Paul Gregutt
Wine adviser

Think of the havoc that can be created when unregulated wine terms are tossed around. There are so many different words to choose from. Let’s consider just two:  nouveau (as in Beaujolais nouveau) and reserve (applied to thousands of wines worldwide). What do these words signify?
Nouveau is simply French for new, and in the case of Beaujolais, it refers to the first red wines to be released for drinking after the conclusion of the harvest.
Beaujolais wines (both nouveau and oldveau) are almost always made from the gamay grape, by a process called carbonic maceration, which keeps the grape clusters intact during fermentation. The resulting wines are quite yeasty and fruity.
In a cool, wet year such as 2007, the Beaujolais nouveau wines are likely to be even lighter than usual. None of this much matters, however, as Beaujolais nouveau is supposed to be consumed immediately, and will rarely last until the next vintage appears.
As a wine term, to the best of my knowledge, nouveau is only semi-regulated. In certain parts of France, nouveau wines (also called primeur wines) may not be released before a specific calendar date, which may be as early as the third Thursday in October. The nouveau Beaujolais must wait until the third Thursday in November, which conveniently places it just ahead of our Thanksgiving holiday.
Sensing a cash cow, many wineries around the world have joined the nouveau fray, with even less regulation. What difference does it make, you might wonder, since these wines are so young that their youth is truly their only calling card?
To be perfectly blunt, the nouveau hype brings with it prices that do not qualify as bargains under even the best of circumstances. These infant wines should really be sold from trucks and poured into portable containers at a cost of, say, a dollar or two a liter. Unfortunately, the laws in this country forbid such practices, which are quite common in Europe.
More importantly, the disappointment of drinking sub-par Beaujolais nouveau has almost certainly kept some people away from drinking the region’s more substantial wines. Right now, for example, you would be better served to purchase cru Beaujolais from either the 2005 or 2006 vintage.
Cru Beaujolais starts off with the advantage of being made with grapes from one of 10 villages given higher appellation status than the rest of the province. The best of these wines, from a good producer in a superior vintage, can age for up to a decade.
I recently enjoyed a pair of 2006 crus Beaujolais from Maison Joseph Drouhin. The first, a Moulin-à-Vent, was sturdy and sharp, with intense red fruits and a long finish. The second, a Brouilly, offered up scents of stone and flower, tongue-tickling acids, and bright raspberry fruit. My friend Jon Rimmerman calls Brouilly “a mouthful of rocks and wild flowers wrapped in silk” — as apt a description as I’ve ever read.
Both of these Drouhin wines capture the elusive mix of strength and refinement that is so quintessentially French. Their alcohol strength is a perfect 13 percent, which allows you plenty of pleasure without paying a penalty the next day. They are, of course, well-matched to turkey or any other fowl, but would also accommodate more difficult dishes such as quiche or a tomato tart. Suggested retail is $18-$20.

Perhaps the most-abused, completely unregulated wine term of them all — at least in this country — is reserve. In Europe, for wines to be labeled reserva or riserva, they must follow some fairly strict guidelines. But here there are absolutely none. American consumers are barraged with reserves — estate reserve, winermaker’s reserve, vintner’s reserve, private reserve and on and on. These terms may be applied to $6 wines or $60 wines; price is not a factor. When you are talking hundreds of thousands of cases of reserve, you have to wonder, what didn’t make the “cut”?
Amid such chaos, you must look to a brand that has already built a reputation for quality, then decide for yourself if their reserve wines justify the additional cost.
Two years ago, I wrote about the wines of Sonoma’s Blackstone winery. Though part of the immense Constellation Brands portfolio, Blackstone has staked out a claim as a reliable producer of flavorful, well-priced California merlot — not an easy challenge, given the dismal quality of most of the competition.
When my original article appeared, Blackstone’s winemaker was the talented Dennis Hill, and Hill was excited about a new lineup of reserve wines he was about to introduce. Last January, Hill departed the winery, and along with his departure came a radical revision of the winery’s reserve wine program.
Gary Sitton, who had spent the previous eight years with Ravenswood, was named winemaker. As he explained to me in a phone call, the confusing lineup of up to 30 wines, many of them reserves, has been pared down. Blackstone’s popular California bottlings will remain, but the various reserves are being consolidated into a new lineup of just four wines, marketed as Blackstone Sonoma Reserve. These include a chardonnay, a merlot, a pinot noir and a red blend named Rubric, all priced between $18 and $20 — a significant break from the older reserves, which were considerably more expensive.
Sitton did the final blends on the current releases, although Dennis Hill vinified both the 2005 and 2006 vintages. The Blackstone 2005 Sonoma Reserve Merlot was (apparently) so-named to capitalize on the winery’s excellent track record with merlot. Sitton’s reserve blend is a most unusual mix that includes cabernet sauvignon, petite sirah, syrah and — believe it or not — teroldego (a dark, fruity red grape native to Italy’s northeast).
I have nothing against creative blending, but the current federal regulations, that allow varietal labeling as long as the wine uses at least 75 percent of the named grape, seem in such instances to be a bit lax. But that’s a rant for another day.
Nonetheless, the merlot is a round, pleasantly fruity wine, although the Blackstone 2005 Sonoma Reserve Pinot Noir may be the better buy. Here again the blend is quite creative, with malbec, petite sirah and Dolcetto in the mix, but this wine is 90 percent pinot, and the other grapes have been carefully used to add color, weight and aromatic nuances. It’s not easy to find good pinot noirs, reserve or otherwise, priced under $20; this is a welcome addition to the ranks.

Pick of the Week
Tizzano Pignoletto Frizzante, $11. It’s not Prosecco, but this non-vintage Italian sparkling wine offers similar pleasures at an excellent price. The alcohol measures a sane 11.5 percent, and the wine is quite dry and food friendly. Frizzante is finished at a lower pressure than spumante, so it tickles the tongue rather than spanking it. With its nutty, crisp and yeasty flavors, this is tasty enough to drink as a holiday aperitif, but cheap enough to mix with whatever you like.

Paul Gregutt can be reached at wine@seattletimes.com.