Les Sources d’Agapé “Côte de Besset” Saint-Amour
Cru du Beaujolais | Appellation d’origine contrôlée
THE DOMAINE & THE STORY
Domaine Les Sources d'Agapé is located in Saint-Amour-Bellevue, the northernmost village of the Beaujolais region. In the style of the walled vineyards of the monks of Cluny, the domaine consists of an isolated 6-hectare plot of vines in the Saint-Amour Cru. It overlooks the appellation from the slopes of the Mont-Besset and also includes two plots of vines in the Juliénas Cru on the south face of the Mont-Besset. These cover a surface area of 0.5 ha and have blue stone soils. There is an outcrop of sandstone on the upper part of the domaine, then sandstone scree and finally alluvial deposits. This means that the soils are shallow at the top and deeper and deeper as you move towards the bottom of the domaine. This hillside in the Côte de Besset faces East-North-East allowing for greater sun exposure and cooling influences. The vines are planted to Gamay and are on average 60 years old, although the oldest date back to 1947. The vines are trained in Gobelet style, an age-old practice in the Beaujolais region, but one that does not allow for mechanization. The vines require pruning, their shoots attaching, trimming, hoeing and harvesting - all work is done by hand using ancestral methods at Les Sources d’Agape. The domaine has been undergoing a conversion to organic farming and obtained certification for the 2022 vintage.
TECHNICAL INFORMATION
100% gamay.
1.2 acres of 60 year old vines facing East.
Soil: alluvions
Whole bunch fermentation with indigenous yeast, semi-carbonic maceration, devatting in cases without harvest pumps, 10 to 13 days maceration before pressing.
Maturation: 6 months in enamel steel tanks
Production: 2,000 bottles
12.5 % vol
TASTING NOTES
Sight: Bright ruby
Nose: Kirsh cherry and ripe stone fruit
Palate: hint of forest floor and plum helped by good tannins
“I was 28 when I took over the domaine on 11 November 2018. I named it Les Sources d’Agapé, taking my inspiration from the Greek word “Agapé” which expresses “divine” or “unconditional” love.”
