Cru Stories

Charting gamay's progress 

Cru Stories

For winemaker Thomas Bachleder, it’s another year, another gamay vineyard to explore. Bachelder’s gamay-focused Spring La Violette release sees Wiley vineyard in west St. Catharines (Short Hills Bench) join established sites in Niagara-on-the-Lake and Vineland for an assortment of seven gamays and a single vineyard gamay and pinot noir blend from the 2021 vintage.

Fans will also be excited to taste and enjoy the latest Les Villages releases in the form of chardonnay and pinot noirs produced from Niagara-on-the-Lake and Bench vineyards. These are always a fine representation of what to expect from the single vineyard bottles featured in the annual November release.

2016 was the first vintage Bachelder produced gamay. Since then, each year has seen an increase in vineyard locations, barrels and bottlings. There is a commercial play here — producing and selling wine is a business — but there’s also exploration. Bachelder is driven to chart how gamay expresses itself in different parts of the Niagara Peninsula, with the same passion that inspired his longstanding pursuits for chardonnay and pinot noir. 

Bachelder's latest release was introduced May 2, a month after the traditional release date. More time was needed to finish the wines from 2021, and the May release date is likely to stick moving forward. As the single vineyard lineup expands, so does the number of barrels to consider for the each vineyard specific bottling as well as the Les Villages labels, which are blends of declassified barrels. Bachelder explains he starts earmarking barrels for each single vineyard in December.

Beyond the dizzying array of single vineyard chadonnay, pinot noirs and gamays and subsequent Les Village releases, the Bachelder brand also encompasses other wines, including L’Ardoise Niagara Chardonnay, which is a Vintages Essentials release at LCBO outlets in Ontario, and restaurant brands, Parfum de Niagara pinot and Minéralité de Niagara chardonnay. There's always something to discover.

On the 2021 Gamays | Plush Fruit
“It’s lighter. There’s great minerality and no greenness that I can see,” Bachelder explained prior to our May 4 tasting. “There is plush fruit, which is gamay's nature, and it is seductive.

"Will they be the longest lived? It's kind of, like, who cares? Because they are going to improve, and most people will drink them by four to six years from harvest… I am thrilled with them right out of the gate. I think it’s a thrilling vintage.”

If you buy only one:
Since the puncheon bottlings won't be released until December, this difficult choice is made a tad easier. (But on that note, the success of the puncheon program has me hoping it might be expanded upon for 2023 and beyond. To my taste, there is special affinity for gamay and that size of barrel that could add more dimension to the single vineyards… The Bai Xu Gamay Noir 32% Whole Cluster 1981 Plantation Vieilles Vignes Puncheon Reserve 2021 is one in particular I have my eye on… )

Enough waffling, while I love Bai Xu, your investment will be rewarded if you do too, but if you or I wanted to sit down and have a top knotch Niagara gamay from 2021, Bachelder Wismer Foxcroft Gamay Noir 33% Whole Cluster 2021 is sure  to deliver.

Bachelder's latest and existing releases are available direct, bachelderniagara.com

Gamay Notes

Bachelder Les Villages Gamay Noir 2021, $25.95
Niagara Peninsula 

A blend of declassified barrels, with large components of Bai Xu and Wismer-Foxcroft and smaller percentages of Bator, Willms and Wiley

This captures the year, grape and place with style and charm, what more could you want? The structure of Bench gamay and the fruity exuberance of Niagara-on-the-Lake gamay knit together seamlessly. Sold value. Drink now-2027. (91/100)

Bachelder Bator Vineyard P.T.L.G. Passez Toutes les Grappes Gamay Noir/Pinot Noir 2021, $30
Four Mile Creek, Niagara Peninsula

The blend is 2/3 gamay, 1/3 pinot. Expressive, with a light sappy character. Pepper, spicy and cherry notes are charming and enjoyable. Drink now-2027. (91/100)

Bachelder Bator Vineyard 100% Destemmed Gamay Noir 2021, $29
Four Mile Creek, Niagara Peninsula 

Pretty fruit fragrance, suggesting berry and cherry notes that are plush and juicy. Pure fruit, spice (pepper) flavours. Simpler than the other two Bator bottlings, but fresh, fruity and fun overall. Drink now-2026. (90/100)

Bachelder Bator Vineyard 20% Whole Cluster Gamay Noir 2021, $29
Four Mile Creek, Niagara Peninsula

To my taste, this is the most convincing expression of the Bator vineyard. The flavours are more profound and expressive, with layers of fruit and spice, more stuffing and grip, (structure and tannin). Drink now-2028. (93/100)

Bachelder Willms Gamay Noir 55% Whole Cluster 1983 Plantation Vieilles Vignes 2021, $32
Four Mile Creek, Niagara Peninsula 

Clay and dusty nose at first look, blows off. Generous and structured, more fruit intensity and more polish. The mix of red and black fruit is point of individuality here. Savoury. Dynamic. Complex. Drink now-2027. (92/100)

Bachelder Willms Gamay Noir 55% Whole Cluster 1983 Plantation Vieilles Vignes Puncheon Reserve 2021, $65
Four Mile Creek, Niagara Peninsula

From a 500 L neutral puncheon. Sneak preview of a December release. A broader expression (more shoulders). Lovely focus and length, serious character of Willms shown to its best advantage. Inviting. Drink now-2032. (93/100)

