| Red wines are simply beautiful. Striking shades of | | | | Another wine mystery, which needs to be |
| ruby glimmering through the glass delight those | | | | unveiled, is that of the Beaujolais Nouveau. What |
| who enjoy it. France has traditionally been the top | | | | is it and why is it so popular in mid-November? |
| producer of red wines in the world. Two of the | | | | Basically, Beaujolais Nouveau is a lightweight, |
| absolutely most versatile of reds to have | | | | young wine, which is usually fermented for just a |
| emerged from there are Merlot and Cabernet. | | | | few weeks. It hails from the Beaujolais region of |
| Both these wines have enough body to be | | | | France and goes on sale each year on the third |
| enjoyed with most hearty meals such as beef, | | | | Thursday of November. It has a limited shelf-life |
| stews, poultry, pork and rich seafood, such as | | | | and is definitely not the wine you want to put |
| lobster. Yet there are some big differences | | | | away in the back of your wine cellar to let it age. |
| between them. | | | | In fact it is best drunk fresh. In the worst years |
| Merlots are well known for their fruitiness. Often | | | | of production, Beaujolais Nouveau is only good for |
| when you hear Merlots described the first words | | | | its first couple of months. In good years, it may |
| are the type of fruit taste it has, followed by a | | | | be drunk up to a year later. |
| variety of other flavors and aromas found in the | | | | In the early twentieth century, Beaujolais was not |
| wine such as oak, earthy, chocolate, smoky and a | | | | allowed to be sold before mid-December, but the |
| variety of other adjectives. Merlots offer a | | | | rules were relaxed to mid-November in 1951. The |
| variety of types from a light fruity wine that is | | | | immaturity of this wine often leads to unfavorable |
| easy to drink to a much more complex, tannic | | | | ratings, however it should be noted that Beaujolais |
| wine that can easily be paired with beef. | | | | Nouveau is very different from other French reds |
| Cabernet tends to be discussed in more complex | | | | and should not be judged on the same standards. |
| terms than Merlots. In general Cabernet tends to | | | | It has practically no tannins and should be served |
| be a little more tannic, with less sugar than Merlot. | | | | chilled. Beaujolais Nouveau has benefited from |
| Merlot grapes actually ripen earlier than Cabernet, | | | | marketing in a way that no other wine has. |
| hence the mildness of Merlot wine compared with | | | | France offers a wide variety of red wines from |
| Cabernet. Also, Cabernet is usually aged longer | | | | the different regions of the country. Each wine |
| than Merlot before serving hence the more | | | | has its own special aspects just waiting to be |
| sophisticated tastes. While there are numerous | | | | discovered. Before dismissing any of them, do a |
| similarities between the two types of wine, from | | | | little research to find a highly recommended one, |
| their aromas and flavors to their food pairings, | | | | pair it with a suggested food and set aside all |
| Cabernet tends to be the more mature of the | | | | preconceptions. Who knows - you might just |
| two, in age, history and taste. | | | | surprise yourself! |