Wackus Bacchus talks about Chardonnay
Chardonnay is the fifth most widely planted grape in the world, behind what you ask? Well behind 1 Cabernet Sauvignon, 2 Merlot, 3 Tempranillo and 4 Airen (Spanish white).
It’s easy to grow and relatively easy to make a huge variety of individual styles from crisp, light peachy sparklers to complex, rich, full-flavoured dry whites.
It’s my favourite go-to wine, particularly if it’s from its spiritual home, Burgundy in central France. There it’s been cultivated for centuries and produces some of the finest whites wines in the world, albeit quality like this does not come cheap. Despite its long history, it’s relatively recently that it’s become well known. Maybe because the wines were not labelled with the grape variety but the village or commune (appellation) where they were grown. It was only in the early eighties that Australia went gung ho for the grape, and following that the rest of the world, including France. In fairness California had had it a decade earlier but sales were domestic.
One way of trying affordable Burgundy is to go for Macon in the south of the region and here we compare with cool climate Aussie Chardy’s.
Macon Villages Uchizy 2016 M
&S £12
From the tiny village of Uchizy,straw white,clean, fresh honeysuckle aromas, lovely minerally attack, white peach middle and long dry finish. Beautifully crafted wine.
Macon Villages Louis Jadot 2016 Waitrose £11.99 Deeper yellow, delicate citrus nose. Full flavoured attack, again minerality typical of the region, with a nicely weighted pineapple character on its pleasing finish.
Craft 3 Chardonnay Adelaide Hills 2016 M&S £10 Very pale lemon, stone fruit aromas which carry on through to the palate, apricot and nectarine, with crisp balancing acidity, the hallmark of cool climate and no apparent oak.
Hill-Smith Estate Chardonnay 2015 Eden Valley Waitrose £11.99 Pale lemon, attractive creamy vanilla aromas.
Rich and full flavoured palate, well textured with a lick of oak. True to its provenance but with more than a nod
to well-made Burgundy.
