The Wine Pair Podcast

WTF is Chablis?

• The Wine Pair • Season 1 • Episode 179

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Chablis is a wine we absolutely adore, and we think too many people are just unaware of what a beautiful and fantastic wine it is. If you are thinking, wait, I thought you guys hated Chardonnay, well, you’re not wrong, but specifically, we dislike super oaky Chardonnays. However, we love, love, love Chablis, and we can’t believe we have not done an episode on it before today. It is hard to put into words how much we love Chabils. If you are unsure about what all the hubbub is, or if you think we are exaggerating, we implore you: try some Chablis and drink along while you listen to this episode, and you will quickly change your mind about what a Chardonnay can be. Fruity, complex, elegant, crisp yet smooth, with wonderful minerality, Chablis is a wine almost without parallel, and should be at the top of everyone’s wine list. Whether you are a Chardonnay lover or a Chardonnay doubter, this wine will make you a believer that there is so much more to Chardonnay than oak and vanilla. Wines reviewed in this episode: 2023 Le Vieux Clocher Chablis, 2023 Thomas Labille Chablis.

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Show Notes

Episode #179: WTF is Chablis? (Plus: Umami in wine?)  00:00

Hello fellow wine dweebs! And welcome to The Wine Pair Podcast. I’m Joe, your sommelier of reasonably priced wine, and this is my wife and my wine pairing partner in crime, Carmela. And we are The Wine Pair!

If you are new to our podcast, here is what you can expect. If you love wine and want to find great wines at affordable prices, and you want to expand your wine horizons, and you want to have some laughs and fun while doing it - then you are in the right place! Each week we explore a different wine varietal, style, brand, or region of the winemaking world, and learn about what makes them worth knowing about. And then we taste 2-3 of those wines that are reasonably priced to let you know if they are worth your hard earned money. If that feels like your vibe, then we are super happy you are here. And, we are proud to say that Decanter Magazine calls us fun, irreverent, chatty, and entertaining.

Ok, so we got a great idea from the East Idaho Foodies on IG on the whole “what do we name our tribe” thing, and they think we should do a different one each week. We like this, and we are going to combine it with the sort of contest we have been running. If you send us an idea, and we use it on the podcast, we are going to put you on the podcast for a minute or two. So that includes you, Janyne, who sent us like 5 ideas this week for what we could call all tribe. So, all of you who have already sent us ideas, stay tuned, we are going to reach out and let you know how we’ll get a recording of you done that we can drop into an upcoming episode. So, keep the ideas coming, and if we like what you send, we will put you on the pod.

Carmela for the wine this week we are covering a wine that I am really surprised we have never covered before - and that is Chablis. Those of you who have listened to us for a while now know that we really don’t like oaky Chardonnay, it’s just not our thing. It can be your thing, and we are ok with that, but we thought that meant we didn’t like Chardonnay at all, but as we have learned more about wine, we have found out that we really do like unoaked Chardonnay. So, we are finally covering Chablis today because it is the wine that all Chardonnay lovers and Chardonnay haters need to know - and we are convinced that it will change your life, like it did ours.

But first, we are going to talk about wine in the news this week - and if we find something in the news something interesting, intriguing, controversial, or confusing - we’ll talk about it on the show. And please send us anything you find as well.

WIne in the news this week! 03:39

This week, Carnela, I ran across an article called “Oaky, earthy … umami? Here’s why Japanese wine is all the rage.”   Sw, we are going to talk about how Japanese wine is a serious moment, and what does umami in wine mean exactly. How does that sound?

If you did not know that Japan had a native wine industry, there is a reason for that. Compared to the famous wine regions in Europe and the New World, Japan’s wine industry is really small, and doesn’t have a long legacy. But as Lindsay Gasik covers in the National Geographic article I just mentioned, that perception is changing, and changing pretty fast. And we have a link to the article in our show notes if you are curious.

Lindsay says that over the past decade, the number of wineries in Japan has nearly doubled, and is now approaching nearly 500 across the country. And not only is the number of wineries growing, supposedly the quality is growing, too. She says you can now find Japanese wines on Michelin-starred restaurant lists, with some bottles developing cult-like followings.

Normally I would say don’t get involved in cults, but when it comes to wine, I can make an exception. 

She says, and this totally makes sense, that the real change in the success of Japanese wine came when Japanese winemakers stopped trying to imitate the wines of France and California, and instead embraced their own terroir and ways of making wine - which I think is something you see in a lot of newer wine regions. Like, stop trying to make Cabernet Sauvignon if it doesn’t work in your climate!

