A few years ago, I got an 8-bottle wine chiller on clearance somewhere. Actually, I wasn’t even sure I’d use it, but Josh thought it would be a great thing to have. So we got it. And my wine collection started growing. I’d collect a bottle or two (or three or four) from wherever I traveled or if something caught my eye. I had a lot more wine than 8 bottles. I was keeping it in the wine chiller, in the wine rack at the bottom of our baker’s rack, and in wine cases next to the baker rack.

One day Josh found some 40+ bottle wine chillers at a local store that sells new appliances for dirt cheap. We decided to upgrade to this one, which is a 48-bottle, with dual (top and bottom) climate control and slide out racks. I love it.

Here’s a close up of the control panel. Super cool because it’s a touch panel on the outside of the door, but it has a “lock” function so I don’t have to worry about little fingers playing with it and changing the temperature. This photo also lets you see that there’s interior lighting that can be turned on and off.

I set (some) of the wine collection on the floor while I was switching things around and here’s a few shots of that.

I’m a kind of random wine drinker. I don’t drink most reds, because it’s an instant headache for me, so I drink mostly white and or rose. I like everything from dessert wines to pinot grigio, some chardonnay, reisling, etc. I don’t like very dry or oaky wines at all, so you won’t see those in my collection. I’m not much of a wine snob, and yes, I will drink wine from a box but I draw the line at Boone’s Farm (gross!)

Next time, I’ll share some of my favorite wines that I’ve collected the past few years (and some of my favorite bottles because, yes, I will buy a wine if I love the bottle)

Pronounced “boof.”

You know:

Boof

In my world, around this time of year, there’s a limited window of alcoholic awesomeness, just as Awesome as Boof from Teen Wolf. This is my boeuf:

Beaujolais Nouveau – and the most recognizable brand thereof is Georges dr Boeuf – hence, “Boof.”

You can’t miss the Boof bottles. They’re gaudy, usually with reds and yellows and gold foil all over them, and they’re probably right at the front of the liquor store because the Boof is Thanksgiving wine.

Beaujolais Nouveau is a really light red beaujolais wine, and it’s produced and released in the same year. It’s good to drink from about Thanksgiving to Christmas, but really, by the third or fourth week of December it doesn’t taste too great.

I’ll be frank: in the eyes of real oenophiles, proclaiming my love for the Boof is about the same as saying I really enjoy Top Ramen noodles as haute cuisine. One wine critic called it the wine equivalent of eating cookie dough. (I looked it up on Wiki – it was Karen MacNeil). I happen to think eating cookie dough is AWESOME. So bring on the Boof.

If you’re not a fan of red wine, or you’re curious about what wines you might like, this is a really simple one to try. It doesn’t have a lot of complex flavors, and it doesn’t punch you in the taste buds like a Zinfandel or a big ol’ Cabernet. It’s also low in tannins so it won’t give you as much of a headache if you’re susceptible to things like that. I like it chilly, but am ok with room-temperature. It’s one of the smells and tastes I associate with Thanksgiving – like marjoram, sage, and turkey gravy.

Right now, I only have one bottle in the house, but I’ll get more for Thanksgiving at my inlaws’ house. The best thing about the Boof: it’s cheap. Now, Boof herself in the movie was not cheap. This Boof is about $10 a bottle, and it’s a bright, festive, delicious, friendly thing to add to the table. And, according to the Georges De Boeuf website, the 2009 bottles are some of the best they’ve made in years.

L’chaim!