All About Beaujolais Nouveau

All About Fall’s Most Coveted French Wine: Beaujolais Nouveau

Calling all wine connoisseurs: the third Thursday of November is your moment! The yearly release of the much-desired Beaujolais Nouveau red wine is the closest the French get to celebrating Thanksgiving—it’s such an event that it’s been adopted into the American tradition, as well. Here’s everything you need to know about the history, customs, and flavors of this treasured vin de primeur. 

The origin of Beaujolais Nouveau

The purple Gamay grapes used to make this red wine hail from the Beaujolais region of France, just south of Burgundy. They’re hand-picked in September and fermented for only a few weeks before being bottled and sent around the globe, hence why Beaujolais Nouveau is a vin de primeur aka “early wine,” a wine sold in its harvest year. Best served chilled, it has a light-bodied, fruity flavor profile thanks to its process of carbonic maceration, wherein the grapes are fermented whole using carbon dioxide.

The Wine’s Storied History

The tradition began in the 1800s when vintners toasted the end of their season with younger wines from the harvest. Restaurateurs, bar owners, and locals caught on, and the popularity of the wine spread so much that, by the 1950s, the Union Interprofessionnelle des Vins du Beaujolais had to create a standard release date for the vintage, now known in France as “Beaujolais Nouveau Day” when le nouveau est arrivé (“the new has arrived!”). From the 1960s to the 1990s, there were public races throughout Europe, North America, and eventually Asia to secure as many bottles as possible. The wine is now available in most cities across the U.S. and the world, and often sells out very quickly—it appeals to the masses because it’s affordable, palatable, and brightly-packaged. 

Beloved Beaujolais Nouveau Traditions

The drink remains revered in France, foremost the Beaujolais region, which dedicates over 100 celebrations to its release, the most famous of which is a five-day-long festival in Beaujeu wherein attendees enjoy barrel-rolling and tapping, live music, parades, fireworks, markets, dancing, and much more. On November’s third Thursday at exactly 12:01 am (and not one minute sooner, by law), revelers throughout the country enjoy special tastings, restaurant pairing menus, and late-night sales. In 2022, 16.5 million bottles of Beaujolais Nouveau left its growing region, with 60% of them distributed to France alone. 

In America, because of the wine release’s proximity to Thanksgiving, the vintage has been adopted as a staple item on the holiday table. American winemakers are even getting in on the trend, creating their own versions of nouveau-style wines. But the most widely-available Beaujolais Nouveau remains those from France’s Georges Duboeuf, known as e roi du Beaujolais or pape du Beaujolais (the “king” or the “pope” of Beaujolais) and credited with popularizing the wine and bringing it to America.

If you’d like a taste of the Beaujolais Nouveau Day festivities on this side of the Atlantic, celebrate with a bottle at one of our favorite French restaurants in NYC or Montclair, NJ. Santé! 

Photo: 2023 Beaujolais Nouveau©️ Lisa Aurigemma