It’s a race, on the third Thursday of November, millions of cases of Beaujolais Nouveau are shipped for distribution to Paris and around the world. Thats almost half the production of the region for the entire year. What started out as a local phenomonem of wine growers filling pitchers direct from the barrels with a wine made fast to drink while the better Beaujolais was taking a more leisurely course, was regulated first in 1938, and then again in 1951 when the local custom hit Paris, and finally in 1985 when the current date was set.

Beaujolais Nouveau is a triumph of marketing and promotion, mostly due to the efforts of Georges Dubeuf, the largest negociant in the region. Tasting wise, some people would have you believe that Beaujolais Nouveau is as about as close to white wine as a red wine can get. Due to the way it is made – the must is pressed after only three days – the astringent tannins normally found in red wines aren’t there, leaving an easy to drink, fruity wine. This, and the fact that it tastes best when chilled, makes for a festive wine to be gulped rather than sipped, enjoyed in high spirits rather than critiqued. Hence the ritual we undergo on the third Thursday of November.. where almost everyone can be found at some point, on a stool, in a bar, tasting this years crop.

It hasn’t the pedigree of some classic wines, but it’s fun, it’s a ritual and I’m happy to play my part.

And so, last night, under the guise of a ‘vernissage’ Anne & I plopped ourselves down to do a little tasting of the Beaujolais Nouveau at Vintage… and the two I tasted were not too bad at all.