The ABCs and NBCs of Chardonnay - Part 3

In last week’s blog we covered the key regions where Chardonnay is grown and the different styles produced in each of these regions. In this final installment of our deep dive on Chardonnay, I’ll answer the three most frequently asked questions I get about Chardonnay.

Chardonnay is ubiquitous at happy hours, wine tastings, and on wine lists at restaurants across the U.S. Laurie and I always have a few bottles of Chardonnay on hand, and when we host wine tasting dinners and happy hours we almost always include a bottle of Chardonnay in the mix because it’s such a crowd pleaser. And it also generates a lot of conversation as well, since Chardonnay is both admired and pilloried in equal measure! As a result, I get a lot of questions about Chardonnay when I’m talking wine with friends and family.

I thought it would be helpful (and fun!) to share the most frequently asked questions I get about Chardonnay, and my answers to those questions as we wrap up this deep dive into all things Chardonnay!

Question 1: The number of Chardonnays available at wine stores is overwhelming and I don’t know where to start. What’s the best way for me to figure out what style of Chardonnay I like best and what bottles I will enjoy?

Even I’m overwhelmed when I walk into some wine stores and am faced with choosing from hundreds of different bottlings of Chardonnay. But in the end, it’s a relatively easy process to identify the style of Chardonnay you like best, and then find bottles in the store that reflect that same style. There are many factors that drive how a wine made from Chardonnay grapes will taste, but as I mentioned previously, two of the most influential ones are the climate in which the grapes were grown (cool vs. warm weather climate) and the use of oak when aging the wine (oaked vs. unoaked wines).

In cooler climates – like the Chablis region of Burgundy in France or Oregon – the grapes ripen more slowly and as a result, the sugar content is lower and acidity is higher in the grapes, making the wine taste leaner and more acidic. In warmer climates – like Napa Valley or Sonoma County in California – the heat ripens the grapes more quickly and sugar content is much higher, making the wine taste fruitier, bigger, and less acidic.

Oak was initially used as a vessel to store wines in as they age, but over time it was discovered that oak also changed the taste of the wine by creating a softer, smoother wine and enhancing the flavors and complexity of the wine. Some of the flavors attributed to oak aging include vanilla, butter, smoke, and coconut. New oak barrels and aging for extended time in barrels imparts more intense flavors, while using older oak barrels and aging for less time provides for more subtle and nuanced infusion of flavors and character.

To figure out what style of Chardonnay you like the best, I’d recommend conducting a “paired tasting” that focuses on these two influential factors. To do this, pick four wines to taste in pairs (I can help you pick the wines or your local wine merchant can guide you to the right bottles). The first pairing will be a cool-climate Chardonnay from Chablis, the most northern and coolest region of the Burgundy region in France and a warmer-climate Chardonnay from Sonoma, CA. The second pairing will be an unoaked Chardonnay and an oaked Chardonnay from Napa, CA. Taste each pair together and note which one you like the most, and why. Did you like the leaner, more acidic style from the cooler climate or the more fruit-forward style from the warmer climate wine? Did you like the richer, full-bodied and buttery flavors of the oaked wine or the lighter and more restrained style of the unoaked wine?

If you didn’t prefer a particular style of wine, that’s good news! It means you like all styles of Chardonnay so you can’t go wrong picking out a bottle and you don’t need to worry much about where it comes from or whether it’s oaked or not. If you liked the cooler climate wines and the leaner style, then you should seek out wines like Chablis, or from cooler growing areas like Oregon, or New York wines (including wines from Long Island as well as upstate NY). Warmer climate wine your favorite? Then you can’t go wrong with any California or Australian Chardonnays. If you preferred the unoaked wines, then there are plenty of them available in stores these days and they are labeled as such. If a Chardonnay isn’t labeled specifically as unoaked, then assume it has spent some time in an oak barrel and will include some of the flavor profiles discussed above. For something in the middle, go with a nice French Burgundy as a compromise.

Question 2: Which style of Chardonnay do you like best? How about Laurie?

Laurie and I really enjoy all styles of Chardonnay, so we keep our wine refrigerator stocked with a wide range of Chardonnays to suit any particular mood we might be in. But we tend to like the leaner, lightly oaked or unoaked style of Chardonnay the best – we find them more food friendly and refreshing than their more heavily oaked counterparts.

Question 3: What specific bottles of Chardonnay do you like the most and which ones would you recommend at different price points?

This is such a hard question because there are so many great bottlings of Chardonnay out there. But as a starting point, here’s a list of Laurie’s and my favorite California Chardonnays at three different price points:

• Budget-friendly Chardonnays: Robert Mondovi Private Selection Chardonnay ($8), Bogle Chardonnay ($9), Hess Select Chardonnay Monterey ($10), Wente Chardonnay Morning Fog ($10), Kendall Jackson Chardonnay ($8), and Edna Valley Chardonnay ($10)

• Mid-priced Chardonnays: Talbott Kali Hart Monterey Chardonnay ($16), La Crema Chardonnay Sonoma Coast ($15), Chalk Hill Chardonnay Sonoma Coast ($15), Decoy by Duckhorn Chardonnay ($14), Cambria Chardonnay Katherine’s Vineyard ($15), Chehalem INOX Chardonnay ($20), and Kendall Jackson Avant Chardonnay ($11)

• Premium Chardonnays: Far Niente Chardonnay ($50), Ramey Chardonnay Russian River ($35), Patz & Hall Chardonnay Hyde Vineyard ($65), Chateau Montelena Chardonnay Napa ($55), Chalk Hill Chardonnay Estate ($32), Nickel & Nickel Chardonnay Truchard Vineyard ($40), Cakebread Chardonnay Napa ($50), and Shafer Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay ($51).

So, now that you know everything you need to know about Chardonnay, get out there and explore this wonderful variety – you won’t be disappointed!