Mere weeks after the grapes were picked, France’s freshest and fruitiest wine, the Beaujolais Nouveau, is almost ready. In anticipation of its release, producer Laurent Metge-Toppin shares his knowledge about this once maligned tipple.
Celebrations take place on the third Thursday of November (November 21) each year when the Beaujolais Nouveau is made available in France and around the world at one minute after midnight.
Unlike most red wines, it is drunk almost immediately after harvesting, and reputed for its light, fruity flavour.
Mr Metge-Toppin, who exports 80% of his Beaujolais-Villages to the UK and has had his wine served on the Royal Yacht and for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee spoke to The Connexion about France’s most famous young wine.
What is Beaujolais Nouveau?
"Beaujolais Nouveau is a young, fresh, fruity wine that's low in tannins, made from gamay noir grapes produced in the Beaujolais region, in the Rhône department of France," said Mr Metge-Toppin.
"It is a dry, fruity red that does not age and is usually drunk within a few months of being made.
"The price is lower than that of village-level Burgundy wines, making it an ideal ‘bistro wine’ for restaurants or to drink at home.
"The vineyards are arranged by hierarchy with those marked Beaujolais-Villages’ offering more complex flavours. Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau is considered to be a fuller-bodied alternative to Nouveau.
"There are four red wine categories: Beaujolais Nouveau, Beaujolais, Beaujolais-Villages, and Beaujolais Cru."
It is different other wines
"Pinot Noir and Beaujolais are both light-bodied red wines, but they are not the same thing.
"Pinot Noir is its own grape while most Beaujolais reds are made with the Gamay grape.
"Some Beaujolais wines age longer than others and have similar flavours to many Pinot Noirs. It also tends to have a lower alcohol percentage: Beaujolais is usually between 12% and 13% whereas red wine can be as high as 14%-16%."
It is fashionable again
"Beaujolais was very popular 25 years ago, between 1975 and 2000 with people racing to buy it off the ferry in anticipation of November 21, but it lost its appeal when the quality of the wine went down, and prices went up so people lost interest [over 1.1 million cases of Beaujolais wine had to be destroyed or distilled due to poor sales in 2001].
"We used to have 22,000 hectares of vineyards, now there are only 11,000. The new trend now is for sparkling white wine. However, thanks to its variation it’s making a comeback as well as Beaujolais Villages white and rosé.
"These vintages are in high demand by connoisseurs, looking for an aromatic wine with complexity and structure."
The Beaujolais region is the key
"Often compared to Tuscany, the geology of Beaujolais is complex with more than 300 varieties of soil that make up the territory, formed over 500-million years ago, in multiple environments: volcanic archipelago, mountainous massif, desert plain, coastal and marine environments, and shallow sea.
"The Beaujolais region was awarded a UNESCO Global Geopark label in 2018, which was renewed in 2022 for a further four years.
"Regarding sustainability, Terra Vitis was formed in Beaujolais over 25 years ago by a shared desire to make wine that respects people, the environment and the terroir.
"This led to the only national certification specific to the wine sector. The region now has some 60 Terra Vitis-certified winegrowers."
The region is known for wine tourism
"Oenotourism, or wine tourism, is becoming more popular with tourists taking road trips to wineries and chateaux to discover, taste, consume and buy wine at the source of production.
"For those driving, Beaujolais has its own 140km wine route taking visitors through the Beaujolais Villages production area.
"Alternatively, you can take boat trips on the Sâone River.
"Doors are open to visitors all year round and there are many events and festivals to get to know the region’s winegrowers including; Fête des Crus du Beaujolais in the spring, gastronomy events, Nuits du Vin in summer and Les Sarmentelles in November."
A strategic location
"Beaujolais is 30 minutes by car from Lyon with many people buying houses in Beaujolais.
"The south is becoming very trendy thanks to its famous golden stone that gives the villages a charming style. A lot of homeowners commute from Beaujolais to Lyon for work. It is also a couple of hours drive east of the Massif Central and The Alps and three hours from the coast of Marseille."
Growing diversification
"Beaujolais wines are very diversified. It can be vinified in concrete or stainless-steel vats and aged in oak barrels.
"The three classifications are Beaujolais AOC, Beaujolais Village AOC and the Beaujolais Crus which make up 12 distinct Beaujolais Appellations.
"Over the last few years Beaujolais, particularly its Cru, is producing richer, riper and more concentrated wines.
"New or used oak barrels are increasingly used to induce micro-oxygenation, giving it the aromatic properties of oak.
"Winemakers are exploring new methods such as egg-shaped or truncated concrete tanks, earthenware and stoneware jars to vary the expression of the wines from a single grape variety.
Surprisingly vintage
"Beaujolais ages very well because of its complexity. It’s delicious on release but the best Beaujolais, especially from the top Beaujolais Crus, age beautifully and should be a part of any reasonably priced cellar.
Some of the higher quality Crus are capable of ageing for up to 10 years."
Younger generation
"It’s making a comeback with the younger generation 25 to 30 years old because people drink in a more serious way today, more thoughtfully, considerate, not as a means to get drunk but to savour the wine.
"You can chill a bottle of Beaujolais Nouveau and treat it like a rose at a BBQ in summer.
"The younger generation are also more health conscious looking for lower alcohol content. Gen-Zers are drinking 20% less alcohol overall than their Millennial predecessors."
Food pairings
"You can drink it with lots of things. I recommend pairing it with Saucisson au Gène [the ‘gene’ is what remains of the grape after fermentation and pressing], Andouillette and tripe.
"Or with Lyonnais Sausage, Rosette de Lyon Saucisson de Lyon, or Chitterlings.
"Also try it with quenelles, or with cheese such as Crottin de Chavignol, a creamy goat cheese from the Loire Valley or Cervelle de Canut."
Laurent Metge-Toppin owns the Château de l’Hestrange, in Blacé near Lyon, which produces Beaujolais and Bourgogne wines.