Today, it is said that some of the most exciting wines in Japan come from tiny, low-intervention wineries producing fewer than 10,000 bottles a year. Which is part of the reason why Japanese wines are hard to find.  Domestically produced Japanese wine accounts for only about 4% of Japan’s total wine consumption, and exports are tiny. Many of the most sought-after bottles sell out in Japan before they ever make it overseas, and when they do, prices are high.

These wines are often described as “umami in a glass.” Crazy, right? Not something you would not expect! And, maybe something you don’t really want, either. 

So what does umami taste in wine actually mean? We usually think of umami as the “fifth taste” along with things like sweet and salty - by the way, that whole thing that different areas of your tongue are sensitive to different flavors is bullshit, but I digress. 

Back to umami - Umami is that savory taste sensation you get from things mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, soy sauce, or a seared steak. In wine,  you can get savory smells and flavors from the fermentation process, or from extended aging in oak, or from certain grapes. It is not unusual for wines to be described as meaty or like wild game, especially wines like Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon

Now, Carmela, here’s where we need to talk: 

  • Do you think “umami in a glass” is a real tasting note, or is it just nerdy wine talk? Is it just people taking flavors that show up in wine and redefining them and calling them umami


But we are not here to talk about Japanese wine or umami or any of that stuff - we are here to talk about the great French wine made from Chardonnay called Chablis, and we have two Chablis wines that we are going to taste and review to see if they are worth your hard earned money  . . . 

But first . . . we have to do our shameless plug.

Thank you for listening to us and for supporting our show, and if you haven’t  had the chance to do so yet, now would be the perfect time to follow or subscribe to our podcast and leave us a nice rating and review  to help us grow our listeners - and a huge thank you to all of you who have subscribed already! 

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And we want to make content you care about and you like, so send us a note or DM us and give us some feedback or let us know if there are wines you want us to try or wine making areas of the world you are curious about - and we’ll take care of it! joe@thewinepairpodcast.com

And, as we do every week, we’ll tell you someone we think you should recommend The Wine Pair Podcast to - because the best way for us to grow listeners is when you tell your family and friends about us - and this week, we want you to recommend us to anyone who is a Chardonnay doubter, like us, because Chablis just might knock their socks off


RESEARCH ARTICLES AND LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE


Topic: WTF is Chablis wine? 11:27

Carmela, let’s spend some time talking about just what the fuck Chablis is. And I’m sorry for swearing, but this is a wine podcast and it is marked as explicit, so if you are surprised by swearing that’s kind of on you. 

The first thing you need to know is that, like a lot of French wines, Chablis is named for the place it’s from, not the grape, as you may have already guessed. Chablis is in the northernmost area of Burgundy in France, and is relatively close to the Champagne region, too. Which is kind of fun - and Chardonnay is a key grape in Champagne, as is Pinot Noir, both from Burgundy, so there. 

The Chablis region of Burgundy has a cooler climate, called semi-continental, and so the Chardonnay grapes that grow there do not get super ripe. This leads to juice that is lean and high in acid. Most of the Chardonnay that is grown in Burgundy comes from regions that are further south, and in those regions, the grapes are less acidic and generally become riper because the weather is warmer.

Chablis is also unique in Burgundy because of its soils which are known as Kimmeridgian limestone soils - these limestone soils are found in other places in England and the Loire, and yes, I had to look up what that meant, and it means the soils are made of ancient sea creature fossils and shells and stuff. Although we are told by science that soil does not impart flavor into wine - check out our minisode on that subject - nonetheless, these soils do offer a unique base for the grapes to grow in which has high drainage. 

As we have been mentioning, Chablis is usually unoaked, which is what we think makes it so great, and so different from most Chardonnays you find in Burgundy, or California, and some other places where, frankly, we think there is too much oak used. Rather than putting their wines in oak, winemakers in Chablis often use stainless steel. If they do use oak, they often use neutral oak, also known as old or used oak, which will allow some air into the wine, but will avoid the heavy vanilla or tones that are often in Chardonnay which is usually oaked in new oak. So we are not saying that they never oak their wine in Chablis - some Grand Cru and Premier Cru winemakers do ferment in oak, but they use it judiciously to add some complexity and texture rather than buttered popcorn dipped in vanilla.

