Chablis

The characteristics of Chablis wine

Chablis wines are known for being dry white wines. They are characterized by their colors, which combine both greenish-gold and gray tones. This wine can also have emerald highlights. Highly prized for its acidity, it combines minerality, natural freshness, and tension. Over time, a Chablis wine can develop rather spicy and exotic aromas with a golden color. When well preserved, some wines are described as more expressive and round at the same time. With its very distinctive identity, Chablis wine has everything to appeal to wine enthusiasts.

How is Chablis wine made?

Winemaking is a crucial step that determines the quality of a wine. As for Chablis wines, their vinification generally depends on the cuvée. For Grands Crus, the cuvées are fermented in oak barrels to give them roundness and finesse. For other wines, particularly Petit Chablis, producers opt for aging or fermentation in vats. This vinification method is the most commonly used in the Chablis region.

Chablis wines and their aging potential

Several criteria determine the aging potential of this type of wine. We can cite, for example: the Chablis appellation, the climate, or even the vintage. The container in which the wine is stored can also influence its aging potential: the larger the container, the greater the aging potential (a magnum, for example, will keep longer than a standard bottle). In general, you can drink a small Chablis within two years of its production. A Chablis can be drunk while it is still young. However, consumers can keep it for up to about seven years. Chablis wines that are classified as crus are distinguished by their exceptional aging potential. In fact, premiers crus can be kept for more than ten years. Chablis grand cru can sometimes be drunk up to 25 years after production. Like all other old vintage wines, this type of wine must be stored correctly to guarantee its quality.

The Chardonnay grape variety

Available under several appellations, including Petit Chablis, Chablis Premier Cru, and Chablis Grand Cru, Chablis white wines are made from the Chardonnay grape variety. This grape variety draws its personality from an old subsoil. It also ripens in good conditions to ensure a good balance between freshness, minerality, and sugar content. It should be noted, however, that the Chablis appellation is characterized by its production areas and, of course, its production conditions.

The terroir for predicting AOC Chablis wines

The large Chablis vineyard is a prestigious and unique terroir. However, it is divided into four distinct areas to produce the four Chablis AOCs. The Premier Cru and AOC Chablis vineyards are located in Exogyra virgula. Composed of marl, these soils are also covered with gravel. As for the Grand Cru vineyards, they are made up of clay-limestone soils, which give the wines their qualities.

What foods pair well with Chablis wines?

If you are considering buying Chablis wine, it is important to know which foods it pairs well with. This wine goes perfectly with poultry. Younger wines, such as premier cru white wines, are excellent with poached fish or goat cheese and hard cheeses. Chablis wine is currently used in Japanese and Indian cuisine. It is also served as an aperitif. Finally, it is entirely possible to pair this wine with desserts to enhance the flavor.

The controlled designation of origin Chablis applies to white wines from Burgundy produced in around twenty communes around the town of Chablis in the Yonne department. The appellation was granted by a decree in 1938. The Chablis vineyards occupy the hillsides bordering the Serein valley. It is a hilly region with peaks that are often wooded. The Chablis vineyards comprise four appellation levels: Chablis Grand Cru, Chablis Premier Cru, Chablis, and Petit-Chablis.

The Chablis vineyard and Chablis Premier Cru lies on stony, clay-limestone soil, geologically belonging to the Jurassic period, with the Kimmeridgian stage being the most prevalent. Summers are hot, winters long and harsh. Levels of sunshine and rainfall vary considerably from year to year, making the quality and quantity of each vintage extremely vulnerable.

Chablis wines and Chablis Premier Cru are made exclusively from Chardonnay, the only grape variety authorized for producing white wines in the vineyard. Chablis wines are very well known, and for many years Chablis has been synonymous with great dry white wine throughout the world.

Finally, the name Chablis Grand Cru is divided into seven distinct climates, each with its own distinct personality: Blanchot, Bougros, Les Clos, Grenouille, Les Preuses, Valmur, and Vaudésir. The excellence of these terroirs is perfectly represented by houses such as Billaud-Simon Estate, the William Fèvre Estate, The Chablisienne - Château Grenouilles or Long-Depaquit...