Chablis

Question 1

Appellations Classification + Number

Answer 1

Petit Chablis AOC

Chablis AOC

Chablis Premier Cru (40)

Chablis Grand Cru (7)

Question 2

Chablis Grand Crus, from South East to North:

Answer 2

Blanchot
Les Clos
Valmur
Grenouilles
Vaudésir
Preuses
Bougros

Question 3

Chablis well-known producers:

Answer 3

Jean-Marc Brocard

William Fèvre

Dauvissat

Raveneau

La Chablisienne (cooperative)

Question 4

Chablis: Located in the valley of which river?

Answer 4

Serein

Question 5

Chablis History

Answer 5

• Early 19th century: Popular in Paris (proximity) leads to boom
• (1856) Railway opening –> competition with (cheaper) wines of South of France
• (1886-1887): Powdery mildew & Phylloxera
• After WW2: Rural depopulation
• 1945: Devastating frost
  = (Chablis reduced to 500 ha)
  Nowadays around 5500 ha

Question 6

Chablis: Climate

Answer 6

Continental: Warm summers, cold winters

Question 7

Chablis: Weather hazards

Answer 7

Northern location - Uncertainty about ripening - Vintage variation

Spring frost: Harming buds and shoots - affecting yield

Rainfall –> Moist climate - Fungal diseases & rot

Question 8

Chablis rainfall

Answer 8

670 mm/year

Question 9

Frost management (Chablis & Burgundy)

Answer 9

• Smudge pots: Polluting, smoky & requires staff to operate them
• Sprinkles: Aspersion system where the water on the berries forms a wall when frosted and helps preserve the latent warmth of the berries. - Cost money to install and maintain & wind cannot guarantee proper aspersion on own vines
• Pruning choices: Pruning later to promote a later bud-burst (avoiding the early spring frosts)
• Electric cabling: Cleaner than smudge pots, raises ambient temperature, operated at night benefiting from France’s lower electricity rates at night time

Question 10

Chablis rootstocks:

Answer 10

41B - Tolerant to high Ph of limestone soils

420A - Tolerant to high Ph of limestone soils & low vigour

Question 11

Chablis training

Answer 11

Double Guyot (if one cane fails, the other might survive)

Question 12

Chablis yield

Answer 12

Higher than in Côte d’Or

Affected due to frost & hails

Question 13

Chablis picking

Answer 13

Machine harvest popular in great parts of Chablis

Manual picking for Grand Crus (too steep slopes for machine harvesting)

Question 14

Chablis soils

Answer 14

Kimmeridgian soils: Grand Crus & Premier Crus

Portlandian soils: Chablis & Petit Chablis

Question 15

What is kimmeridgian soil?

What is portlandian soil?

Answer 15

Kimmeridgian: A mix of limestone + calcareous clay with fossilized seashells / chalky marl, though with thin marly limestone containing rich layers of seashells –> gives a mineral profile to the wine

Portlandian: Hard limestone, little clay –> give a fruitier, less mineral profile to the wine

Question 16

How many Chablis Grand Crus?

Answer 16

7

Question 17

How many Chablis Premier Crus?

Answer 17

40

Question 18

Chablis Grand Crus topography:

Answer 18

(Right next to the village itself)

Steep slopes
South-west facing
- Better sunlight interception
- Shelter from winds
- Good drainage
Soils: Kimmeridgian. Crumbly marl & high content in clay (high water retention)

• -> PROMOTE RIPENING
• -> Wine style: Mineral, with weight and concentration. Fuller body, capacity to age

Question 19

Chablis Premier Crus topography:

Answer 19

Slopes
South / Sout-east facing aspects
- Better sunlight interception
- Shelter from winds
- Good drainage
Soils: Kimmeridgian (marl+limestone+clay+seashells)

Wine style: Fruity, round and concentrated

Question 20

Chablis AOC topography:

Answer 20

Large area
Mixed aspects - many North facing
Predominantly flat lands & gentle slopes

–> Wine style: Light body, high acidity, medium intensity, green apple, lemon

Question 21

Petit Chablis AOC topography:

Answer 21

Higher & cooler vineyards

Portlandian soils - mostly limestone little clay

Question 22

Chablis Winemaking:

Answer 22

• Chaptalisation allowed to legal limits
• Fermentation in stainless steel typically - storage in steel or concrete
• Malolactic: YES - to soften acidity
• Lees: Sometimes - to enhance texture
• Use of oak - Usually NO

Question 23

Use of oak in Chablis

Answer 23

Oak DOES NOT define Chablis - it is a controversial topic

Sometimes used for Premier and Grand Crus - but depending on producers.

• Some new oak producer: William Févre
• Barely any new oak: Jean-Marc Brocard
• Use of old oak: Vincent Dauvissat & Domaine Francois Raveneau

Question 24

Chablis Maximum Yields

Answer 24

Petit Chablis: 60hL/Ha
Chablis: 60hL/Ha
Chablis Premier Cru: 58hL/Ha
Chablis Grand Cru: 54hL/Ha

Question 25

Chablis Trade players:

Answer 25

• Négociants
• Domaines
  (Line between negociants & domaines becoming thin)
• Growers
• Cooperatives: “La Chablisienne” producers 1/3 of Chablis, at all levels
  ______
  Associations

Question 26

Chablis associations:

Answer 26

• Le syndicat de Defénse de l’Appellation de Chablis
  (1993 by William Févre - to combat fraud and address environmental issues)
• L’Union des Grand Crus de Chablis
  (voluntary association - promote quality.
  (Charter for sustainable viticulture –> Must hand harvest

Question 27

Chablis main export markets:

Answer 27

1. UK
2. USA
3. Sweeden
4. Japan
5. Canada

Question 28

Chablis price drivers

Answer 28

• Domaine name

- Appellation