Chablis winemakers often also avoid malolactic fermentation, which reduces the crisp acidity in a wine, so these wines can be remarkably fresh and even tart, a very different experience than what you typically think of for a Chardonnay. Again, in a Grand Cru Chablis, you may find some malo - that’s what the wine pros call it, malo - to soften the acid and give their wines more creaminess. Finally, while it is super common for Burgundy Chardonnay to use aging on the lees, it is much less common in Chablis.

So, then, what does all this add up to, you might ask? Something we have found really surprising and fun, and changed our minds about Chardonnay - well, that and Champagne. Chablis is known to be a crisp, lean, dry, light-bodied wine with high acidity and lots of minerality. What you may find most shocking is its fruitness. You will find flavors and aromas of apple, pear, lemon, lime, flowers, and sea shells. This is really, really different from the vanilla oak bombs that often characterize Chardonnay where, frankly, it can be hard to taste any fruit at all. So, these are not the rich, heavy cocktail wines like your typical oaky Chardonnay, so just be ready for that. These are great food wines that you can sip by the pool or pair with a great seafood dinner. 

Chablis has a few different appellations, which most consider to be progressively better and more prestigious. At the bottom of the rung, but still wonderful, is Petit Chablis which has slightly different soils than the rest of Chablis, then there’s Chablis, then Premiere Cru - which you often see as 1er, and then Grand Cru, which again can be made in more of an oaky style.

Now, some say that because of this lack of oak and malolactic fermentation and lees aging, Chablis is the purest expression of Chardonnay. That is really up for debate and taste preference of course, but we find that Chablis is a wonderful wine and if you have not tried it, you really should. We guarantee that if you serve a Chablis to someone and don’t tell them what it is, they will probably never guess it is a Chardonnay wine. You will find the same thing if you look for unoaked Chardonnays around you.

For a little more background, so you can put this information in your brain box and wow your friends

  • The village of Chablis dates back to the Roman period, and they have been making wine there for thousands of years
  • The more modern version of the Chablis wine region was developed by Cistercian monks in the 1100s. I’m telling you, if you want alcohol to drink, don’t sleep on the monks.
  • There is a term used in Burgundy called Climat, and it stands for a precisely defined plot of land that is said to be unique. In Chablis there are 47 Climats that can show up on a wine label, 40 for Grand Cru, and 7 for Premier Cru. So, you may see names like Blanchot, Bougros, or Les Clos
  • Chablis represents over 30% of the total white wine production of Burgundy, and within Chablis, only about 2% of the total production comes from Grand Cru, and these are, as you would guess, the priciest.


But that’s enough information. I think it’s time to learn a little more about the specific wines we are drinking today. Whaddya say?


Chablis Wines We Chose for This Episode 20:22

As usual, the wines we have chosen for this episode are under $25, and they should be relatively easy to find because I bought them both at wine.com. To find Chablis, you need to go to a place with a decent wine collection, and of course your local wine shop can find you some if they don’t carry it. But, let’s just say they ain’t going to have any at your local 7-11. And, if you can’t find a Chablis, you can start your adventure by looking for an unoaked Chardonnay, which I am starting to notice are becoming more and more common.


The first wine we are going to be drinking today is the 2023 Le Vieux Clocher Chablis. There wasn’t a ton about this wine that I could find out - and I think these guys don’t even have an Instagram presence which is like, are you even a thing if you don’t have Insta? But I can tell you it is 100% Chardonnay and 12.5% alcohol. According to the website Touton, the estate vineyards are as old as 50 years, and they use some organic methods like organic manure, but it is not clear if this is an organic winery or not.

The final blend for the wine comes from 4 different vineyard parcels, and the wine is fermented in stainless steel.

But that is kind of all of the information I could get, so let’s talk about our second wine which is the 2023 Thomas Labille Chablis. A few things stand out about this wine. First, the winery claims to be sustainable and the wines they produce are Vegan. Additionally, there was a bit more information about this wine that I could find which I like.

This wine has a bit of oak on it and some lees aging, so this is going to have more depth and less acidity than a typical Chablis. The winery says this about the winemaking: they age the wine on the lees for 15-18 months, and they use neutral oak - that again means used oak - in addition to stainless steel. They also say the wine is made in the traditional style to keep the purity of its fruit. They are trying to make a wine with some freshness and some texture. According to one website, the wine has searing acidity, no tannin, and is very dry, but has a medium body. That sounds right up our alley.

But, I think that is enough information - let’s get to drinking! We’ll take a quick break and be right back. And, if you have these wines or similar wines, drink along with us to get some participation points, which you can trade-in for free stickers. You just need to send me an email with your mailing address, and I will get those “I drink with The Wine Pair Podcast” stickers over to you!


