21373 customer reviews

Domaine de la Pirolette - Saint Amour 2018

Saint-Amour|Red wine

3.5/5 (36 customers)

92/100

Wine Enthusiast

14,5/20

Bettane & Desseauve

Médaille d'Or

Gilbert & Gaillard

16/20

RVF

Cité

Hachette

Gamay

distinctive

success

"A truly exceptional vintage!"

“Right from the nose, you sense great mastery and a commitment to producing a refined wine: it is precise, subtle, and mouthwatering, with notes of dark fruit pulp, elegant herbal notes, and a delicate toasty reduction. The palate is refined, built around a dense and rich texture. The tannins are perfectly balanced. A beautiful, briny finish with a hint of red fruit. ” (La Revue du Vin de France – June–July 2020). Yet another success for this 2018 Saint Amour! Ranked by Wine Enthusiast among the 100 best wines of the 2017 vintage, this cuvée proves to be fully realized here, offering a lovely wine brimming with strawberry flavors and ripe acidity.

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21373 reviews

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Estate

Domaine de la Pirolette

Vintage

2018

Designation

Saint-Amour

Region

Beaujolais

Grape Varieties

100% Gamay

Regions

Stony soils composed of sandstone and blue stone, clay, and granitic sand

Viticulture

Traditional and refined

Grape Harvest

At peak ripeness

Winemaking

Whole clusters or destemmed in cement tanks, using the traditional "toasted cap" technique for gentle tannin extraction

Livestock farming

In a concrete tank

Alcohol content

14.5%

Eye

Burgundy dress

Nose

Rich and delicate, with flavors of red berries and Gariguette strawberries, along with hints of violet

Palate

Full-bodied, with a beautiful, juicy texture, supple and elegant tannins, and a slightly chocolatey finish

Serve

At 14-16°C

Drink before

2024

Food and wine pairings

Pairs well with Bresse chicken, pork tenderloin with mushrooms, or a dish of Pad Thai...

More information at Domaine de la Pirolette

More information at Saint-Amour

Bettane & Desseauve

Wine rated (2020 guide) 14,5/20 (Good wine)

Rated estate (2021 guide): 2 stars (A solid, recommendable wine, though slightly more consistent and uniform than the previous vintage)

About the wine:

This vintage has established itself as a sure bet, with a full-bodied, structured style that keeps the fruit front and center. It’s a pleasure to drink.

About the estate:

Grégory Barbet, son of the former director of Jean Loron, produced his first vintage in 2013. With 15 hectares of vineyards perfectly situated around the estate, Grégory quickly realized the need to work with the diversity of this appellation—better known for its evocative name than for these previously little-known plots. While his village wine offers a reliable and structured style, his single-vineyard wines, Poulette and Carjot, are still evolving. Indeed, while his use of oak has improved, it is the blending with concrete eggs that has truly brought a more subtle balance to the oaked wines, reaching its peak in 2018. In an appellation where benchmark wines were lacking, here is a young estate worth watching—both for the rising quality of its wines and for the infectious passion that drives this young winemaker.

Guide Hachette des vins

Rated wine (2020 guide) Mentioned (Successful wine)

About the wine:

A Saint-Amour that plays on roundness and harmony to create a charming profile. It displays a structure with supple tannins that lend it elegance. The wine also boasts aromatic intensity, centered on spicy and jam-like notes.

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

Rated estate (2021 guide) Recommended (Wine producer recommended by Robert Parker – The Wine Advocate)

RVF - The French Wine Review / Guide to the Best Wines of France

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

Wine rated (2020 guide) 16/20 (Very good wine)

Rated estate (2021 guide) Selected (Please note that this guide is a ranking, and as such, all the estates listed here—even those without a star—represent, in our view, the pinnacle of French winemaking.)

About the wine:

Right from the nose, you can sense great mastery and a commitment to crafting a refined wine: it is precise and subtle, with mouth-watering notes of black fruit pulp, elegant herbal undertones, and a delicate toasty nuance. The palate is refined, built around a dense and rich texture. The tannins are perfectly balanced. A lovely salty finish with a hint of red fruit.

About the estate:

A former sales executive in the cooperage industry, Virginie Barbet purchased this estate in 2013 with her husband Grégory and a few investor friends. Winemaking is done with either destemmed or whole grapes, depending on the cuvée. But always with a “toasted cap” technique, accompanied by pumping over and racking to ensure gentle extraction. She then ages their various single-vineyard cuvées—which are among the cru’s most distinctive terroirs—in French oak barrels and concrete eggs. Today, they are among the few estates that have restored Saint-Amour’s status as a cru.

Wine Enthusiast

Wine rated (2020 guide) 92/100

About the wine:

Intense strawberry aromas immediately stand out in this wine. Its structure on the palate is typical of the appellation, lending shape and density to this ripe, fruity wine. Best enjoyed starting in 2021.

Gilbert & Gaillard

Wine awarded a Gold Medal

James Suckling

Rated estate (2021 guide) Recommended

Customer rating

3.5/5

based on 36 reviews

Review by Mr. BERNARD L. Published on January 24, 2025

This wine showed great promise in its youth; rediscovered in early 2025, it leaves one wanting more. It is very subdued and noticeably lacking in body; the fruit is too absent, and none of this bodes well for satisfactory aging.