though some consider that particular bait 'n switch desirable.
Click to expand...

Somebody's not drinking fast enough.
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Tell me about it...
 
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