Les Sarmentelles de Beaujeu

Les Sarmentelles is the Beaujolais Nouveau festival of Beaujeu, the village in the Beaujolais hills that gave the wine region its name. Every year in the third week of November, the association Les Sarmentelles de Beaujeu turns the whole village into a five-day party for the new Beaujolais vintage, with some 300 volunteers to welcome visitors. The 2026 edition runs from Wednesday 18 to Sunday 22 November 2026, and the association has published its day-by-day programme.

The festival takes place in the village centre, on the Promenade des Sarmentelles and around the Place de l’Hôtel de Ville. Part of it is free, part of it is paid: the wine fair costs nothing to enter, while the tasting trail of the opening day is ticketed.

What to drink

• Beaujolais Nouveau. The new wine of the year is the reason for the festival. It is a young red, made mainly from the Gamay grape and meant to be drunk in the months after the harvest.
• The Salon des Vins. The wine fair on the Promenade des Sarmentelles opens from Friday at 5 pm to Sunday at 6 pm. Entry is free, and the tasting glass costs 5 euros.
• The Parcours Dégustation. On Wednesday 18 November, a tasting trail through the village is priced at 15 euros, tax included.

Practical tips

• Choose your day. Come on the Wednesday for the tasting trail, or from Friday evening to Sunday for the wine fair.
• Budget. Count 5 euros for the glass at the wine fair and 15 euros for the tasting trail, plus food and bottles.
• Getting there. Beaujeu is off the main railway lines. The stations of the Saône valley and the A6 motorway lie to the east, so a car is the practical way in.
• Do not drive after tasting. The legal limit in France is 0.5 grams of alcohol per litre of blood. Plan a driver or a room in the village.
• Where to stay. Rooms in Beaujeu are few for a five-day festival. Villefranche-sur-Saône and Lyon have more choice.