from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
Chablis Grand Cru.
Photograph courtesy of Dale Cruse.
www.flickr.com/photos/dalecruse/8706768713/
Chablis AOP is a dry, crisp, white wine
produced from Chardonnay grapes around the town of Chablis in the department of
Yonne, Burgundy that since 1-1-2016 is part of the super region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté.
The town of Chablis, despite its famous
name and history, is still a small French town; albeit an exceptionally pretty
one. If you are driving to Chablis,
remember it is a small town. You may quickly drive through the town and be back
out among the grapevines before you realize you have exited the town. We did
that! We, of course, did turn around and
drive back. In the town center, we found an inviting looking restaurant to
sample the local cuisine, and, again, of course, to order a bottle of Chablis.
The entrance to Chablis
www.flickr.com/photos/jamesonfink/13187892615/
Despite its size, Chablis and its
immediate area have quite a number of hotels, B & Bs, restaurants, and, of
course, wine shops. You may also choose to stay in the towns of Avallone or
Auxerre; both are about 20 km (12 miles) from Chablis. We stayed in an excellent hotel in Avallone.
The hotel is built on the sight of a post house where Napoleon I had once
watered his horse! Auxerre has many more
hotels, but none whose claim to fame competes with Napoleon and his horse.
Vineyards in Chablis
In books on pairing wines, Chablis has
always been one of the wines recommended to accompany oysters. (The
other favored choices are Muscadet, which comes from the area close to the city
of Nantes in the Pay du Loire, and, of course,
Champagne).
Chablis and oysters are an interesting coincidence. The vineyards around
Chablis are all set above an ancient limestone landmass with many fossilized
oysters. Those old oysters must have spread the word, and so the wheel of life
goes on.
Choosing a Chablis
French Chablis is very different from
most of the New World versions I have tried. However, I am not an educated wine
maven, and with hundreds of producers and four appellations when we arrived in
Chablis, I needed help. Luckily, in the
restaurant we had chosen, there was a friendly and knowledgeable sommelier, and
I had an up-to-date book in French wines. We discussed our interest in Chablis
along with our budget. The sommelier suggested a reasonably priced wine that
turned out to be fabulous. This was a Chablis from one of the lower Chablis
appellations, but good sommeliers know a great deal more than just the names,
the price, and appellations. More about
Chablis appellations and the information they contribute later. While we were
enjoying our lunch and our wine we overheard the couple on the table next to us
discussing their dissatisfaction with a much more expensive Chablis. They had chosen a top of the line Chablis
from the wine-list, it had been their own choice. As with other wines, so with Chablis, the
price does not guarantee any more than how much you will pay. More about the
different Chablis Crus and grades toward the end of this post.
Chablis on French menus:
Bottle and glass of
Chablis
www.flickr.com/photos/x1brett/46088122924/
Filet de Raie au Chablis – Skate, the fish, sautéed with Chablis. In the UK, skate
is mostly seen when deep-fried in batter and sold in fish and chip shops.
However, in France, skate will be served in the finest restaurants. In French
kitchens skate be may be baked, poached or sautéed, but never deep-fried.
Dishes with skate will be served hot with a butter or wine sauce, as skate
tends to jell when cold.
Poire au Vin de Chablis - Pears cooked in Chablis.
Chablis vineyards
www.flickr.com/photos/lreivilo/2741453629/
Sauté de Queues d'Écrevisses, Brunoise de Petits Légumes au Chablis - Crayfish tails sautéed with Chablis and served
with finely cut young vegetables.
Brunoise is one of the important sizes in the French world of chopped
fruits and vegetables, it denotes a cut about 2 mm (0.08”) thick.
Chablis has a number of unique local
dishes that may also be on your menu. They include Jambon Chablis, ham cooked
in Chablis, and a locally made Andouillette AAAAA sausage.
N.B.: When a sommelier or a wine-list
only offer wines that are above your budget, then that is the time to choose a
house wine. Most French restaurants, outside of some of the more
exclusive, have house wines that have
been chosen with their regular diners in mind.
House wines will be approved by the sommelier and in smaller restaurants
by the owner and the chef; the wine will be priced to keep the regulars
returning.
French Chablis is made from very close to
100% French Chardonnay grape with a taste that is quite different from most New
World Chardonnays that I have tried. Maybe it is the barrels, maybe its
science, maybe it is the terroir. (Worry not, I will not get into terroir
here). Whatever the reason, French
Chablis is different from other French wines made with Chardonnay grapes.
