NEW WINE // NOUVEAU RELEASE 2026 at middle brow – bungalow – Chicago, IL

nouveau.

and don't sweat! our 5th annual NOUVEAU party is nearly here! right on the halloween party's heels!

this year, we made a major call. after 3 years of playing with pinot noir and gamay and blaufranckish (grapes all related, if you didn't know), we decided to hit nouveau with something more akin to nouveau, as a concept. we talk each year about how french tweens roll barrels down the streets in beaujolais towns around-about the third week of november. w fresh, young wine ready to drink. carbonic gamay, yuuzh.

and so yeah! we shot for gamay! it grows well in northern michigan, actually! but it's a late ripener. and for this region, that means it's ready to pick, like, the first week of november. eek. that's a little TOO young and fresh. like the 50yo w the technically permissible 23yo woman. i mean: you do you! them do them! there's power in getting what you want! in all directions! but nobody *really* wants a 50yo (or 43yo) man! (jk jk jk sry gen x fans don't take yourselves so srsly. and nobody *really* wants a 2.5 week old wine. it's just grape liquor at that point.

so we used blau and pinot. in the past. in an attempt to get even a tiny pinch more time. and it helped! the wines were fun!! and juuuust ready in time.

but this year we said "wtf is this chaos theory we been gassing on?" let's use the first thing we ferment! the farm we've helped transition to organic! the pinot and merlot and cab, all crushed by a late frost. higher in acid. lower in yield. but beautiful, still. picked together. carbo'd together. dried-up together. a young wine, dry as a bone.

come give this and other new wines a shot on THURS, NOV 19. from 5—9p. we'll have a marquette-cider blend from las mujeres. and some other nouveau wines from around the country. as always. ... in addition to OYSTERS on the half, slices and char dogs. and a DJ set by the inimitable DEE-TROIT JAMES.