One reason we wanted to go to Burgundy in 2014 was that we wanted to go back to the wine town called Chablis. Here in the Saint-Aignan area, Walt had been buying a few bottles of white wine from a winery in Chablis every year at an event where winemakers from all around France bring their wines to a local winery and do tastings as well as sell bottles of the wines they make. We thought it would be fun to go see what the winery in Chablis was like.
We had been to Chablis several times before, as early as 1993 — we were on our way to Provence from Paris back then and had a picnic lunch in Chablis — and as recently as October 2011, when we had a really nice lunch in a restaurant in Chablis. Only white wines are made in Chablis. The grape grown there is Chardonnay, whereas the white wines of Touraine, Sancerre, and Pouilly-sur-Loire are made from Sauvignon Blanc grapes.
In his World Atlas of Wine, Hugh Johnson writes: "...Chablis is one of the great inimitable originals. Chardonnay responds to its cold terroir of limestone clay with flavours that no-one can reproduce in easier (or any other) winegrowing conditions." Chablis is in northern Burgundy, only 100 miles from Paris, and the climate there is harsh. Springtime frosts and freezes are frequent.
Johnson adds that Chablis wine is "hard but not harsh, reminiscent of stones and minerals, but at the same time of green hay; when it is young it actually looks green... Grand Cru Chablis tastes important, strong, almost immortal. And indeed it does last a remarkably long time; a strange and delicious sort of sour taste enters into it when it reaches about ten years of age, and its golden-green eye flashes meaningfully." How's that for hyperboly? Johnson says that in France only Sancerre wine compares to Chablis. I think I'd add Pouilly Fumé to that list.
We did find the winery, and bought a carton (six bottles) of Chablis from different vineyard parcels to see if we could detect different flavors and styles. Johnson says that Chablis has experienced a great renaissance over the past 50 years, after seeing its vineyards dwindle to less than a thousand acres over the first half of the 20th century. Critics and experts say quality has declined as production has increased, but Johnson concludes that "on balance Chablis is as good as ever — and maybe better."
Didn’t we go to Chablis, in 2010, when we went to Pontigny Abbey, Auxerre and Varzy?
ReplyDeleteDid you ever tasted Petit Gris de Toul when you were in Metz?
DeleteIt was in 2011. And no, I don't think I've ever tasted the Gris de Toul wine, though I've heard of them. I may have tasted them in fact, because nearly every week I had choucroute garnie in a restaurant in Metz and I must have had a glass of wine with the meal. Maybe some of it was the Petit Gris.
DeleteI have learned so much about wine, from reading your blog, Ken.
ReplyDeleteI'm learning so much from you about wines! - and so painlessly, because you impart the background information in a brief and conversational way. We have always been fans of Petit Chablis and non-oaky Chablis as well. Your post sent me down the rabbit hole to find out the difference between Petit Chablis and Chablis. Found a decent article about that, but it did veer into those vigneron flavor descriptions that are sometimes helpful, sometimes over the top - "On top of the customary notes of white flowers, gunflint and citrus, you can get notes of mint, sous-bois, liquorice and hay."
ReplyDeleteThese wine posts are good reading. I was in the Dijon area in 1995 on a bike tour. I fell off by bike the first day, but managed to stay put for the next few days. I didn't fully appreciate all the different wines, but got to see the hard terrain where the grapes were grown. I'm at the point in my life that I wish I could redo my trips.
ReplyDeleteYes, add me to the list learning a lot about wine from these wonderful posts. Chablis is something we do not see a lot of here, on menus, or in stores. I don't know why.
ReplyDeleteThis is wonderful! I just wish I could memorize Johnson's description of chablis for when I'm out with snobs (none of MY friends, - hee-hee!) and I could casually make a comment about the wine! Your photo of the vineyard with the red bulldozer parked in front is so interesting with those diaganol rows!
ReplyDeleteThere is always much to learn from your posts. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteSo, could you discern differences between the Chablis from different parcels?
ReplyDeleteI've given up on wine--my lead palette can't do a thing.
All i can remember is that we had our favorites, but the names have faded from memory. We didn't buy any Grands crus (too expensive, needing long aging and we don't have a real cellar with stable temperatures). We had some Premiers Crus, some Chablis-Villages, and some Petit Chablis, though.
DeleteMake that "palate."
ReplyDeleteGreat wine descriptions. I once knew someone whose orange tabby cat was named Chablis. More for his color, I think, than for what he drank. :-)
ReplyDeleteThat's a good one, Emm! My tabby is grey/black and brown? Isn't chablis white or clear?
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