Stratus

About Stratus

The Stratus winery, like our signature assemblage wines, is a composition – a whole greater than the sum of its parts. On their own, the individual elements are distinctly unique – a diversely planted vineyard with unusually rich soil; a sustainable facility that unites tradition and science to serve the winemaker's art; and a retail gallery with adjoining tasting rooms that are both chic and welcoming. Working together, they create wines and experiences that are truly memorable.

Representative Biography

J-L (Jean-Laurent) Groux, Director of Winemaking, Dean Stoyka, Winemaker

A native of the Loire Valley in France, J-L Groux studied winemaking both at the College de Beaune in Burgundy and at the University of Bordeaux.. He subsequently traveled the globe to learn more about the world’s wine regions and styles of winemaking - a journey that eventually brought him to the Niagara region in the early 1980s.

Drawn to the ideal, natural grape-growing climate of the Niagara Peninsula and intrigued by how different it was from the vineyards in the Loire Valley, J-L Groux joined Hillebrand Estates in 1989.
At Hillebrand, Groux seized the opportunity to experiment with grape varieties, winemaking techniques and wine growing practices within the rebirth of the Canadian wine industry.

In 2004, J-L joined Stratus Vineyard’s, Niagara’s ultra-premium and world’s first fully LEED certified winery, as the Director of Winemaking. At Stratus, J-L is renowned for his passion for creating distinctive wines based on the principle of assemblage - the art of crafting several different grape varieties to produce a wine that is the most complex expression of the vineyard’s terroir. The wines of Stratus have set the highest standard for quality and continue to impress both critics and consumers alike.
J-L lives in Niagara-on-the-Lake with his wife Béatrice and their two children, Gaëlle and Corwan.

Dean Stoyka, Assistant Winemaker
Since joining Stratus in 2010, Dean’s oenology diploma and drive to understand all things ‘wine’ have allowed him to span roles at Stratus including retail sales, lab technician and winemaking supervisor. In 2015, Dean’s passion for the farm reached fruition as he evolved into Stratus’ Vineyard Manager. And now as Assistant Winemaker, Dean continues to further Stratus’ precision viticulture and sustainable practice.

Dean was born and raised in Niagara and was first exposed to wine through his father’s 40-year career at Vincor / Constellation.

Why We're Cool

We have 1 block of Chardonnay that is nearing 25 years and shared between two clones - #96 and #548. While we employ classic Burgundian approaches to winegrowing and vinification for our Chardonnay, we seek to express Niagara authenticity.

We hand-pick at yields averaging 2 to 2.5 tonnes per acre in late September or early October and whole cluster press into barrel where the juice undergoes ‘natural’ fermentation based on indigenous yeasts. From here, we age in a combination of new, second-fill and neutral barrels and ultimately create an assemblage of these small lots to release as Stratus Chardonnay.