Gamay
Noir
Gamay
noir is the primary black grape of France's
Beaujolais region, where the wines are typically
fermented, spared from aging, and consumed young
to appreciate their fresh, fruity qualities,
with more tang than tannin.
In 1395, the
Duke of Burgundy, Phillip the Bold, ordered
Gamay vineyards to be torn out and banned the
variety evermore from being planted in the
vineyards of Burgundy, so that it would not
compete with Pinot Noir. Although this decree
nearly erradicated Gamay altogether, it found a
new home to the south in Beaujolais.
The name is so
closely associated with Beaujolais, that many
vineyard plantings and wines, in California
especially, were incorrectly identified as the
variety "Gamay Beaujolais" for many years (an
illegal
practice after 2007). Gamay is also planted, but
is less significant, in the Loire, Rhône,
Jura and Savoie appellations of France.
Although gamay
noir vines grow with moderate vigor in many soil
types, it seems partial to granite and limestone
soils. Gamay can be quite productive, averaging
five to seven tons per acre. Heavy crop loads
may slow growth to below average, as well as
reduce fruit quality, so crop thinning is often
used to control this tendency.
Gamay begins
its annual cycle early as grapes go, budding and
flowering early and may therefore become victim
to early Spring frosts. Ripening is usually
early to mid-season. Both the clusters and juicy
berries of gamay noir are large and it is a
relatively easy variety to pick, with relatively
thin but tough skins. The true full name of this
grape is Gamay Noir à Jus Blanc;
there are, however, some clones of
teinturier gamays, with colored rather
than clear juice.
Generally
light in color with hue that usually is more
blue-purple than red, wines made from gamay noir
can be very fragrant, full of fruit and fresh,
floral esters. Frequently tart in their youth,
wines made from gamay noir tend nonetheless to
be short lived. Like its distant cousins, Pinot
Noir and Chardonnay, Gamay tends to easily lose
its varietal aroma and flavor identity when
blended with another grape variety. Both red
wines and rosés are typically produced
from unblended gamay noir.
The technique of carbonic
maceration is quite often used to enhance the fruitiness
of this grape. The fruit is placed whole, uncrushed, in the
fermenting vessel and the fermentation begins within the individual
berries, trapping the forming bubbles of carbon dioxide until
the grape bursts. The resulting wine has a lighter, yet brighter
color, a "banana", "candy" or "bubblegum" quality in the fruity
aroma, often accompanied by a slight petillance or "tickle"
to the texture.
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Typical
Gamay Noir Smell and/or Flavor
Descriptors
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Varietal
Aromas/Flavors:
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Processing
Bouquets/Flavors:
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Fruit:
cherry, strawberry,
raspberry
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Carbonic
Maceration: banana, bubblegum,
cotton candy (spun sugar)
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Floral:
violet, rose petal
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Oak
(rarely): vanilla, coconut, sweet
wood, oak, smoke, toast, tar
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There is relatively little
gamay noir planted in California, even less than was thought
to exist only a few years ago, because many vineyards, once
thought to be planted to gamay noir, were positively identified
by DNA "fingerprinting" as valdiguié in the
1990s.
by
Jim
LaMar
