Friend of IT Anastasia Kolobrodova is
teaching English near Lyon, France, for the year, and she's anxiously
awaiting the arrival of the region's most feted few days -- the
celebration of 2008's Beaujolais Nouveau.
Common wisdom
holds that wine gets better with age. There is one wine, however, which
is made to be drunk young: Beaujolais Nouveau. While most of America
is planning the Thanksgiving feast, France is preparing to herald 2008's vintage of this fledgling wine.
Each year, when Beaujolais Nouveau barrels into the market on the third Thursday of November, people rush to be the first to taste the new vintage. This dash originated in 1970, when two Englishmen had a private competition to see who would be the first to deliver a batch of Beaujolais Nouveau to London. Since then, the "Beaujolais Race" has increased in size, scope, and grandeur, with the wine being delivered by private plane, parachute, and hot air balloon to locations all over the world. While competitive enjoyment of Beaujolais Nouveau was once exclusive to France and its in-the-know-neighbors, the race has since been extended to America, Japan, Russia, and Australia, with people of each nation counting down to midnight before pouring the first glass. It is a wine that transcends nationality.
Last year, my sampling of Beaujolais Nouveau took place in Kansas, where the liquor stores close at 11 p.m. So much for a Wednesday night countdown to midnight! But this year, my Beaujolais Nouveau experience will be much more authentic. Not only am I living in Lyon, the largest city in proximity to the Beaujolais region, but I am also working in Tarare, a town in the south of the region, which holds a large festival each year to celebrate the wine's arrival.
Common wisdom
holds that wine gets better with age. There is one wine, however, which
is made to be drunk young: Beaujolais Nouveau. While most of America
is planning the Thanksgiving feast, France is preparing to herald 2008's vintage of this fledgling wine.Each year, when Beaujolais Nouveau barrels into the market on the third Thursday of November, people rush to be the first to taste the new vintage. This dash originated in 1970, when two Englishmen had a private competition to see who would be the first to deliver a batch of Beaujolais Nouveau to London. Since then, the "Beaujolais Race" has increased in size, scope, and grandeur, with the wine being delivered by private plane, parachute, and hot air balloon to locations all over the world. While competitive enjoyment of Beaujolais Nouveau was once exclusive to France and its in-the-know-neighbors, the race has since been extended to America, Japan, Russia, and Australia, with people of each nation counting down to midnight before pouring the first glass. It is a wine that transcends nationality.
Last year, my sampling of Beaujolais Nouveau took place in Kansas, where the liquor stores close at 11 p.m. So much for a Wednesday night countdown to midnight! But this year, my Beaujolais Nouveau experience will be much more authentic. Not only am I living in Lyon, the largest city in proximity to the Beaujolais region, but I am also working in Tarare, a town in the south of the region, which holds a large festival each year to celebrate the wine's arrival.
Lyon's festivities begin November 19 at 9 p.m. with horses trotting
alongside the Saône to deliver 2008's Beaujolais Nouveau to Place
Antonin Poncet (next to Lyon's famous Place Bellecour). Shortly
thereafter, Place Antonin Poncet will be filled with live music,
fireworks, and, most likely, bottles of previous years' Beaujolais
being passed from hand-to-hand. At exactly midnight, I will join French
people, tourists, and drunks to get my free sample of 2008's Beaujolais
Nouveau. These festivities are known as Lyon's Beaujol'ympiades.
The celebrations continue on November 20 at les Halles de Lyon, a covered market in the third arrondissement famously frequented by celebrity chef Paul Bocuse, for their exhibit on the creation of Beaujolais Nouveau and a tasting of more varieties of the new wine. The hillside town of Tarare, population 10,600, also rolls out its annual Beaujolais Gourmand, a five-day festival to celebrate the new wine along with tastes of the region, complete with cave tours and a film. Concerts and ample tastings abound through the weekend region-wide.
Overall, the fête du Beaujolais promises to be a tasty experience, perhaps delicious enough to make up for the turkey deficiency I may experience the following Thursday.
For a complete list of Beaujolais events in Lyon, click here. To find American festivals dedicated to Beaujolais Nouveau, click here.
Photo via GilletDaniel's Flickr.
The celebrations continue on November 20 at les Halles de Lyon, a covered market in the third arrondissement famously frequented by celebrity chef Paul Bocuse, for their exhibit on the creation of Beaujolais Nouveau and a tasting of more varieties of the new wine. The hillside town of Tarare, population 10,600, also rolls out its annual Beaujolais Gourmand, a five-day festival to celebrate the new wine along with tastes of the region, complete with cave tours and a film. Concerts and ample tastings abound through the weekend region-wide.
Overall, the fête du Beaujolais promises to be a tasty experience, perhaps delicious enough to make up for the turkey deficiency I may experience the following Thursday.
For a complete list of Beaujolais events in Lyon, click here. To find American festivals dedicated to Beaujolais Nouveau, click here.
Photo via GilletDaniel's Flickr.
Subscribe to RSS feed
Subscribe to RSS feed
Been to Chicago lately? As you are aware, Chicago is well-known for its restaurants. You must check out the Progressive Dining Tour offered exclusively by Chicago Dine-Around. Guests are chauffeured around the city to enjoy Hors D'oeuvres served at the first restaurant, the Main course at a second restaurant, and Dessert at a third restaurant. This Progressive Dining Tour offers a unique, fun and exciting way to experience Chicago dining at its finest restaurants, interact with others, and see the city. This Progressive Dining Tour brings the culinary spirit to life! Visit www.chicagodinearound.com for more information on this unique thing to do in Chicago.