| Wine region | |
 | |
| Type | Appellation d'origine contrôlée |
|---|---|
| Year established | 1938 |
| Country | France |
| Part of | Burgundy |
| Total area | 6,834 ha (16,890 acres) |
| Size of planted vineyards | 4,820 ha (11,900 acres) |
| Varietals produced | Chardonnay (Beaunois) |
Chablis (pronounced [ʃabli]) is the northernmost Appellation d'origine contrôlée of the Burgundy region in France. Its cool climate produces wines with more acidity and less fruitiness than Chardonnay vines grown in warmer ones. These often have a "flinty" note, sometimes described as "goût de pierre à fusil" ("tasting of gunflint"), and sometimes as "steely". The Chablis AOC is required to use Chardonnay grapes solely.
The grapevines around the town of Chablis make a dry white wine. In comparison with the white wines from the rest of Burgundy, Chablis wine has typically much less influence of oak. The amount of barrel maturation, if any, is a stylistic choice which varies widely among Chablis producers. Many Grand Cru and Premier Cru wines receive some maturation in oak barrels, but typically the time in barrel and the proportion of new barrels is much smaller than for white wines of Côte de Beaune.[1] Wines not vinified in barrel will instead be vinified in stainless steel.
- ^ J. Robinson (ed) "The Oxford Companion to Wine" Third Edition pp. 148–149 Oxford University Press 2006 ISBN 0-19-860990-6.