All about Chardonnay Wines

Author: Kari McNair

Chardonnay is the most diverse and most planted white wine grape in the world, especially in wine producing areas ranging from England to NewZealand. Chardonnay wines are flatteringly easy to enjoy thanks to theirbroad exuberant charms, relatively high alcohol, low acidity and lack of a powerful scent. In relation to its growth, it is a relatively low maintenance plant that adapts well to varieties of climate change with high yields.

There are many types of Chardonnay wines: dry to medium dry, pear,apple,tropical or citrus flavors and crisp, fresh no oak aging capabilities.Sometimes, wine chardonnay might be creamy and buttery with vanilla, spice and oak flavors. As most wine lovers say, the fun in wine tasting comes from the aroma, especially with chardonnay wines. These wines have varieties of aromas: treefruit (apple,pear,peach), citrusfruit (lemon,grapefruit,orange), tropicalfruit (pineapple,melon,banana) and oak (vanilla,spice and smoke). Chardonnay wineflavorsdepend highly on the climate of their growing regions. Incases of warmer climate wine chardonnay,yellow apple,pineapple and Meyer lemon are common flavors with the texture being a little wider and fatter on the tongue. The alcohol content in these wines is high while the acidity less. These can be found in regions such as Australia,California and Argentina. Greenapple, lemon lime and tingly cement rock are just some of theflavors of chardonnay wines grown in coolerclimates. White wine chardonnay grown in these areas tends to be of a high level quality. These areas include France,Oregon and parts of Chile.

White wine chardonnay can be paired with a variety of foods. Whendrinking crisp wine, fish and seafood are more preferable. For oaky wine, smoked white meats and creamy sauces are a better option while for elegant wine, grilledchicken; porkroast and veal are ideal. Also, chardonnay can be paired withspices and herbs such as tarragon, parsley and shallots, cheese and vegetables.

Despite the fact that chardonnay produces a high yield, itposes a variety of challenges in the vineyard. In warm climates, grapes lose their natural acidity leading to flat, overblown wines; however, this is corrected with the addition of acid or early harvesting of the crop compensating for the lack of flavor by using oak or moalolactic fermentation. Moalolacticfermentation is an additional fermentation that gives the wine an oily texture,turning the tart malic acid into smooth lactic acid. Withcooler climates, the vines bud and flower early in the season making them susceptible to spring frost. This has however been corrected through the set up of braziers between the vine rows to create frost preventing air currents.

Due to the broad range, styles and structures of chardonnay wines, it is undoubtedly surprising that there is a versatile image and strong preference to both wine lovers and growers. This wine has a wide combination of food pairings and can accommodate variable palates. Chardonnay is a taste savoring wine intended to please the palate.

About the Author:

This article was written by the Marketing Coordinator at Big Cork Vineyards.They have the best quality of flavorful and aromatic red & white wines at their wineries. They offer a wide variety of delicious red & white wine categories like merlot wine, wine chardonnay, malbec wine, syrah wine and many more.