Beaujolais wines take Lyon by storm with ’Gamay Days’, a festival and an exhibition

eaujolais wines aim to win back the hearts and the tables of the people of Lyon. The region’s wine marketing board Inter Beaujolais is organising two major events in the capital of Gaul in 2026.

Firstly, members of the trade will be invited to rediscover its twelve appellations at a new trade exhibition on February 2. The maiden event will feature eighty estates, wineries and wine companies and some 300 wine merchants, restaurateurs, agents and buyers are expected to attend. As part of the training process for these future ambassadors, workshops curated by the producers’ organisation or France’s finest artisan sommelier Laurent Derhé will be highlighting the least familiar aspects of the wine region such as its white wines, ageability, named vineyard sites and its move towards Premiers Crus. Others will provide practical advice for presenting, pairing and selling Beaujolais wines.

The chairman of the wine marketing board, Jean-Marc Lafont, believes that Beaujolais’ gradual return to favour in Lyon “is primarily due to the advances in quality by winegrowers”. The new BtoB exhibition aims to promote this progress and “thereby trigger conversations and new sales opportunities”.

The marketing board describes Lyon as “a key city” due to its proximity to the wine region and its “large community of Epicureans”. The city will also be the stage for public festivities dubbed ‘Gamay Days’ on May 23 and 24. The organisers are aiming for 3,000 visitors in wine bars, food courts and various events celebrating Gamay wines from near and far.