No, you don’t hate Chardonnay. Here’s why it’s your favourite grape
Here’s why you love Chardonnay (yes, really), by our wine columnist Libby Brodie
Move over Christmas, take a sidestep Easter, because this Thursday 21 May it is National Chardonnay Day. For any of the ABC crowd (those who drink ‘anything but Chardonnay’) I am here to tell you that you love this grape… and you don’t even realise it.
Chardonnay is Champagne. In fact, if you are enjoying a crisp, ethereal Blanc de Blancs it is going to be 100% chardonnay, as is a prettily effervescent Crémant de Bourgogne.
Chardonnay is also Chablis, that perfect accompaniment to a plate of oysters. One sip of this chiselled wine with the slippery salinity of an oyster and you could be kicking your heels up at any chic little coastal bistro.
It is a Pouilly-Fuisse to bring elegance to your Sunday roast chicken or the bright Mâcon to caress the charred purity of a seared scallop.
And it is the grape that creates the beloved, wallet-breaking white Burgundy. But the French are not alone in their love. Chardonnay is incredibly versatile: each country, region and maker can create their own vision.
The best Chardonnay to buy
In England, Chardonnay tends to take on crisp green apple notes and whispers of orchard blossom and makes fine boned, crisp sparkling wines. We do make them superbly well. Recently I tried something more unusual from Ark.
Their low intervention still Chardonnay 2022 (arkwines.co.uk £25) is headily perfumed with smoke, pear skin and a zesty nuttiness. Diversity displayed once again.
Sicily’s Planeta is celebrating thirty harvests by releasing their applauded Chardonnay 2024 (Majestic £36). Vibrant, aromatic, with a sunshine filled Mediterranean kiss of ripe stone fruits, this bottle is a reason to party.
Chardonnay from the Old World and the New
Over in the New World, Australia provides both the broad tropical fruit strokes of Yarra Valley and the premium peachiness of Margaret River, but I suggest popping along to Tasmania, where wine is flourishing.
Here the Riversdale Estate Chardonnay 2023 (vinvm.co.uk £55) uses the cool, maritime climate and delicate oak to evoke generously assured wines of fresh white peach and creamy lemon curd, perfect for buttery seafood like lobster spaghetti.
South America is working on increasingly linear, precise styles at high altitude like the sublime Catena White Stones Chardonnay (Hedonism £85).
Bold, brassy glasses
On the flipside, North America’s California is renowned on its bold, brassy glasses like the popular Bread & Butter (Majestic £15.25). If I could nudge West Coast lovers towards something more akin to Au Bon Climat (Majestic £37) from Santa Barbara, then they won’t regret it.
California and Burgundy’s love child, it can satisfy alongside anything from baked brie to grilled fish to chicken pot pie. Let’s banish “ABC”, unless its “Always Buy Chardonnay”.
Read more: Here is the best wine from Australia, from Chardonnay to Shiraz