ボージョレ、解禁　新型コロナで出荷低調

　フランス東部ブルゴーニュ地方産ワインの新酒「ボージョレ・ヌーボー」の販売が１９日午前０時、解禁された。国内ボージョレ市場はピークの２００４年比で半分程度に縮小。今年は新型コロナウイルスの影響で飲食店向けの出荷が減り、一段と減少する見通しだ。
　サントリーワインインターナショナルは１８日深夜から、解禁を祝うイベントをオンラインで開催し、１０数名のワインファンが画面越しに乾杯。今年は夏の暑さでブドウが早く成熟し、芳醇（ほうじゅん）な味わいに仕上がったという。
　２０年のボージョレ全体の輸入量は前年比３０％減の２８万ケース（１ケース＝７５０ミリリットル入り１２本換算）前後となる見込み。例年は解禁イベントが各地の飲食店で催されるが、今年は密を避けるため自粛ムードが強い。代わりに家族や友人と自宅で楽しむ人が増えるとみられる。（2020/11/19-00:22）

This year's Beaujolais Nouveau wine, produced in the Beaujolais area in eastern France's Bourgogne region, went on sale in Japan on Thursday.
   Japan's Beaujolais Nouveau market has shrunk by around half from its peak in 2004. The market is expected to dwindle even further this year, with shipments to restaurants and bars believed to have decreased due to the novel coronavirus epidemic.
   Suntory Wine International Ltd. held an online event from late Wednesday night to celebrate the start of the sales, with more than 10 participating wine fans raising their glasses to the screen. According to the company, this year's Beaujolais Nouveau wine has a mellow flavor as the grapes ripened early due to the hot summer.
   Japan's total Beaujolais Nouveau imports this year are expected to fall 30 pct from the previous year to around 280,000 cases. Each case contains the equivalent of 12 750-milliliter bottles.
   Events celebrating the release of Beaujolais Nouveau wine are usually held at restaurants and bars in many parts of Japan at this time of year. Many eating and drinking establishments, however, have refrained from holding such events this year, in order to avoid the 3Cs of closed, crowded and close-contact settings amid the epidemic. Instead, many people are expected to celebrate the sales launch at home with families and friends.