Chardonnay

Chardonnay is a green grape variety which is used to make white wine. It is believed to be groen  first in the Burgundy  region in the east of France and is nowadays grown wherever wines are produced, from England to America. There is no doubt that the grape’s popularity during the revolution of wines and their varieties has made grapes such as French Colombard, Thompson Seedless and Chenin Blanc vulnerable to the Chardonnay. Its dominating status in the market can easily be seen as the  wine buying public calls this wine  “Chard.”

The Chardonnay grape is a “low-maintenance” vine that adapts to different types of climates. This  climatic advantage results in fairly high yields worldwide. These high yields are used to make millions of bottles of Chardonnay wines. Depending on where it is  grown and  it's fermentation process the Chardonnay can have different tastes. Chardonnay can taste semi-sweet ,sour or heady. Typical flavors in which the wines are available are apple, tangerine, lemon, lime and oak. Also, Chardonnay is not a "rich man's drink". A surprisingly good chardonnay is easily affordable and can be enjoyed by all.
Chardonnay is a variety that buds early in the season and  ripens relatively early, its thin skin makes it susceptible to rot from pre-seasonal rainfall. The best chardonnays come from cold climates like Burgundy and  Carneros District from California, but the grapes also adapt well to warm regions like Australia. The Chardonnay grape  ripens easily and produces medium or full-bodied wines with rich apple, tropical and various other fruit flavors. Although it can be characteristically described as a crisp and a fruity wine, the best, complex chardonnays, as in Burgundy, are fermented in large oak barrels and put through a secondary fermentation process, which imparts toasty and buttery characteristics to both the wine’s aroma and flavor.
This makes the Chardonnay wine as special as it is.

Pronunciation
SHAAR-DOE-NAY

Synonyms

• Breisgauer Sussling
• Clevner Weiss
• Petite Sainte Marie
• Weißer Rulander
• Chaudenet
• Cravner
• Pinot Blanc Chardonnay
• Burgundi Feher
• Epinette Blanc
• Pinot Giallo
• Melon D'Arbois
• Ericey Blanc
• Luizannais
• Chaudenay
• Auvernas
• Arnoison
• Grosse Bourgogne
• Pinot Blanc à Cramant
• Aubain
• Sainte Marie
• Breisgauer Suessling
• Lisant
• Chatey Petit
• Epinette Blanche
• Später Weiß Burgunder
• Pino Shardone

Due to the recognition of the name "Chardonnay", many of the above synonyms are not used today as winemakers use the more marketable name -Chardonnay.
History

For much of its history, there was a connection between Chardonnay and Pinot blanc. In addition to being found in the same region of France for centuries, scientists noted that the leaves of each plant have almost identical shape ,structure and other characteristics. Many people disagreed with this assessment. They believed that Chardonnay was not related to any other major grape variety. World-famous viticulturalists like  Maynard Amerine  and Harold Olmo proposed chardonnay’s descendency from a wine named Vitis vinifera that was a step removed from white Muscat. Chardonnay's true origins were f obscured by vineyard owners in Lebanon and Syria, who claimed that the wine's ancestry could be traced to the Middle East, from where it was introduced to Europe , though there is little  evidence to support this theory.
Viticulture
Chardonnay has a reputation for its relative ease of cultivation and its ability to adapt to various conditions. It is believed that the grape reflects and takes on the impression of its winemaker. It is a vigorous vine which has extensive leaf cover and  can inhibit the nutrient uptake of its grape clusters. Vineyard managers usually counteract this with extensive pruning and canopy management. Chardonnay vines , when planted densely, are forced to compete for resources and funnel energy into their clusters. In some conditions the vines are high-yielding, but the wine manufactured from such grapes will have a negative affect on their quality. If the yields from grapes go much beyond 4.8 tons per acre then the production of premium Chardonnay becomed less than half this amount. Sparkling wine producers are concerned mostly with the wine's finesse and do not give much importance to other aspects of viticultre.

