Grape Guide
Baco Noir
RedBaco Noir is a deeply coloured French hybrid of Folle Blanche and a North American Vitis riparia, bred in 1902 in the Landes. It has almost vanished from France but thrives in cool North American vineyards, above all in Ontario, where it makes fresh, plum and berry reds free of the foxy character typical of riparia-derived varieties.
Key characteristics
- Hybrid of Folle Blanche (Vitis vinifera) and Vitis riparia, bred by François Baco in 1902
- Early budding, so exposed to spring frost, and early ripening
- Well protected against downy and powdery mildew, yet highly susceptible to crown gall and black rot
- Small berries with high acidity and low tannin
- Largest plantings are in Ontario; only a few hectares remain in France
Typical flavors
Major regions
Ontario (Niagara Peninsula) · New York (Finger Lakes, Hudson Valley) · Nova Scotia · British Columbia · Quebec · France (Landes) · Switzerland
Also known as
Baco 1 · Baco 24-23 · Bacoi · Bago · Bako Speiskii · Bakon
Baco Noir is an interspecific cross, roughly half European Vitis vinifera and half Vitis riparia, a North American species valued for its resistance to phylloxera and fungal disease. Its breeder, François Baco, wanted a vine that could be grown on its own roots yet still give wine resembling European reds. The berries are small, high in acidity and low in tannin, so the wines have a bright, juicy frame rather than a grippy one, and colour is intense, often inky purple in youth.
The variety's reputation rests on the cool vineyards of eastern North America. Ontario is its centre of gravity, with New York, Nova Scotia, British Columbia and Quebec in supporting roles. In France, the country of its birth, it has dwindled to a few hectares. Unlike many riparia-derived wines, Baco Noir generally avoids the candied, foxy character of American species and shows blueberry, plum and black cherry fruit instead.
François Baco made the cross in 1902 at Bélus, in the Landes of southwest France. The vinifera parent is Folle Blanche, a variety then commonly called Piquepoul du Gers. Vitis riparia Grand Glabre is recorded as the second parent, but that clone bears only female flowers with sterile pollen, so the breeder must have used pollen from at least one other riparia vine. The pedigree is therefore best understood as Folle Blanche crossed with a mixture of riparia pollens. This makes Baco Noir a half-sibling to Baco Blanc (Baco 22A), whose second parent is Noah rather than riparia.
The selection first circulated as Baco 24-23. The nurseryman Prosper Gervais visited Baco in 1910 and renamed it Baco 1; since 1964 the standard name has been Baco Noir. The variety was also a parent in the breeding of GR7.
France once planted it quite widely, in regions as different as Burgundy, Anjou and the Landes, but it is absent from the official list of authorized French varieties, and plantings had shrunk to about 11 ha by 2008. It reached the cooler parts of North America in the early 1950s, and it was there that it found a commercial footing.
Baco Noir buds early, which exposes it to spring frost, and it ripens early enough to finish in short, cool seasons. Vigour is high, and heavy soils suit it best. It copes well with downy and powdery mildew, but black rot and crown gall are serious threats, the latter especially where winter cold damages the vine. Bunches are small to medium, carrying small berries. If left unchecked, yields can be generous, so Niagara growers who prioritize quality crop it severely; the technical sheet of one producer's reserve bottling cites 3.5 tonnes per acre.
Most Baco Noir is bottled as a dry, medium-bodied varietal red with deep colour, high acidity and modest tannin. Typical flavours are blueberry, plum and black cherry, sometimes with a peppery or earthy edge. Unoaked versions are made for early drinking and are often served lightly chilled, while oak-aged reserve bottlings from older vines have more weight and a vanilla and allspice overlay. In Ontario, Peller Estates and Henry of Pelham both make wines in each of these styles. Nouveau-style releases, made in the manner of Beaujolais, appear in the Hudson Valley. The wines carry little of the foxy, grapey aroma associated with American vine species, which goes a long way toward explaining why the variety is taken seriously where hybrids are otherwise dismissed.
Where it grows
Ontario
The variety's stronghold, with about 229 ha recorded in 2006, mostly in the Niagara Peninsula. By volume it is one of the leading red varieties in Ontario's VQA wines. Among the best-known producers are Peller Estates and Henry of Pelham.
New York
Baco Noir is grown in the Hudson River region and the Finger Lakes, and about 820 tons were crushed in 2009, nearly double the 2007 figure. Hudson Valley wineries also release nouveau-style bottlings.
Nova Scotia
Blomidon makes a varietal wine from vines planted in 1986 on the shore of the Minas Basin. Quebec also has small plantings.
British Columbia
Maréchal Foch is the more widely planted red hybrid, but Summerhill still produces a varietal Baco Noir.
France and Switzerland
About 11 ha remained in France in 2008 and about 1 ha in Switzerland. A rare varietal wine comes from Domaine Mondon-Demeuré in the Forez, which now trades as Vin et Pic.