Spill the Wine Episode 16: Making wines with a sense of place. A visit to The Batcave – Bachelder Estates (part one)

This is the first episode of Spill the Wine that doesn't include a wine tasting! The conversation Andrea Morris had with Thomas Bacherlder – owner/winemaker of Bachelder Estates was so interesting it needed a full episode to itself. Thomas' journey as a winemaker began in Montreal, then led to Burgundy, Oregon and finally, Beamsville, which has the climate and terroir for making the Burgundy style wines he loves– Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (and Gamay too!) You will learn about the difference between Domaine and Chateau wineries, what "mapping" a region means, and the terroir differences between the Bench and Niagara wine regions. Thomas also explains elevage, the aging of wine in barrels and goes into detail about the effects both old and new barrels have on the taste of wine. He even provides some fun ideas to help you plan a trip to the Bench wine region. You will DEFINITELY learn a lot about winemaking from this episode.   Produced by Lukas Sluzar. Recorded January 29, 2025 Show notes: Bachelder : www.bachelderniagara.com