LINKS TO SOURCES FOR THESE SPECIFIC WINES


2023 Le Vieux Clocher Chablis, 2023 Thomas Labille Chablis Wine Tasting, Pairing, and Review 24:51

Wine: Le Vieux Clocher Chablis (Click here to find this wine on wine.com. We may be compensated if you purchase)
Region: France, Chablis
Year: 2023
Price: $22.99
Retailer: wine.com
Alcohol: 12.5%
Grapes: Chardonnay
Professional Rating: Vivino

What we tasted and smelled in this Le Vieux Clocher Chablis:

  • Color: Golden, egg yolk, straw, lemony, a little viscous
  • On the nose: Brioche, peach, apricot, lemon, green apple, a little canned pineapple  
  • In the mouth: Lemon, some tannin, some pith and bitterness on the end, stone, seashell, saline, orange, some tropical fruit, crisp, medium-bodied


Food to pair with this Le Vieux Clocher Chablis: Versatile with food, seafood, shellfish, spaghetti with clams or shrimp, spicy foods, fried chicken, fried fish, pesto, fish and chips, grilled shrimp, shrimp scampi
 
As a reminder on our rating scale, we rate on a scale of 1-10, with no half points, where 7 and above means that we would buy it, and 4 and below means that we are likely to pour it down the sink, and a 5 or 6 means we are likely to drink it and finish it, but we are probably not going to buy it. 

Le Vieux Clocher Chablis Wine Rating: 

  • Joe: 9/10
  • Carmela: 9/10


Wine: Thomas Labille Chablis (Click here to find this wine on wine.com. We may be compensated if you purchase.)
Region: France, Chablis
Year: 2023
Price: $25.97
Retailer: wine.com
Alcohol: 12.5%
Grapes: Chardonnay
Professional Rating: Vivino 4.1

What we tasted and smelled in this Thomas Labille Chablis:

  • Color: Lemony, light gold 
  • On the nose: Citrus, lemon, mint leaf, basil, peach, cantaloupe
  • In the mouth: Complex, gentle, elegant, smooth, lemony, orange, grapefruit, pineapple, honeydew melon, flowery


Food to pair with this Thomas Labille Chablis: White flaky fish, lobster tail, spicy foods, Indian curry, chicken or veal cutlet, 

Thomas Labille Chablis Wine Rating: 
Joe: 10/10
Carmela: 9/10


Which one of these are you finishing tonight?

  • Carmela: Thomas Labille Chablis
  • Joe: Thomas Labille Chablis

We would be happy with either of them

Taste profiles expected from Chablis 36:20

  • General 
    • Dry and crisp, with minerality like saline and chalk. Flavors of lemon, grapefruit, star fruit, and green apple, accompanied by white flower aromas
  • Le Vieux Clocher Chablis
    • Winery: This wine is highlighted by distinctive flavors of apple and peach supported with mineral notes. Well balanced with a long and subtle finish.
  • Thomas Labille Chablis
    • Vinovoss: This wine is known for its crisp acidity, vibrant minerality, and refreshing citrus flavors. It showcases the classic characteristics of Chablis. On the nose, it offers enticing aromas of green apple, lemon zest, and wet stones. On the palate, it presents a well-balanced combination of zesty citrus flavors, such as lemon and grapefruit, along with a touch of white peach. The wine's acidity provides a refreshing backbone, while its mineral notes add complexity and depth. Aged in neutral oak, this wine has a broadmouthfeel that adds a further dimension to the wine. This is a versatile wine
    • Corking Wines: offers a bright, expressive bouquet dominated by zesty lemon, crisp green apple and white blossom aromas. On the palate, layers of citrus fruits are seamlessly balanced by flinty mineral notes and a subtle saline edge. Its clean, linear structure is complemented by a supple, almost silky texture, leading to a long, invigorating finish. A textbook Chablis that showcases finesse, freshness, and precision.



What is your verdict on Chablis? 37:50
We love Chablis. It is totally underrated for most wine people outside of wine nerds. It may be our favorite white wine, and is one of our favorite wines overall.

Outro and how to find The Wine Pair Podcast 38:37

Ok, so, Carmela, it’s time for us to go, but before we do, we want to thank you very much for listening to us - and if you haven’t done so yet, now would be the perfect time to follow or subscribe to our podcast and also a fantastic time to leave us a nice rating and review on our website or Apple podcasts or other podcast app - and it is an awesome and free way to support us and help us grow listeners.

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