ONBOARD Magazine summer 2021

FOOD & DRINK
Chardonnay, the most
versatile of grapes
ONBOARD’s wine
guru Brad Mitton
looks at chardonnay
and discusses the
varied styles available
that will tell the story
of where the grape is
grown and how the
fermentation or aging
process changes the
flavour and complexity
of the wine
Chardonnay is an extremely versatile
grape and it grows in most wine
growing regions extremely well.
With diversity of climate and different winemaking
methods, we can split Chardonnay
into three main styles that different people
may like for different reasons as they feel
so different on the palate.
THE CHABLIS STYLE
The lightest style of Chardonnay is the Chablis
style. Produced in a fresh way by cold vat
fermentation and immediate bottling. This
is also called unoaked Chardonnay in some
parts of the world and the wine shows its
basic, fresh and unadulterated characters
of green apple and crisp, malic acid that
fits very well with light seafood dishes for
example oysters, sushi and / or sashimi.
THE WARM CLIMATE STYLE
The second style of Chardonnay, which is
interesting to discuss is the fuller, more
warm climate style that is produced in
southern parts of Europe and the northern
winegrowing regions of the southern
hemisphere. Where there is more sun
there is obviously more ripeness and
Chardonnay then picks up characters of
ripe peach, melon and fuller more tropical
fruit characters.
Some writers call this the Dolly Parton
style, full-bodied and rich in character. These
wines are generally produced unoaked as
the fruit richness is powerful and the style
of Chardonnay goes well with fuller styles
of food like heavier fish dishes, chicken or
veal and other light meat dishes.
THE MONTRACHET STYLE
The third and most complex style of
Chardonnay offers depth in colour and much
richer characters on the palate - this is
the French Montrachet style. These styles
are produced by taking the first-fermented
wine and moving that wine into French
oak barriques. A bacteria is then added
causing malolactic fermentation and this
second fermentation turns the tart and
citrusy malic acids into soft, creamy and
buttery acids that are soft and round on
the palate.
These Chardonnays that go through a
second fermentation in a barrel (burgundy
does this a lot and a great example is
Montrachet) become richer and more
textured. These wines also pick up the
characters from the barrel which are often
toasted and this gives the wine some vanilla
pod and nutty (almond / walnut) characters.
In fact, you can often detect caramel and
vanilla ice cream in the aromas.
It is quite interesting to understand these
three styles of Chardonnay before picking
through a wine list. If you like fresh and
crisp wines you would probably prefer the
first style. If you like something more fruity
and rich and fuller on the palate you might
like the second style.
The third style is of course the most
expensive and the most powerful and the
best for ageing mainly because the wine
has been through oak contact and the
tiny particles in the wine are protected by
the essences from the sap in the barrels.
It’s been said many times ‘Chardonnay is
the most compelling and popular white wine
in the world, because it is the red wine of
whites, It’s so complex, so interesting’ .
I would suggest trying them all out with
suitable food pairings or nicely chilled as
an aperitif and making up your own mind!
EVALUATING WINES
Sight / Smell / Taste
To really get to know the wine you’re drinking,
here are some simple points to note to give
you a better idea of the balance, integrity
and quality. So, get your bottle opened up
and get started!
Check the colour over a white cloth or paper
There are several reasons why a wine may
have more or less colour:
1. It is older (as wines age, whites go
darker from pale yellow-green all the way
to brown; reds go lighter from bright
purple to brick red/brown).
2. Different grape varieties exhibit a
different colour from their diverse skin
pigments.
3. White wines aged in wood, usually oak,
may exhibit a darker colour.
ONBOARD | SUMMER 2021 | 111