Originally I had planned on tasting and comparing the 2007 Beaujolais Nouveau from three or four different producers. Somehow I thought it wouldn't be terribly difficult to find at least two bottles other than the Laboure-Roi that I already had.

I was wrong.

I guess it should come as no surprise that the Georges Duboeuf was everywhere. However, I'm not a fan of Duboeuf wines and I just wasn't going to buy the Duboeuf B.N. At one shop, however, alongside the Duboeuf display were crates of Mionetto Novello 2007. Basically you could think of it as Italy's answer to B.N. The clerk I was speaking with reccomended it so I figured I'd give it a try. I thought it would be interesting to put France and Italy head-to-head and compare these two light, young reds from different regions. And the wines are indeed quite different.

We started with the Laboure-Roi Beaujolais Nouveau. The wine is a shade of pinkish-red - almost like a ruby. It had notes of blueberry on the nose. The scent was lightly floral with a bit of astringency. It was no question that this wine is just out of the barrel. The wine tasted of strawberries and unripe blackberries. It had a tart, unripe berry bite with a dry, puckery finish. It tasted like Beaujolais Nouveau. No real surprises, but not a disappointment either.

Then we opened the Monetto Novello, which is made from Merlot and Corvina grapes. Like Beaujolais Nouveau it is put through a quick fermentation and rushed to market in mid-November The wine is slightly darker in color, but just slightly. The nose was a bit earthier with hints of red, ripe cherry and canned pineapple. The Novello didn't have the astringency of the Beaujolais Nouveau. Cherry dominates the palate with a fruitiness that bridges on sweetness, but with enough acidity to balance it out. This wine had a much smoother finish than the Beaujolais Nouveau and both my husband and I declared it the winner of the incredibly unofficial Young Red Thanksgiving Wine Competition.

The Novello was a more satisfying wine, hands-down. People often like to consider Beaujolais Nouveau a good introductory wine, but I think that the Novello's fresh appeal would be far more accessible to someone who isn't used to drinking reds. If you're still looking for Thanksgiving wine, you might want to consider a bottle of the Novello this year. I think you'll find it to be a pleasant change.