Beaujolais Nouveau: Everything to Know About the Wine Festival

Beaujolais Nouveau is a young red wine made from Gamay grapes sourced from the French region of Beaujolais (Burgundy). It is also a holiday of the same name, celebrated annually all over the world.

The festival commemorates the end of a year of hard work, during which winemakers can experience many unpleasant things, such as droughts, frost, and pest infestation, among other problems. But since the season has passed and ideally, all the difficulties are over, there is new wine on the table. It’s worth a drink of it.

Beaujolais Nouveau goes on sale immediately after fermentation, six weeks after harvest. According to French law, young wine is officially presented on the third Thursday of November (this year the date was Nov. 18).

History of the holiday

The tradition of celebrating Beaujolais Nouveau originated in the 19th century in the Beaujolais region; at the time, the festival had a purely commercial basis. Gamay grapes ripen faster than others, but the shelf life of its wine is short. To sell the product as quickly as possible, manufacturers came up with a holiday with feasts and festivities.

The celebration unexpectedly spread after the First World War. In France, as in the rest of Catholic Europe (including the Czech Republic), many drink wine on Nov. 11, on St. Martin’s Day. However, on Nov. 11, 1918, an armistice was signed in the First World War, and this date became a day of remembrance for the fallen.

Large-scale celebrations on such a gloomy date were considered inappropriate. As a result, people then celebrated the opening of the first bottles of young wine on Beaujolais Nouveau Day. 

 

How does it taste

Some experts do not even consider Beaujolais nouveau a wine, since it has no expressive structure and is unsuitable for aging. Others admire its youthfulness, aroma and charm. The wine is completely devoid of tannins, contains about 11% alcohol, tastes particularly fruity and is easy to drink. The wine is purple-red, unsweetened.

An amazing property of Beaujolais Nouveau is its incredible range. It goes perfectly with almost any dish, aside from very heavy meat dishes with rich sauces.

Which brand is worth trying?

Prague shop LÁHVE recommends a Beaujolais Nouveau from the French winery Domaine de la Combe Morguière, which is located in the historical region of Beaujolais. It is the perfect choice for exploring the tradition.

This wine won the prestigious international competition Gilbert & Gaillard in 2021. Professional tasters praised it for:

• unusual light red color with purple highlights;
• exquisite aroma of strawberries, raspberries and violets;
• pronounced fruity taste — full of juice, life and freshness.
• a velvety taste and rich aftertaste;
• a wide range of gastronomic pairings, especially with French delicacies, cheeses, baked duck and chicken.

 

Available bottled are limited in stock. Sales at LÁHVE store will start on November 18th. As the French connoisseurs of tradition would say: “Le Beaujolais est arrivé!” (“Beaujolais has arrived!”)

Store address : Českomoravská 2517/13, Praha, Libeň (see on the map)

Opening hours :

• Monday — Thursday from 11:00 to 19:00
• Friday from 11:00 to 20:00
• Saturday from 10:00 to 14:00
• Sunday — closed