Saint-Amour is the Northernmost of the ten Beaujolais crus, located just South of the Mâcon appellations of Pouilly-Fuisse and Saint-Véran. Saint-Amour wines are among the lightest of the Beaujolais crus, often displaying Spicy berry and stone fruit characters with a marked minerality. Just under 800 acres (320 ha) are planted with the Gamay Grape variety on the south and east facing hillsides on the western banks of the Saône River, and make up the Saint-Amour appellation's wine growing area. While most of the ten Beaujolais crus were created in the 1930s, Saint-Amour was only officially delimited as a cru in February 1946.
Today, it is one of the smallest appellations in Beaujolais, larger than Chenas alone. In the northern Part of Beaujolais, the landscape is more rugged than in the south, and the clay and silt soils composed mainly of schist and granite are complemented by smaller amounts of limestone. These lightly textured soils are often credited with the minerality that characterizes the wines of Saint-Amour. The hills to the west of the Beaujolais protect the vineyards of Saint-Amour from the weather coming from the north.
Gamay is a Burgundian grape variety that has existed since the 14th century. For fear of competition with the pinot noir of Burgundy, gamay was finally uprooted and planted in the Beaujolais region, from Mâcon to Lyon. These siliceous and granitic soils suit it perfectly, and it gives its best here. But it is also planted all over France, such as in Lorraine, in the Loire Valley, in Bugey, in Savoie and in Auvergne. Gamay is early and very productive and needs to be limited so that quality prevails over quantity. Short winter pruning of the shoots and high density of vines per hectare are the methods that allow it to produce very fruity, fresh and greedy red wines. Gamay is also very popular in red wine futures, and produces wines from the Beaujolais region with very interesting character and ageing potential. The AOCs Crémant-de-Bourgogne, Mâcon, Anjou, Touraine, Rosé de vallée de la Loire, Côtes-d'Auvergne, Saint-Pourçain, Bugey, Gaillac, Côtes du Luberon... and many vins de pays are proud of it. Today, about 36,000 hectares of Gamay are cultivated in France, including 22,000 hectares in Beaujolais.
red wines from the region of Saint-Amour go well with generally quite well with dishes of pasta, veal or pork such as recipes of meat lasagna, simple veal sauté or soft and inexpensive pasta gratin.
On the nose in the region of Saint-Amour often reveals types of flavors of raspberry, red fruit or strawberries and sometimes also flavors of oak, cherry or violet. In the mouth in the region of Saint-Amour is a with a nice freshness.
