Thousands cheer Beaujolais Nouveau
New wine marks its 60th birthday with a 'very good, very fruity' vintage being enjoyed all round the world
THOUSANDS of people cheered as the clock struck midnight in the centre of its production Beaujeu (Rhône) and the first of many thousands of barrels of Beaujolais Nouveau were breached to mark the wine's 60th birthday.
The town square was jammed with celebrating crowds as they greeted the first tasting of what is estimated to be 300,000 hectolitres - 30% of the annual Beaujolais wine production.
Although down from its peak of 500,000hl in the 1990s - when it started to lose its reputation (and sales) - the reduced quantity has been matched by improved quality and this year's new wine is said to be "very good, very fruity".
What started as a cheap as chips vin primeur to mark the end of a year's work in the vines has, since 1951, become the world's best-known wine. This year's vintage from the gamay grapes was also opened in shops, restaurants and caves all over the world but France is still the No1 consumer, with 60% of production being drunk here.
Elsewhere, the top markets are Japan, the United States and Germany - although the first barrel in Beaujeu was tapped open by a Chinese negociant who had just 80,000 bottles.
Japanese wine-lovers will get through seven million bottles this year and Dominique Capart, president of the producers and distributors group Inter Beaujolais, is heading there today to host tastings. He revealed his tasting notes to Nouvel Observateur saying: "For the third year in a row, thanks to good weather conditions, the vintage is of very good quality. We have black fruits on first tasting and sumptuous raspberry at the back of the mouth."
The production method, known as carbonic maceration, means that the fruity freshness of the grapes is retained and none of the heavier tannins from the skins. Producers had reacted to complaints about the quality of Beaujolais Nouveau by cutting back on production and concentrating on better grapes, but others noted that it was still "a festive wine" and should not be compared to the likes of the classic Beaujolais.
