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.
Pinot Gris is a grey grape variety mutated from Pinot Noir. It has its origins in Burgundy, where it is called pinot-beurot in reference to the colour of the grey robes worn by the monks of the region. Established in Alsace since the 17th century, pinot gris was called tokay until 2007. It is made up of bunches of small berries that vary in colour from pink to blue-grey. It is particularly well suited to the continental climate because it is resistant to the cold in winter and to spring frosts. This variety also likes dry limestone soils with plenty of sunshine in the summer. Pinot Gris is well suited to late harvesting or to the selection of noble grapes, depending on the year and the concentration of sugars in the berries. Pinot Gris wines are distinguished by their aromatic complexity of white fruits, mushrooms, honey, vanilla, cinnamon, etc., and their great finesse. In the Loire Valley, pinot gris is used in the Coteaux-d'Ancenis appellations. It gives dry or sweet wines with pear and peach aromas.
wines from the region of Saint-Amour go well with generally quite well with dishes of pasta, veal or pork such as recipes of pasta with chicken, sauté of veal with corsican style or quick brioche sausage.
In the mouth in the region of Saint-Amour is a with a nice freshness.
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