Harvesting time is important in the process of winemaking, as the grape rapidly loses acidity as it ripens. Some hazards include the damage to the grapes  from spring season frost, as Chardonnay is an early budding wine. To combat frost, a method has been developed which involves aggressive pruning just before flowering. This delays the flowering by two weeks, which is long enough for the weather to change till it becomes warm. Sometimes the powdery mildew attacks the skin of the grapes which has to be taken care of by the winegrowers. Due to its early ripening, Chardoonay can grow  in regions with a short growing season and can be harvested before the autumn rain sets in and brings the threat of rot.
Cardonnay grows very well in  chalk, clay and limestone types of soils. These types of soils are prevalent in France.  Chalk beds are found throughout the Champagne region, and there are many areas in France which are composed of limestone and clay. The amount of limestone to which the grapes are exposed  seems to have some effect on the wine produced.
In the  Les Perrieres vineyard, the top layer of soil is 11 inches above the limestone and the wine from ths region is much more powerful and has high  mineral content. It also needs to be put  longer in the bottle to be developed fully. In other areas, type of soil can compensate for unfavourable climatic conditions and weather. In the Africa region the  high clay levels in the soil tend to produce lower-yielding wine while the wine produced  sandstone-based vineyards tend to be rich in quality.
Food Pairing
Chardonnay can be paired well with poultry dishes, pork, seafood and recipes that have a heavy cream or butter base. Also  pairing unoaked Chardonnay with guacamole, garlic, salads, grilled shrimp or even curry dishes can yield good results.
With a long following, Chardonnay wines are very versatile , with vintners offering a broad range of styles and structures. The regional influences of Chardonnay can help it pair with different food styles. Chardonnays from Washington, which is characterized by maintaining more acidity, tend to pair well with tomato-based dishes and items featuring sweet onions. From rich, buttery Chardonnays that have power and presence to the unoaked fruit ones that allow the varietal character and expression to be in the spotlight, this wine is capable of accomodating most palates and just as many food pairing combinations.
If you prefer a big buttery Chardonnay then look for ones that have been through malolactic fermentation, as they will yield the compound diacetyl, which makes up the dominant scent of fake butter used in microwave popcorn and imitation butter flavorings used in baked goods.
Regions
France
Chardonnay is the second most planted white grape variety  behind Ugni blanc in France. Champagne, Chablis and Burgundy account for most of  Chardonnay plantings. By the year 2000, there was more than 25000 acres of Chardonnay grapes planted with many being used for the production of wines. These wines were unique in a way that they were some of the first examples of Chardonnay to be market labeled as "Chardonnay”. Other French wine regions include Alsace, Ardèche, Jura, the Loire Valley and Savoie. In the Loire, up to 20% of Chardonnay are used for making Chenin blanc based wines of Anjou blanc and producers use  the grape to soften Chenin blanc.
North America

The Chardonnay winemakers found another region where the grape could produce a style of wine that was  different than the wine produced in France. The Chardonnay produced in France had a greater taste as compared to its French counterpart. This was how Chardonnay spread to various parts of America, specially to California. Except California this wine is also found in Oregon, Texas,  Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, , Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire. In North America this wine in also grown in Canada but to a lesser extent.
Australia and New-Zealand
The Chardonnay wine  first came to Australia in the year of  1832, but it only gained popularity in the 1950s.The export dependent Australian wine industry was ready for the Chardonnay boom of the 1980s and 1990s and it  responded in a unique style of wine that was characterized by good fruit flavors and easy approachability. The most commercially successful Chardonnay was produced in Australia in the year 1971 by Murray Tyrell.
During the period of the 80’s and 90’s the number of Chardonnay grape plantings increased  and by the year 1990 it was the most planted white wine grape in the Austalian continent and the third most planted overall.
The style of Australian Chardonnay is mostly characterized by the mass production of  products in the  Riverland region. The Victoria regions with their relatively cold climates produce wines with a touch of lime. Western Australia produces Chardonnay that  closely resembles the ones of Chablis. The wine made from the clone present in mudgee region is not particularly distinguished, but it can still be of very good quality. It is thought to have been discovered in 19th century.
While many New Zealand winemakers are still keen on developing a characteristic style, the Chardonnay produced till now  emphasize the grape's affinity for oak.The acidity and leanness in the wine are a special quality of the wines grown in the areas of North Island, like Hawke's Bay and Wairarapa. Some producers in the Gisborne region have developed a cult following for the Chardonnay among New Zealand’s wine drinkers.
Italy
Chardonnay has a long history in Italy mainly because it was confused with Pinot blanc.This was because both the wines blendd together and could grow in the same wineyard. In the Trentino-Alto Adige region the confusion appeared in the synonyms for each grape with Pinot blanc being known as "Weissburgunder". Chardonnay was known as "Gelber Weissburgunder".By the 20th century a lot of efforts were put to develop special characteristics of the Chardonnay wine and by 2000, it was Italy's fourth most  planted white wine grape. Though most of the plantings are located in the Northern ranges they are found in the southern regions as well. In Piedmont and Tuscany regions, the grape is planted in sites that are less favorable to Sangiovese respectively.
Other Regions
Chardonnay can be found in cooler climate sites in Greece, Israel  as well as in Austria, Bulgaria, England, Germany, Hungary, Moldova, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain ,Switzerland and Georgia. The Austrian Chardonnays range from rich and oaked-aged varieties to the leaner and aromatic styles based on Austrian Rieslings to the sweet late harvest styles. In Switzerland, Chardonnay is found mostly in the regions around Bündner Herrschaft, Geneva and Valais.