2016 Les Bobos Gamay

This wine is a 2016 French Gamay from the Beaujolais region of Southern Burgundy that I got in my order from Winc this month. Gamay is a similar grape varietal to Pinot Noir, but quality Gamay generally comes at a lower price point than an equal quality Pinot Noir. Gamays tend to be fruit forward, with floral and earthy notes, and minimal oakiness.

Gamay can also come from Switzerland, Canada, New Zealand, Italy, and a few other countries, but the vast majority of it comes from the Beaujolais region of France. Beaujolais wines are generally better when they are younger, they aren't meant to be aged, and it's one of the most unpretentious wine regions of France. The highest quality Beaujolais wine is Cru Beaujolais, but it is still incredibly affordable at $20-$25 per bottle; and Beaujolais Villages can be found for $10-$12 per bottle. It truly is one of the most affordable French wine regions.

True to the Gamay varietal, this wine had strong scents of florals and red fruits. When I sniffed it I picked up violet, cherry, raspberry, fig and just a hint of pepper. Even though they were relatively light scents, they also had a deep complexity about them that I wasn't expecting. When I tasted the wine it matched up well to the scents. I got the same fruit notes at first, with a hint of violet and lavender floral notes to mellow out the fruit. On the back end, I tasted notes of vanilla and leather along with the pepper, which was somewhat unexpected. This was a relatively dry wine, it left my mouth with that puckered feeling that you get from dry wines.

Gamay, like Pinot Noir, tends to pair well with a large variety of food. I drank this bottle with a simple margherita pizza and it was delicious. It would also go great with chicken parmesan, salmon, or a cheese and charcuterie plate. There's no wrong food to pair a Gamay with.