Beaujolais: The white of reds.

Rich, dense, complex, heady, expensive, pretentious.

Those words do not describe Beaujolais.

Light, fruity, simple, versatile, easy going, yummy.

Those do.

No idea what wine to bring? Beaujolais. Not sure what to drink with what you just cooked? Beaujolais.

It's the laid back, wishy-washy friend ("I have no strong opinion about anything") of wines.

If you asked it what music it likes, it would answer "oh I listen to everything".

It shops at the Gap, laughs along with the laugh-track of "Friends" and is a casual sports fan. He doesn't care who wins as long as everyone's having fun.

Beaujolais comes from France. Beaujolais, France, which is technically part of the Burgundy region. All Beaujolais is made from a single variety of grape: Gamay. (Note: French, and other European wines in general: They almost never tell you what grape they use on the label! But more on that another day).

There are a few basic tiers of Beaujolais and, as with all French wines, the quality increases as the location of it's origins becomes more specific.

Level 1: "Beaujolais" This is the cheapest, plain ol' Beaujolais...the grapes could have come from anywhere in the region. Perfectly yummy. Drink it young and drink it slightly cool.

Level 2: "Beaujolais-Villages" These wines are made in the Haut Beaujolais region, and just as the Haut Medoc is a more specific part of Medoc region  in Bordeaux, so too is this a more specific, northern, part of Beaujolais. The grapes are said to prefer it's hills and soil, and you aren't allowed to grow as many grapes per acre ("lower yield"). In theory these wines should be better than plain ol' Beaujolais, though in my experience you'd be hard pressed to tell them apart blindfolded. Again, drink young, drink cool.

Level 3: "Cru Beaujolais" Cru mean "growth" in French. In Bordeaux and Burgundy Cru refers to a specific vineyard, in Beaujolais it can also refer to a whole village. Even lower yields, a more full bodied wine. The thing is, you will not see the words "Beaujolais" or "Cru" on the label. What you will see is the name of the Cru. The most common to be found at your local LCBO will be Fleurie, Brouilly & Chiroubles...but there are several more. Drink these a bit warmer and go ahead and cellar them for a few years if you want.

 

And finally the other main kind of Beaujolais is Beaujolais Nouveau. You can always spot it because it has wacky labels:

  

See?

But the only time you can find it is in November. 

You see, Beaujolais Nouveau is really more an event than a drink. It's the first wine in France to be released...and it's a party day. On the 3rd Thursday of every November the wine is released to the world and then you can taste some of the youngest, freshest wine you've ever had. The bigger LCBOs in town will have it, and if you get there on the day Queens Quay and Summerhill will let you taste it for free. Bottles are only about $12-15. 

In fact you'd be hard pressed to spend more than $20 even on a Cru Beaujolais.

But Beaujolais is not a wine to be sniffed and swirled and talked about. It's a wine to crack open at the beginning of a night of many bottles. A wine to crack open with almost any food. 

Low in alcohol, low in tannins, refreshing acidity, light and fruity. It's the white wine of red wine.

A wine to drink.