Beaujolais Nouveau celebrates 60th anniversary

Beaujolais nouveau wine celebrated it 60th anniversary at midnight as more than 50 million bottles of the red wine made their way from the Beaujolais region of France around the globe. 

Reuters/Robert Pratta

The release of the primeur wine - a wine that is drunk the same year the grapes are harvested - on the third Thursday of November has become a major event in the wine calendar with a race to bring the first bottle of the wine to the French capital and launch parties in Tokyo and New York.

The wine takes its name from the Beaujolais region

Japan is the biggest consumer of Beaujolais nouveau with seven million bottles last year, up 17.8 per cent on the previous year. The US is the second largest market followed by Germany while China has become the latest country to discover its charm.

Some 40 per cent of the wine’s total production is destined for the export market.

Beaujolais nouveau was officially recognized in 1951 when a Beaujolais Nouveau Day was established.

The wine is released one month ahead of France’s more prestigious wines.