Tuesday 23 august 2011 : Beaujolais News

Summer 2011: Tuesday 23 August

Nouvelles du Beaujolais

After a dull, wet July, the last few days have seen a return to a very warm summer.

As far as the forthcoming harvest is concerned, the start date has been declared as 24 August and we can only be optimistic and delighted to give you our thoughts about the 2011 harvest:

The maturity checks that we carry out every day are very promising. On page 4 you will find a few technical comments about this very important subject.

A few winegrowers in the early-ripening parts of the Beaujolais who have obtained a dispensation from INAO started their harvest yesterday morning. By tomorrow there will be groups of pickers in all the early-ripening areas. Our staff are continuing their maturity checks in the Pays des Pierres Dorées areas, where the harvest will begin on 30 August. Here, too, the vines are in excellent condition and the grapes are superb and very healthy, with a rapidly-rising sugar content.

For the last 10 days we have had very high temperatures between 32 and 35°. For the last 3 days, Météo France has placed us and four other departments on “Hot Summer” alert.

Yesterday afternoon we had 38°C in the shade beneath the vine leaves, while the thermometer rose to over 40°C at the foot of the vines and on the ground.

The hot weather has added considerable extra maturity that holds out the promise of high quality.

We are very confident about the quality of the 2011 vintage and will be pleased to share our optimism with you through our analysis and impressions concerning the quality of the 2011 vintage as the harvest and vinification progress: a vintage that already has the hallmarks of delicious excellence.

The General Meeting of winegrowers who deliver their grapes to the Vinification Site was held yesterday evening (approximately 90 people). Denis Lapalu and Emeric Gaucher gave them full information and instructions concerning the handling of deliveries day by day until 14 September.

As every year, the instructions highlighted the importance of vineyard sorting and strict compliance with the delivery schedule so that vinification can take place under the best possible conditions. To date, all the winegrowers have been contacted and their harvest date has been decided on following the grape sampling that has been carried out in their vineyards.

Beaujolaisement vôtre.
Georges DUBOEUF
Romanèche-Thorins, 23th august 2011


A few comments about the techniques that we use prior to the harvest.

When we check the vines to see how maturity is developing, we first of all examine the state of health of the vine and the grapes. After this, we calculate the average number of bunches per vine to get an estimate of the yield per hectare. We then look closely at the intensity of the bluish-purple colour of the grapes and their phenolic maturity (the maturity of the tannins which give structure on the palate and colour to the wines), which is a real indicator of the quality of the vintage.

As we walk through the rows of wines, we often stop to taste grapes to assess the sweetness and acidity of the juice. Through tasting, we begin to get an idea of the grapes’ potential for quality.

By breaking the grape up in our mouths, we can assess the intensity of the flesh. We then take what we have chewed and carefully examine the grape skins and the colour of the pips.

On the photo opposite, you can see a few pips in the palm of someone’s hand. At the onset of ripening, the pips are a very lemon-yellow colour; as the grapes mature, they become a very dark yellow, then, a few days later, turn brown, which is the sign of good phenolic maturity.

All these observations give us the information we need to assess and judge the state of maturity of the grapes. Another involves removing the grape from its stalk to observe the colour of its brush, which is first all green, then pink and finally bright red when the grape is fully ripe. You can see this on the photo opposite.

I look forward to passing on further comments, analyses and quality-related information concerning the practices we use to help us make decisions on the various aspects of grape-growing in order to be able to harvest each terroir at peak maturity.