2009 Georges Dubeouf Fleurie

Yet another 2009 Cru Beaujolais for under $15 - and not to sound like a broke record, but yet another quality wine for less money than many Nouveaus.

This smells almost exactly like strawberry Starburst.

Cola and root beer on the attack, with the strawberry Starburst on the mid palate, and some brown spices coming through towards the back. All that said, this wine is certainly not sweet - quite nicely balanced, plenty of acid and spice to work with the fruit.

I guess it's stuck in my head, but yeah...mild strawberry Starburst and a bit of cinnamon on the finish.

Thoroughly enjoyable - tasty, balanced, and priced right.

Score: 88

2009 Georges Dubeouf Moulin-A-Vent

This was about thirteen bones which makes this Cru cheaper than many of the Nouveaus...how do you suppose it compares?

While there's definitely some dark fruit in there, I get a very distinct bubble gum component on the nose.

You know, more of that bubble gum, along with some super ripe strawberry and some cola notes - a solid acidic background almost reminds me of that sour cola straws you sometimes see, cola gummy candy dipped it sour sugar granules.

That sour cola thing lingers on the finish.

All the sour talk I'm sure suggests this is a bit harsh and unbalanced - and I can't really say it's not, but it's pretty good. For $12, this is certainly acceptable and light years ahead of the more recent Nouveau.

Score: 87

2009 Georges DuBoeuf Moulin a Vent Domaine de La Tour Bief

I seem to have misplaced a real photo of this label.... 2009, if you believe the experts, was an excellent year for Beaujolais. Having just tried some 2010 Nouveaus, I figured I should give some love to a Cru. This bottle goes for $14, which puts right on par with the Nouveaus...

Overripe strawberry, plum, mild chocolate, and even milder eucalyptus, but not at all in a harsh way.

A bit tart, a lot of dirt, some cherry, tobacco, a little bit of oak - a big mouthfeel, but everything nicely put together. It's all quite nicely integrated, I'm digging it. As it gets more, it becomes more interesting - a back palate of root beer and vanilla...

Some of that raspberry fruit and leaf thing linger on the finish, with a bit of a chocolatey thing as well.

A solid wine at a fine value...I feel pretty lousy I didn't snag more of these Crus and focus on them instead of the Nouveaus. I may snag some more this week.

Score: 90

2008 Georges Dubeouf Morgon Jean Descombes

This wine goes for about $14. Morgon is a region within Beaujolais, so this is the same area that gives the world the Nouveau swill in November - here's a better offering.

A bit of raspberry tea on the nose.

On the initial attack I get a little bit of cola but it quickly morphs into strawberry - sort of a strawberry jam thing, with some stems, leaves, and extra seeds thrown in. Perhaps a splash of blueberry and tart cherry as well. Excellent acid, slighly overbrewed tea like tannins, on balance dry, no discernible wood - an easy drinking wine that still has a backbone.

Raspberry comes out on the finish.

I dig it and would recommend it. In a few days it will be the third Thursday of November, walk past the Nouveau and snag a bottle of this instead (it's basically the same price). You won't regret it.

Score: 87

2008 Georges Duboeuf Brouilly Beaujolais

We tried this one at Beaujolais tasting a few months back and this was my favorite on the table. It retails for about $13.

Cherry pie filling on the nose - rich, syrupy, sugarfied cherry.

More of that cherry pie filling on the palate as well, with a dash of cola and raspberry thrown in as well. A bit short of acid (or perhaps a bit too sweet), but there are a surprising amount of mouth drying tannins, so much so I can't help but get an oversteeped white tea sort of thing.

A carob sort of quality comes through on the finish, raspberry as well, with a bit of a black tea thing as well.

No arguments at all. For those who only know Nouveau and other sub-$10 Beaujolais wine, this would be a good one to try - drop a few bucks more and see what the region can actually offer.

Score: 87

2005 Georges Duboeuf Morgon

This was in the $10 range at Costco and I figured it would be a good thing to grab for a light sort of evening.

I'm going to call maraschino cherry on the nose.

Very smooth and fairly simple – cherry for the most part, a bit of spice – nutmeg? - no oak, mild acid, and very slight tannins. There's a slight mustiness in the glass – if I had to guess I'd say there's some cork taint here but it's very mild.

Just the slightest bit of spice and cherry on the finish.

I'm definitely grabbing another bottle of this to see if the mustiness is a bottle flaw or just the way the wine is – even if it's right, this is a perfectly reasonable quality Beaujolais at the price - if you don't care for the region, forget this one, but if you're open to it, this is worth a shot.

2005 Louis Jadot Beaujolais Villages

Strawberries on the nose.

Tart strawberries, raspberry, and earth on the palate.

No finish except for a medium drying tannic effect.

This is a cheap, simple wine and it doesn’t pretend to be anything else. Tart, drinkable, acidic, fruity - a crowd pleaser. Drink with anything simple - burgers, pizza, whatever.
Definitely a step up from Jadot’s Nouveau.