Three Ways a Winemaker Influences Your Chardonnay

Hear me out.

Before you vehemently tell me “I hate / love Chardonnay!!” we need to clarify a few things.

Chardonnay is one flexible grape in the hands of a winemaker.

Yes, it can be oaky and buttery and rich.

But it can also be citrusy and mineral-driven, like lemon preserves and wet riverstones.

Or it can be full of apple and pear aromas with rich spices like Grandma’s apple pie.

When it comes to Chardonnay, a winemaker has many decisions to make that will impact the final juice.

3 ways a winemaker influences Chardonnay: oak, malolactic fermentation, and skin contact.

Oak 🪵

Oak brings texture and flavor to wine, while stainless steel or concrete tanks preserve acidity and fresh fruit flavors.

If a winemaker chooses to use oak, they must make several barrel-related decisions.

• French Oak: more subtle notes of baking spices (cinnamon! nutmeg!), hazelnut, and toasted bread

• American Oak: bolder notes of vanilla and coconut

• Barrel Age: never-before-used barrels impart the most flavor. The more times a barrel has been used, the less flavor imparted. After a few years, barrels are deemed neutral meaning they no longer impart flavor, just texture.

• Barrel Size: Smaller barrels impart more flavor than larger ones, because there is more wine in contact with the wood than there is with larger barrels.

• Toasted Barrels: yep, much like a piece of sourdough, the inside of a barrel can be toasted. This is not usually a thing for Chardonnay, but it's worth a mention here.

• Time: How long to leave that wine to rest in barrel? More time = more oak flavor and more complexity.

Malolactic Fermentation 🧈

To simplify a complex process: Malolactic conversion or fermentation is a secondary fermentation that, if completed, yields those big, rich dairy flavors and full-bodiedness. The sharp malic acid is converted into softer, creamier lactic acid.

This is where those buttery or yogurt-like flavors come from.

Skin Contact 🍇

Traditionally, Chardonnay is fermented without skin contact.

But, if you know a cool wine shop with a selection of orange/skin-contact/amber wines, you might just find a skin-contact Chardonnay like the one pictured (👋 L'eau, Le Vent, La Lumiere from Les Bois Dieu).

When macerated on the skins, we get a lovely amber-colored wine with added structure and a touch of tannin.

Tasting Notes*

Domaine Alain Geoffroy Petit Chablis

Stainless Steel | Chablis, Burgundy, France

Chablis is known for unoaked Chardonnays, like this one, which ferments and ages in tanks, yielding a fresh, bright, mineral-driven wine. You won’t find any vanilla, baking spice, or butter here—it’s all lemon and wet river stones.

Camp North Coast Chardonnay

Oak + Malolactic Fermentation | North Coast, California

This wine sees a mix of a few different treatments: it’s fermented in stainless steel and neutral oak, then rests on the lees and undergoes malolactic fermentation in older French oak barrels. Expect ripe apples, zesty citrus, and a touch of buttery goodness.

Les Bois Dieu L'eau, Le Vent, La Lumiere

Skin Contact + Stainless Steel | Auvergne, France

Chardonnay grapes macerate on the skins for 12 days before the juice is moved to stainless steel tanks. This orange wine is absolutely bursting with acidity and begging to be paired with a nice pork chop or roast chicken.

So! Before you make a face and tell me “I don’t like Chardonnay” take home one (or all 3!) of these wines.

One just might make you say “THIS is Chardonnay?!” and consider “Maybe I just haven’t found the right Chardonnay yet.” 😉

*These wines are from a tasting in January 2025, and may or may not be in stock at the moment. But fear not! If we don't have these babies, we can absolutely recommend something similar. Just give us a call or stop on by!