Definition: Primeur

Primeur wine, produced very quickly after the harvest so that it can be sold as soon as possible and consumed quickly.

Originally in 1951, the first primeur wine, which still represents the largest volume, was Beaujolais Nouveau. Today, more than 500,000 hectolitres are distributed in around 200 countries, starting at midnight on the third Wednesday in November each year. With a lot of publicity, this light wine, which is not always of very good quality, floods distribution centres and restaurants. Slogans such as "As soon as it's made, as soon as it's sold, as soon as it's drunk, as soon as it's paid for, as soon as it's pissed" encourage rapid consumption, usually within six weeks of its release.

Most of the major wine-producing regions have imitated Beaujolais by producing a primeur wine.

See Nouveau.