It’s the third Thursday in November, so you know what that means? Beaujolais Nouveau is here! All over the world, lovers of the light, fruity French wine will celebrate the release of the season’s first wine at parties, festivals and various other events. While sales of the early-bottled, Gamay-based wine have plunged in France, emerging supporters of Beaujolais Nouveau are keeping worldwide business brisk.

What will I be doing to ring in the BN season? I’ll be drinking a wine from southern Italy – a Nero D’Avola, with rich, concentrated flavors. My review of Beaujolais Nouveau is simple – yuck. I can’t stand them. Yes, I have tried many BNs over the years and they are all more-or-less equally insipid to me. There’s nothing wrong with an easy-drinking, unpretentious wine, but the taste of these ones provides only a hint of wine – the equivalent of drinking a mass-produced light beer. Beaujolais Nouveau is the Coors Light of wine. It’s also a brilliant marketing ploy by the French government, which has created this artificial release date at the strike of midnight on the third Thursday in November. Quick, everybody consume!

If you need an excuse to party, a BN event is as good as any. But tonight, I’ll be raising my glass to the Sicilians.