One of my major professional conferences is always the weekend of Beaujolais Release. It was off by one weekend last year, and this year I skipped it because it was in New York and I decided to put those funds toward a new laptop instead. I’m already close to getting my CEU’s for this biennium. Yes, it would have been fun to eat and Tweet my way through NYC, but wow, it was going to cost a lot just for the hotel! Having second thoughts now.
So this past Thursday brought me to JavaMonkey for the fifth annual Beaujolais Nouveau release party and Beaujolais tasting. All the wines were from the Georges DuBoeuf winery.
The 2009 Nouveau got mixed reviews. Hubby said it was better than last year’s. I found it to be pomegranate-scented cranberry juice with wimpy tannins. Yes, I just said wimpy tannins; that means that there just wasn’t much to it for me. Others said raspberry.
I skipped the Beaujolais-Villages and Chardonnay and went to the 2008 Brouilly Flower Label, which is a Cru, or French for “better stuff.” The Brouilly had tart cherry notes and some bitterness on the back of my tongue.
Next was the 2007 Juliénas “La TrinQuée.” According to the DuBoeuf web site, which has amusing tidbits about the names as well as the wines themselves, this is a favorite among writers and should also be “served with early spring barbecues.” I got a little smoke on the nose as well as the palate, but it dissipated as the wine opened. It was again dark berry with some eucalyptus (but in a good way).
The last one I tried was the Domaine de la Tour du Bief Moulin-a-Vent. That was a cruel one to put last on the list — who can say all that after five glasses? — but funny to hear everyone stumble their way through the name. This one was the closest to the reds I normally like with some body and nice cherry notes. I didn’t get to finish it, however, because…
…disaster struck! We were sitting with some friends at one of the high top tables near the windows in the wine bar, and one of them got up to take a client phone call (lawyer). He bumped the table, and the Beaujolais took the opportunity to escape. The wine in the three glasses on the other side of the table curled up and out like so many small ruby waves and crashed all over Hubby and one of our other friends, but mostly him. We ended up leaving early because although the wine wasn’t at cellar temperature, it was a lot of cold liquid on a chilly night in some very uncomfortable places. Let’s just say he didn’t appreciate my “Is that Beaujolais in your pants, or did someone try to murder you?” comment. I do have to give Jess and the JavaMonkey staff credit for being very apologetic and accommodating even though it wasn’t their fault.
Yeah, maybe I should’ve gone to New York.
This is why I don't practice law – too many wine-related accidents.