Saint-Amour AOC

INAO places the appellation in the north of the Beaujolais vineyard, and the 2021 EU single document locates it on the eastern flanks of the northern Monts du Beaujolais, 12 kilometres south-west of Mâcon and 30 kilometres north of Villefranche-sur-Saône. It covers only the commune of Saint-Amour-Bellevue in Saône-et-Loire, on the border of the Rhône department (INAO). According to the single document (2021), the vineyard mainly occupies the eastern slopes of the Mont de Bessay (478 metres) and the Colline de l'Eglise (310 metres), which descend gently towards the Saône plain, and the parcels delimited for harvest lie between 250 and 380 metres, mainly facing east. The same document describes a degraded oceanic climate with continental and southern influences, in which the Monts du Beaujolais shelter the vineyard from westerly winds and a foehn effect dries the air.

• Sole commune: Saint-Amour-Bellevue, Saône-et-Loire (INAO)
• Delimited parcels at 250 to 380 metres, mainly east-facing (EU single document, 2021)
• The Monts du Beaujolais shelter the vineyard from westerly winds (EU single document, 2021)
• 12 km south-west of Mâcon and 30 km north of Villefranche-sur-Saône (EU single document, 2021)

INAO says the vineyard's soils are predominantly granitic. According to the 2021 EU single document, most of the zone rests on granite that weathers into coarse siliceous sands known locally as grès or gore, with micaceous schists outcropping in places and a covering of Triassic sandstone on the flank of the Mont de Bessay; the eastern and southern sectors lie on colluvium and alluvial fans. The same document links soil to style: parcels on the Triassic sands of the Mont de Bessay give rather tannic wines, while clay-siliceous soils at the foot of the slopes give lighter wines. Inter Beaujolais describes heterogeneous soils of granite, schist and clay, and Decanter (2021) lists granite, clay, schist and limestone. Inter Beaujolais names À la Folie, Les Ravinets, Côte de Besset and Clos du Chapitre among the most-claimed lieux-dits, and the single document (2021) allows the name of a registered lieu-dit on the label.

• Predominantly granitic soils (INAO)
• Triassic sands on the Mont de Bessay give rather tannic wines; clay-siliceous lower slopes give lighter ones (EU single document, 2021)
• Granite, schist and clay per Inter Beaujolais; Decanter (2021) also lists limestone
• Labels may name a registered lieu-dit (EU single document, 2021), such as À la Folie or Les Ravinets (Inter Beaujolais)

Saint-Amour is a dry, still red wine, and Gamay is the only principal variety the 2021 EU single document lists. Inter Beaujolais describes two characters: with a short maceration, light wines showing iris, violet or raspberry; with a longer one, more developed tannins and notes of kirsch and spice. INAO describes wines made for early drinking as ruby, with red-fruit, floral (peony) and sometimes orchard-fruit (peach) aromas, and wines for longer keeping as purple to deep garnet, with kirsch and spice. The single document (2021) sets a minimum natural alcohol of 10.5%, a maximum of 13% after enrichment, a maximum yield of 61 hectolitres per hectare and ageing until at least 15 January of the year after harvest, and it bans wood chips and irrigation.

• Short maceration: light wines with iris, violet or raspberry (Inter Beaujolais)
• Longer maceration: more developed tannins, kirsch and spice (Inter Beaujolais)
• Dry, still red wines from Gamay (EU single document, 2021)
• Maximum yield 61 hl/ha; ageing until at least 15 January after harvest (EU single document, 2021)

The appellation takes in the single commune of Saint-Amour-Bellevue (INAO). INAO and the 2021 EU single document tell the same story: in 286, at Saint-Maurice-en-Valais, a Roman legionary named Amor escaped a massacre, took refuge in Gaul, became a missionary and gave his name to the village of Saint-Amour. The single document says the vineyard expanded from the late 15th century thanks to the Lyon bourgeoisie, and that in 1816 Jullien's Topographie de tous les vignobles connus placed Saint-Amour in the fourth class. In the 1930s the Union des producteurs, driven by Louis Dailly, pursued AOC recognition, which came with the decree of 8 February 1946 (EU single document, 2021). The same document records that in 1838, 268 of the commune's 509 hectares were planted with vines, and that in 2010 the vineyard covered about 300 hectares, with average annual production of 12,000 hectolitres from 160 producers. INAO says the wine's name suits Valentine's Day, and Inter Beaujolais notes a statue of the legionary Saint-Amor near the village church.

• Named for the Roman legionary Amor, per INAO
• AOC by the decree of 8 February 1946 (EU single document, 2021)
• Jullien placed Saint-Amour in the fourth class in 1816 (EU single document, 2021)
• 2010: about 300 ha, 12,000 hl average production, 160 producers (EU single document, 2021)

Primary sources (INAO, EU single document, Inter Beaujolais): https://www.inao.gouv.fr/produit/saint-amour-ou-saint-amour-cru-du-beaujolais-18183, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/FR/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:52021XC1222(01), https://www.beaujolais.com/appellation/saint-amour/, https://www.beaujolais.com/en/appellation/saint-amour-2/. Secondary source: https://www.decanter.com/premium/beaujolais-top-scoring-st-amour-regnie-julienas-and-chenas-2018-wines-455349/. Last verified 2026-09-24