Japan's Mercian drops Beaujolais Nouveau for local wines
SEI MATSUMOTO
TOKYO -- Japan's Mercian will stop selling France's Beaujolais Nouveau wine, a variety that was once hugely popular in Japan but has been falling out of favor, as rising import costs eat into profitability.
Beaujolais Nouveau is a nouveau wine, a type that can be sold in the same year the grapes are harvested. It is produced in the Beaujolais region of France and released on the third Thursday of November each year. Mercian, a unit of Kirin Holdings, has decided not to sell the wine in the autumn of 2025, and does not plan to from 2026 onward.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Nikkei Asia
3 days ago
- Nikkei Asia
Suntory and Ajinomoto join forces on supply chain decarbonization
A Suntory representative and a supplier discuss ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture. (Suntory Holdings) SEI MATSUMOTO August 15, 2025 02:42 JST TOKYO -- Four major Japan-based food conglomerates, including Suntory Holdings and the Ajinomoto group, are teaming up to help decarbonize their thousands of suppliers in anticipation of stricter reporting standards for major corporations.
Nikkei Asia
14-07-2025
- Nikkei Asia
Nissan's shadow looms over supplier Marelli's latest bankruptcy
Factory robots work on a car at Nissan Motor's Tochigi plant in Japan. Nissan is one of Marelli's top clients. (Photo by Sei Matsumoto) RYOSUKE HANADA, TAKAKO FUJIU and YUMI OKURA TOKYO -- Japanese automotive supplier Marelli Holdings' skid into bankruptcy -- its second in three years -- shows the risks of its continued dependence on Nissan Motor. Marelli filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. in June after negotiations for a private debt workout stalled.
Japan Times
10-07-2025
- Japan Times
Beaujolais Nouveau's fanbase finally dries up in Japan
Kirin Holdings' wine unit will stop selling Beaujolais Nouveau in Japan, in a sign of soaring costs and changing tastes in what had been a holdout export market. The wine producer and importer Mercian, a unit of Kirin, will halt sales of the early-release wine from this autumn, a spokesperson said. The company said it made the decision on rising freight costs and the shifting preferences of wine drinkers in Japan. Beaujolais Nouveau has clung on to popularity in Japan, even after its global boom in the 1980s waned. As recently as 2021, Japan was its largest export market, accounting for around 3.6 million bottles — more than twice that of the next-biggest market, the U.S. As the weather cools and Nouveau season begins, importers such as Suntory's spirits unit and Vinos Yamazaki still hold tasting events. One hot spring resort in the holiday town of Hakone even offers an annual opportunity to bathe in the wine from eastern France. But imports have been declining. According to estimates by Suntory of total Beaujolais imports, demand in 2024 fell far below the recent peak of 2004, when Japan took in over 12 million bottles. In 2024, Asahi narrowed its Beaujolais Nouveau sales to be offered only through an upmarket subsidiary, Enoteca, while Suntory will continue the sale of the wine this year. Kirin will continue some sales of Beaujolais Nouveau through a group company. "We imagine that the way our customers choose and enjoy their wine will continue to diversify with time,' the company's spokesperson said.