Bachelder Bai Xu Gamay Noir 32% Whole Cluster 1981 Plantation Vieilles Vignes 2021, $32
Four Mile Creek, Niagara Peninsula

A complete wine, with berry and some blood orange fruit flavours. Fresh and harmonious. The most exciting parcel from the Niagara-on-the-Lake offerings (perhaps the most exciting parcel full stop? thankfully we don't have to choose). Appealing fruit and tea-like fragrance. Pretty.  Drink now-2025. (92/100)

Bachelder Bai Xu Gamay Noir 32% Whole Cluster AMAZING PONZI BARREL 1981 Plantation Vieilles Vignes 2021, $35
Four Mile Creek, Niagara Peninsula

Single barrel selection, 225 litre. More flesh, more concentration, more polish, like there’s 25% more of the Bai Xu character here. This barrel seems to amplify everything desirable. Drink now-2025. (93/100)

Bachelder Bai Xu Gamay Noir 32% Whole Cluster Puncheon Reserve 1981 Plantation Vieilles Vignes 2021, $65
Four Mile Creek, Niagara Peninsula

500 L neutral puncheon. Sneak preview of a December release. Bright, expressive. Vibrant and persistent fruit flavours, with potential to develop more texture and complexity. Drink now-2033. (94/100)

Bachelder Wiley Gamay Noir 100% Destemmed 2021, $29
Short Hills Bench, Niagara Peninsula

Promising addition, meaty and fruity mix of flavours, serious character with concentration and earthy/spicy complexity on the nose. Drink now-2027. (91/100)

Bachelder Wismer Foxcroft Gamay Noir 33% Whole Cluster 2021, $33
Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Peninsula

Quintessential Niagara gamay character here. Peppery nose, with a concentrated core of ripe fruit that’s juicy and generous. Love the bright and peppery flavour profile: Textbook stuff. Delightful. Drink now-2028. (93/100)

Bachelder Wismer Foxcroft Gamay Noir 33% Whole Cluster Puncheon Reserve 2021, $65
Twenty Mile Bench, Niagara Peninsula $65

500 L neutral puncheon. Sneak preview of a December release. NBA commentators like to say a player is running downhill, when they are driving to the basket, full speed ahead, looking to score at the basket. This is a vinous equivalent – gamay takes the form of Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Milwaukee Bucks star ­— a puncheon that show Wismer Foxcroft gamay with more flesh, finesse and focus. The peppery notes are more integrated. The fruit shows more depth and power. Drink now-2033. (94/100)

Les Villages Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs

Bachelder Bench Les Villages Pinot Noir 2021, $34.95
Niagara Escarpment, Niagara Peninsula

Declassified barrels from single vineyards, Wismer-Parke and Hanck (Vineland), McNally and Saunders (Beamsville)

Pretty nose, suggesting red fruit, floral and savoury notes. Ripe core of cherry fruit with spice accents. Fresh. Fine-grained tannins. Bright and youthful. A real charmer that should develop gracefully. Drink now-2030. (92/100)

Bachelder Bench N-O-T-L Les Villages Pinot Noir 2021, $34.95
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Niagara Peninsula

Inaugural Vintage, declassified barrels from single vineyards, Bator and Lowry. Thomas predicts Lowry will join the Bench blend down the road, when/should VQA regulations change to embrace how benchlands run the length of Niagara wine country. Watch this space.

A sleeper? More depth and intensity than the Bench bottlings, with darker fruit flavours and earthy complexity but also more subtle notes. A yin-yang pinot at this youthful stage and a truly successful addition to an already extensive portfolio. Will be fun to watch develop. Drink 2024-2029. (91/100)

Bachelder Les Villages N-O-T-L Chardonnay 2021, $34.95
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Niagara Peninsula

Declassified single vineyards, Willms, Bator, and Bai Xu

True to type Niagara-on-the-Lake chardonnay, with a riper, rounder and full style than the Bench bottling. Full, fleshy and balanced. Some honey, but still fresh and engaging. Drink now-2025. (90/100)

Bachelder Les Villages Bench Chardonnay 2021, $34.95
Niagara Escarpment, Niagara Peninsula

Declassified single vineyards, Saunders (Beamsville), Wismer Wingfield and Wismer Foxcroft (Vineland)

Impressive and enjoyable, with brightness countered by earthy/leesy notes and a core of ripe fruit. Fresh and finely made. Drink now-2028. (93/100)

About the Author

Christopher Waters

Christopher Waters

Christopher Waters has been writing about wine for two decades. He is the wine and spirits columnist at The Globe and Mail, education director of IWEG Drinks Academy and a WSET certified instructor at the Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute, Brock University.
For 21 years, he was the editor/co-founder of Canada's largest circulation wine publication, VINES, and author of the nationally syndicated column, Waters & Wine.
An internationally recognized wine judge, Christopher represents Canada for the Six Nations Wine Challenge and served as head judge and organizer of the InterVin International Wine Awards from 2009-2019. He was awarded the Business Citizen of the Year at the 2011 Niagara Grape and Wine Festival and was received the VQA Promoters Award for Education, also in 2011.
Christopher has been organizing and conducting unforgettable corporate and private fine wine events for 20+ years. He has developed and conducted masterclasses and seminars and moderated panels for organizations, such as The Wine Marketing Association of Ontario, Wines of British Columbia, Wines of Chile, Wines of Germany and Wines of South Africa.