Wine · Grape variety guide
Grape Variety Guide · WSET Level 2
Chardonnay
The world's most planted white grape — a blank canvas shaped by climate and oak.
Early budding
Early ripening
Neutral-to-full
Where it grows
- Burgundy, France — Chablis (steely, unoaked) through the Côte d'Or (riper, often oaked)
- California, USA — Napa and Sonoma — ripe, full-bodied, commonly oaked
- Australia — Margaret River and the Yarra Valley
- Champagne, France — a key component, including Blanc de Blancs
- Chile — Casablanca Valley, cooler coastal sites
What it tastes like
- Green apple and citrus in cool climates; riper pineapple, mango and melon in warm ones
- Vanilla, toast, butter and coconut where oak and malolactic conversion are used
- Medium to high acidity, medium to high body, usually dry
- Very few aromatic markers of its own — climate and winemaking choices do most of the talking
Growing notes
- Buds and ripens early, which leaves it exposed to spring frost
- Vigorous and adaptable — grows successfully in a very wide range of climates
- Aromatically neutral, so style is shaped far more by oak, lees ageing and malolactic conversion than by the grape itself
Good to know
Chardonnay is a natural cross of Pinot Noir and the little-known Gouais Blanc — making it a half-sibling, genetically, of several other major varieties bred from the same two parents.
Exam tip
Expect a direct contrast question: unoaked Chablis (high acid, green apple, flinty/mineral) versus a warm-climate oaked style (tropical fruit, vanilla, butter, lower acid). Examiners love this pairing.
Part of the Grape Guide — browse all varieties, or jump back to the study sheet.
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