Rotwein_Beaujolais-Villages_Celliers_de_Beauregard

A ''nouveau'' ( ), or ''vin (de) primeur'', is a

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...

which may be sold in the same year in which it was harvested. The most widely exported ''nouveau'' wine is

French wine French wine is produced throughout all of France in quantities between 50 and 60 million hectolitres per year, or 7–8 billion bottles. France is one of the largest wine producers in the world. French wine traces its history to th ...

Beaujolais ''nouveau'' which is released on the third Thursday of November, often only a few weeks after the grapes were harvested. ''Nouveau'' wines are often light bodied and paler in color due to the very short (or nonexistent) maceration period followed by a similarly short

fermentation Fermentation is a type of anaerobic metabolism which harnesses the redox potential of the reactants to make adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and organic end products. Organic molecules, such as glucose or other sugars, are catabolized and reduce ...

. The wines will most likely not be exposed to any

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

or extended aging prior to being released to the market. ''Nouveau'' wines are characteristically fruity and may have some

residual sugar The subjective sweetness of a wine is determined by the interaction of several factors, including the amount of sugar in the wine, but also the relative levels of alcohol, acids, and tannins. Sugars and alcohol enhance a wine's sweetness, while ...

. They are at their peak drinkability within the first year. As of 2005, there were 55 AOCs in France permitted to make ''nouveau'' wines.T. Stevenson ''"The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia"'' pg 56 Dorling Kindersley 2005 ''Vins de primeur'' should not be confused with the practice of buying and selling wines ''

en primeur ''En primeur'' or "wine futures", is a method of purchasing wines early while the wine (a vintage) is still in the barrel. This offers the customer the opportunity to invest before the wine is bottled. Payment is made at an early stage, a yea ...

''. In

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, ''nouveau'' wine is called "''

Vino Novello Vino novello, Italian for 'nouveau, new wine', is a light, fruity, red wine produced throughout Italy. Novello is similar to its French cousin Beaujolais nouveau in taste, body and wine color, color, but is produced using several grape varieties w ...

''".

References

{{italic title French wine Wine styles

See also

References