The town of Chablis and some twelve
villages linked to her have festivals and fetes almost every month of the year.
These celebrations are not only about the Chablis wines, though a sizeable
number are. The festivities include
concerts, artist’s festivals and more.
The Sereign River flows through Chablis
Finding the dates of
Chablis linked festivals and fetes.
You may check the dates and places of
wine and food celebrations throughout France when still in your home country
through the local French Government Tourist Office. For Chablis tourism the
town’s visitor information website is www.chablis.net.
If you are already in Chablis, the tourism information office is on the
town’s main street: 1 Rue du Maréchal de
Lattre de Tassigny.
Ask the Chablis tourist information
office for a map of the town and a map of their Chablis Route des Vins, their Chablis wine road. Then request information on the town’s and
surrounding communities’ celebrations and farmers’ markets. With all that information, you have the
perfect way to explore the area, including stopping off for wine tastings and
joining in the celebrations that coincide with your visit. The Chablis Route des Vins also passes quite
a number of restaurants; choose one to enjoy lunch or dinner.
The most important wine fete in Chablis
itself is the Fête des Vins de Chablis, the fete of Chablis wines. This fete it
is held on the fourth Saturday and Sunday in October. Additionally, the entire department of Yonne,
which includes Chablis, celebrates its many different wines on the first
Saturday in May. The town of Chablis, of course, will be doing its part.
Seeing the town of
Chablis
Inside Chablis, you do not need a car.
Just park and walk around the town. Walk
along streets that were laid down in the late middle ages with some of the
original houses remaining. Visit its two
churches, one of which dates back to the twelfth century the other to the 18th.
Both churches were rebuilt in the 19th century. There is also a 12th-century
synagogue that was rebuilt some ten years ago.
There is a farmers’ market in Chablis
every Sunday morning. Given a bright
summer’s day, you may want to pass on a traditional restaurant lunch and buy a
chilled bottle of Chablis, a baguette and some of Burgundy’s magnificent
cheeses. Find a road that takes you to the banks of the River Sereign that runs
through the town and find a place for a picnic; enjoy.
Hiking in Chablis,
If you enjoy hiking, then consider
joining one of the hikes that are organized by the Chablis hikers association,
the Association des Sentiers Chablisiens
The association organizes
hikes in the country around
Chablis twice a week for one and a half
to two hours. Their French language website is:
Google and Bing
translate translate the French very clearly.
Chablis
appellations.
Four Chablis appellations set the
boundaries of the different Chablis wines. The Chablis Appellations were
created to differentiate the quality of the Chablis wines produced in each
area. Like the rest of France’s
appellations and crus, they were set in 1935. They have been part of French law
in 1946. However, since 1946, not one single Chablis wine, produced by any Chablis
vintner, has had its quality grading changed! None are officially better or
worse?
There are four Chablis appellations:
Appellation Chablis Grand Cru Contrôlée -
Considered the very, very best of all the Chablis wines.
Appellation Chablis Premier Cru Contrôlée - Nearly the very best.
Aging bottles of Chablis
Appellation Chablis Contrôlée - A
snippet below the nearly the very best.
Appellation Petit Chablis Contrôlée Chablis - A little below the one
below the nearly the very best.
Petit Chablis
www.flickr.com/photos/dalecruse/9201791579/
I have listed these appellations, tongue
in cheek, as I certainly do not know why a single producer's wine has not been
recognized for having improved or worsened in over 70 years! However, the wine mavens know and the caves,
the wine stores know, and their prices reflect the value. I also know that if
you see a Chablis Grand Cru at a low price, leave it! There is no good top of the line Chablis
wines at a discount price.
Other great white wines from Burgundy are
also made with 100% Chardonnay grapes. These other wines have their own names
and appellations. Despite having the same grape in the bottle, these other
wines also have, by the different soils, local micro-climates, magic, science
or terroir have different tastes. These additional
100% Chardonnay wines include famous names like Pouilly-Fuissé AOP,
Chassagne-Montrachet, AOP, Corton-Charlemagne AOP, Meursault AOP, Montrachet
AOP, and many others.
For more on all the wines from Burgundy
see the website:
-----------------------
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
Copyright 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2019.
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