Beaujolais

Beaujolais (Biôjolês in Arpitan) is a historical province and a wine-producing region in France. It is located north of Lyon, and covers parts of the north of the Rhône département (Rhône-Alpes) and parts of the south of the Saône-et-Loire département (Burgundy). The region is known internationally for its long tradition of winemaking, and more recently for the enormously popular Beaujolais nouveau.

History

Geography

Beaujolais' location in France

The historical capital of the province is Beaujeu (Bôjor / Biôjœr in Arpitan) and the economic capital of the area is Villefranche-sur-Saône (Velafranche).

The Beaujolais Region is located south of Burgundy and its climate is warmer. Because of the difference in region, the Pinot Noir grape normally grown in Burgundy would not do well here. The best soils are mostly granite.

Wine

Almost all the wine produced in the region is red wine from the Gamay grape, of which the heavily-marketed Beaujolais Nouveau is the most famous, the village crus the most prized.

See also

• Wine
• French Wine

Notes and References

External links

Coordinates: 46°05′N 04°40′E / 46.083°N 4.667°E / 46.083; 4.667

v • d • e Historic Provinces of France Provinces in 1789 Alsace • Angoumois • Anjou • Artois • Aunis • Auvergne • Basse-Navarre • Béarn • Beaujolais • Berry • Bourbonnais • Burgundy • Brittany • Champagne • Corsica • Dauphiné • Flanders/Hainaut (Flanders & Hainaut) • Pays de Foix • Forez • Franche-Comté • Gascony • Guyenne • Île-de-France • Languedoc • Landau • Limousin • Lorraine • Lyonnais • Maine • Marche • Nivernais • Normandie • Orléanais • Perche • Picardy • Poitou • Provence • Roussillon • Saintonge • Touraine • Trois-Évêchés After the Revolution Avignon1 and the Comtat Venaissin1 • Montbéliard2 • Mulhouse3 • Savoy4 • Nice4 1 1791.   2 1793.   3 1798.   4 1860.