November 15, 2018, is already known to Beaujolais Nouveau-lovers as the day when French law will allow the release of the “first wine of the harvest” of this style of wine. Now, Les Vins Georges Duboeuf, the family-owned winery that popularized Beaujolais Nouveau across the globe, hopes to attract rosé fans as well.
Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau Rosé 2018 will also launch on Nov. 15. The wine is made from gamay grown in vineyards in the Beaujolais AOC region, the same growers who provide grapes for the brand’s Beaujolais Nouveau.
The skin of the gamay grape is nearly black, while the flesh and juice are white, so these same grapes can produce either a red or a rosé wine, depending on the vinification process. Like the Beaujolais Nouveau, the rosé version is made by Duboeuf’s Chief Winemakers, Emeric Gaucher and Denis Lapalu, at the winery in Romanèche-Thorins. They looked for grapes with a slightly high acidity to retain a fresh mouthfeel in the rosé, the company says.
“Rosé’s lighter, fresh profile is similar to the description of Beaujolais Nouveau, so it’s no surprise that the Gamay grape would be a natural to produce high quality Rosé,” says Dennis Kreps, co-owner of Quintessential Wines (the exclusive U.S. importer of Les Vins Georges Duboeuf). “The exploding popularity of Rosés from France and other countries has gone well beyond ‘summer sipping’ into year-round enjoyment. Given that Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau Rosé will be released at the same time as the classic Beaujolais Nouveau, it comes to market in time for holiday gift-giving and entertaining.”
Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau Rosé 2018 will feature the same abstract oil painting on its label as the Beaujolais Nouveau 2018. It was created by Nashville, TN native Chloe Meyer, an artist who won the honor this past May after entering the annual Georges Duboeuf competition to find original artwork for the Beaujolais Nouveau label via voting by consumers on social media.
This new Rosé will be available nationwide on Thursday, November 15, 2018 with a suggested retail price of $13.99 per 750-ml. bottle.
