Le Clos Jordanne: A piece of Burgundy on the Niagara Peninsula

At the start of the millennium, a unique partnership was launched, starting the journey towards a new benchmark for quality in Canadian wine. It was in February 2000 when the name Le Clos Jordanne was first mentioned: the result of an exciting collaboration between Boisset La Famille des Grands Vins from Nuits-St-Georges, France, and Ontario-based Vincor Canada (now known as Arterra Wines Canada).

These two major wine producers from opposite sides of the Atlantic signed a joint venture agreement to develop a vineyard in the Niagara Peninsula, united by the shared aim of producing spectacular, world-class wines in this special region.

Why the Niagara Peninsula?

Located in southern Ontario, the Niagara Peninsula offers winemakers the potential to craft high-quality wines in a diversity of styles. Notably, the region shares similar soils and cool climate growing conditions with the French region of Burgundy.

And so it was that under the joint management of Boisset and Vincor, viticulturists were brought in from France to join their counterparts in the Niagara Region, combining Old and New World expertise to find the perfect location for the project.

The creation of Le Clos Jordanne

Le Clos Jordanne has since grown from a fledgling group of vineyards to an exclusive and prestigious winery. In 2003, Thomas Bachelder was installed as the domaine’s founding winemaker and the first vintage of Le Clos Jordanne was unveiled (with its commercial launch to international markets following in 2007).

From the very outset, Le Clos Jordanne has focused on producing ultra-premium Canadian VQA (Vintners Quality Alliance) wines made from Burgundy’s classic grape varieties – namely Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

The Judgement of Montreal

In May 2009, Le Clos Jordanne captured its own moment of fame on the international wine scene, following the ‘Judgement of Montreal’ tasting. Its results brought global attention to the Niagara Peninsula and Le Clos Jordanne’s wines.

Taking inspiration from the iconic ‘Judgment of Paris’ in 1976, organisers set up a blind tasting of 16 red and 14 white wines, primarily from France and California, with a panel of 10 wine writers and experts.

Among the whites, Le Clos Jordanne’s 2005 Claystone Terrace Chardonnay, an ‘outsider’ wine that was included in the tasting unbeknownst to the panel, stood out from the rest, capturing the top spot for Chardonnay.

Continuing to make the finest wines

The quality of the Le Clos Jordanne portfolio continues to be recognised annually, with its wines being awarded 90+ scores by some of the biggest wine experts in the world and medals at the world’s biggest wine shows, including several Silver medals at the Decanter World Wine Awards. The brand is also expanding its winemaking horizons. Last year Le Clos Jordanne launched its first ever sparkling: Cremant de Jordanne, a Blanc de Noirs sourced from block #5 of the Le Clos Jordanne vineyard.

More significantly, a new chapter started for Le Clos Jordanne in 2023 when it opened the doors to its new home and first estate winery – Domaine Le Clos Jordanne, which is nestled in the heart of the Beamsville Bench, in Niagara. This move allowed the brand to acquire new premium vineyard parcels in Beamsville, in addition to its iconic namesake vineyard and others in Jordan and Ontario (Niagara Peninsula).

Burgundian-style wines, through the lens of Niagara terroir

Domaine Le Clos Jordanne symbolises the extraordinary vision of fusing tradition and innovation with passion and expertise to create wines that exemplify the distinct Niagara terroir, while offering unparalleled quality amongst the world’s finest Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The winery thus seeks to deliver the best and most authentic expression of Burgundian-style wines, through the lens of Niagara terroir.

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