A wine that starts the party

The reason they call it the holiday spirit is because often in certain circles, the urgent and unavoidable need to take a holiday can arise out of a consequence of substantial spirit intake. I do not mean to point fingers or raise doubts about the circles I move about, but suffice to say that almost all of us know someone who could easily qualify for this case of AWOL.

But not all things spirited need to be celebrated; otherwise put, a drink can be celebration of itself. While Champagne is the undoubted king of all things festive, there is another, lesser known and definitely more modest a wine, that has a massive worldwide celebration around its annual occurrence — something that could outweigh any event centred around the bigger boys of the wine world when it comes to global reach, integrated connectivity, and mass appeal. This humble wine hails from the region of Beaujolais and the festival is the Beaujolais Nouveau.

Now, let me say one thing right up front: I don’t think it is a fantastic wine nor should the style of wine from the region be over-lauded for it risks jeopardising the long-term future for the serious wines from this region. But it has to be allowed to this wine style that the aura it has managed to create around its arrival on the third Thursday of every November is nothing short of exemplary.

People the world over gather and wait for this wine which is released barely a few weeks after being harvested and put into tanks for fermentation. The notes are fresh, very fruity, and often a tad prickly. As stated, it is not the most polished and pedigreed of wines but what it lacks in finesse, it more than makes up for in gaiety.

For no other wine can claim to attract so many consumers, no other region can recreate the aura in the streets of Lyon on the day of the launch, when restaurants all set up a table outside to serve this wine alongside some charcuterie (small smoked pork products). People move from one stand to another, till they almost lose count, or each other, in the spirited mob.

The mornings after are often heavy, headache-ridden, and with an unmistakeably redolent aftertaste of cherries, or sometimes, bananas. The wine isn’t something that is discussed beyond the end of the fourth week. For a wine that appears to have a “drinking window” of no more than a fortnight, it is surprising to note that almost half the production of the region of Beaujolais goes into the making of this simple wine and another majority makes the generic Beaujolais. The serious wines (from the 10 top villages), in comparison, are but a meagre statistic on a chart.

The lesson then is clear: the world likes a party and any wine that can bring one on will be popularly accepted. All wines need not be ageing-worthy to be considered great. With Xmas and NYE around the corner, stop hogging your little stash: reach into the deep, dark, and dank corners of your cellar, reach deeper into your heart, and pull out whatever you can generously, and share it — you will find that the festive spirit only stands to be enhanced. Till next year…