World Of Wine Winter 2019

WHITE WINES
This grape variety has
to be one of the most
polarising. It is important
to note that there is no
one Chardonnay style, with terroir
and winemaking decisions able to
effect considerable variation in this
fantastic grape. Increasingly, the
style, shape and form of Chardonnay
is changing. While the popular
'traditional' creamy, fruity, oaky
and buttery expressions are still
available, a multitude of different
styles are evolving. As a food match,
Chardonnay loves fleshy or weighty
dishes such as smoked salmon or
fettuccine with cream sauces. I’ve had
an oak free Chardonnay with steak
tartare before and it was great.
Evolution and change in
Chardonnay styles, notably from New
Zealand, is inevitable. Viticulture
and winemakers are responding to
changes in weather, soil, environment
and market demands.
Competition for excellent yet
affordable Chardonnay is becoming
tougher. In order to reproduce
traditional expressions under
changing vineyard and growing
conditions, as well as keeping the
price the same or similar, winemakers
have to deploy different approaches
in the winery. The cost of making
fine wine is increasing, and so must
the price to customers to maintain
the standards.
Some wine producers are
embracing these changes by showing
more understanding of style within
style for Chardonnay. Some of
the practices include trialling
more natural winemaking to learn
where the boundary of consumer
acceptance lies and where a new
style may emerge. Less preservative,
no additives, less oak handing, small
batch wine making, different yeast
strains, high solids ferment, extended
lees ageing, concrete egg ferments
instead of steel, oak or plastic are
some of the approaches being
taken. Many of the resulting wines
are world-class. W
Chardonnay
a wine for all
reasons
22 WORLD OF WINE – WINTER 2019