The Beaujolais Challenge - Regnie

Look for yourself - do a search using "Regnie" as the keyword, try "Regnie Wine," "Beaujolais Regnie," whatever you like. There isn't much out there that I could find. Here is what we know: Regnie is the most recent addition to the group of Cru Beaujolais appellations, gaining its status in 1988. Regnie is sandwiched between Morgon to the north and Brouilly and Cote de Brouilly to the south, and its vineyards are high in the hills surrounding Regnie-Durette church. I am guessing that this is a lovely spot, and BrooklynLady is already lobbying me to go there with her one day.

Why is there so little to read about Regnie, or Chiroubles, or Saint Amour for that matter? Are Morgon, Julienas, Fleurie, and Moulin-a-Vent so much more impressive? Is there a place where people know and love little Regnie? I bet there is, and probably not just the cafes of nearby Macon, or Paris. Not sure where else, but there is now an apartment in Brooklyn where people love Regnie.

BrooklynLady and I made a yummy weekend lunch of poached eggs served on top of arugula and cherry tomatoes (thanks to Maxwell's farm) with a little finely grated Parmesan and some crusty bread. I was thinking of a Gruner Veltliner, as its lithe body and peppery flavors might go nicely with the arugula. But then I remembered that it was almost Sunday and I had not yet opened the Cru Beaujolais of the week. Oh, the things we do in the name of blogging, eh?

2006 Georges Descombes Regnie, $20 (Chambers Street Wines).
Transparent violet purple color with immediate fresh sweet raspberry smells. There are also interesting tomato leaf and potting soil smells darting in and out, along with some dark flowers and a dried banana smell that I am starting to recognize as classic Beaujolais, probably a result of carbonic maceration. This wine is all fresh fruit on the palate, and a little spicy. It's light textured and elegant, the most pretty of the Beaujolais wines I have tasted in recent memory.

Georges Descombes makes wine without sulphur or filtration and is known for Morgon. This is the first year that he bottled a Regnie and it is released earlier than the Morgon, made for early drinking.

The wine went perfectly with our lunch. As it warmed a bit from cellar temperature the floral smells became more prominent and the juiciness of the raspberries was more pronounced. There was also a fresh grapey-ness, for lack of a better word. I will confess, we drank the whole bottle and it was barely 1:30 on a Saturday afternoon. Just impossible to stop, the wine was so pretty, and it was beautiful outside on the deck. Thank goodness the wine was not more than 13% alcohol, although we did need a nap before dinner.

Okay, so what about the $20 price tag? In my view this is easily worth $20 - it is beautiful and serious wine, the finest Beaujolais I've had in this exercise without question. Better than the Desvignes Morgon Javernieres? The Tete Julienas Cuvee Prestige? I didn't taste them head-to-head so it's hard to say, and clearly we will need to have a Big Blind Beaujolais Tasting...