Unoaked Chardonnay has been aged or fermented in stainless steel tanks instead of oak barrels.
The unoaked Chardonnay taste is quite different from that of it’s buttery sister. These notes can make the wine appear sweeter, and many people who think Chardonnay is sweet have only tried heavily-oaked versions.īut, despite this signature buttery sensation, an oaked Chardonnay is still quite a dry wine. This style of fermentation is popular in Burgundy, Napa Valley, South Africa, Southern Australia, and Puglia, Italy.Ĭhardonnay that has been oaked will express warmer, creamier notes of butter, vanilla, pineapple, papaya, coconut, or baking spice. The uncontrolled temperature helps to cause malolactic fermentation, which affects the texture and flavor of the wine. Oaked Chardonnay tasting notesĪnd oaked Chardonnay is one that has been fermented or aged in oak barrels. Let’s take a look at these very different fermentation processes for Chardonnay wine, and the flavor profiles of the wines that result from them. One of the most important factors in a Chardonnay wine’s taste is the winemaking process. That way, you can identify the best bottles of Chardonnay for your tastes and answer the question “is Chardonnay sweet or dry?” with confidence. Let’s touch on what causes each of these unique flavor profiles. It can also have notes of chalk, wet stones, mushrooms, caramel, and nutmeg. Some bottles are remarkably buttery, while others have an acidic zing.Ī sip of Chardonnay can conjure notions of jasmine, honeysuckle, cucumber, and mint. Others tends toward tropical flavors of pineapple and mango. Some Chardonnay wines have notes of lemon-peel and crisp pear. (This doesn’t mean it can’t be sweet – we will get into this later.)īut it can be difficult to describe how a Chardonnay wine tastes because no two bottles are the same.
In general, Chardonnay is a fruit-forward wine with medium-to-full body and lower acidity levels. And so, Chardonnay quickly spread from Burgundy to most major wine regions in the world, including the United States, Chile, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The grapes wer easy to grow and the flavors were a dream to mold with winemaking techniques. Terroir is a wine term used to describe the soil and climate of the winemaking area. They are also naturally neutral grapes, which means they take on the flavors and characteristics of the terroir where they are planted. They are robust and fares well in a variety of climates. The resulting Chardonnay grapes wer a godsend. It’s a cross between two varieties of grape: Pinot Noir and the nearly-extinct Gouais Blanc. The Chardonnay grape is a green-skinned grape that originated in the Burgundy region of France. What is Chardonnay? Why, it’s the most enjoyable white wine grape to grow! What is Chardonnay – and how does it taste? That way, you can find the perfect bottles for any event. You’re about to learn how it’s made, and if Chardonnay is sweet or dry. We even use it to make Champagne!Īnd so, we think it’s important for you to learn a little bit more about what Chardonnay wine is.
Chardonnay is an incredibly sophisticated grape. This makes Chardonnay incredibly enjoyable to explore – but also a bit difficult to describe.Ĭhardonnay got a bad reputation in the 80s because of some heavy-handed winemaking, but it’s important to not discount the variety from one style alone. There are many styles to make Chardonnay wine in, and many wineries making it, that you’ll never come across the exact same sip twice. That’s because it has one of the largest flavor ranges of any wine out there – red or white. But these same people may not know the answer to the question: “Is Chardonnay sweet or dry?”Įven some seasoned wine drinkers might be confused on whether Chardonnay is sweet or dry. That’s because Chardonnay is the most popular white wine grape in the world. If you asked any beginning wine drinker to name a white wine, they would probably say Chardonnay.