9 top Chardonnays to drink now

Chardonnay is one of the world’s most popular wines but knowing which bottle to choose is tricky. Here are nine of the best

From saline-sharp styles to creamy and exotic, chardonnay is superbly food friendly (Getty)

​Chardonnay is a truly unique white wine. Its grape is one of the most diverse and also most widely planted grapes across the map. Although it really stands out in the limestone-rich soils found in Champagne and Burgundy – not surprising, given it hails from the Burgundy village of Mâconnais – it is truly unique because it can flourish in a wide range of climates and a huge variety of soils, showcasing the specific terroir, the flavours of the environment where it is grown. This quality white also has a great ability to age gracefully – just think of a premium Mersault, with notes of honey, nuts and butter.

In cool climates such as Champagne and Chablis, the wines are beautifully steely, light to medium in body with high lemon acidity and notes of barely ripe green fruit, greengage and plum. In more moderate conditions Chardonnay releases extra citrus and stone fruit, while in hot climates, bigger flavours of tropical fruit – banana, mango, passion fruit and pineapple – come forward. When the weather heats up, the acidity of the wine decreases as the alcohol increases.

Because chardonnay is relatively neutral in taste, not aromatic like sauvignon blanc, it can also suit many different techniques in the winery. It is often fermented and/or aged in oak to add tannin, butter-rich, toast and nutty flavours.

A rounded, oily, creamier style can be achieved by softening the tart malic acid, which is found in apples, into smooth, lactic acid, found in milk, in a process known as malolactic fermentation. Ageing on the wine’s lees – the dead yeast cells – is another technique used to add complexity and body. Little or no use of such techniques will keep the flavours sharp and precise with a lighter-mouth feel.

From saline-sharp styles to creamy and exotic, chardonnay is superbly food friendly. Lighter, unoaked styles pair well with sushi, shellfish, goats cheese, grilled fish and chicken, while fuller-bodied and oak-aged styles work with cream-based dishes, veal and meatier fish, pâtés, pumpkin ravioli and nutty cheddar cheese. Depending on the use of oak, and on age, vintage and price, there will inevitably be some crossover in the food pairings but dressed up or dressed down, there’s a chardonnay to suit the dish.

From the ABC brigade – “Anything but chardonnay” – to the faithful lovers of only one style or region, this selection will rev up your taste buds.

2014 Varner Wines, Foxglove Chardonnay

From California’s Central Coast, this excellent-value wine is juicy and fresh with tropical notes of pineapple and yellow stone fruit, with hints of orange and white florals against an icy steel minerality. The two opposing forces are kept in check. No malolactic fermentation or oak keeps the taste pure, lean and precise.

£18, stannarywine.com

2012 Michel Gahier, Chardonnay La Fauquette Arbois (sous-voile)

“Sous-voile”, or “under the veil”, is a winemaking technique, popular in France’s Jura region, where the wine is deliberately oxidised in half-filled barrels that are not topped up, allowing oxygen to seep in. As in sherry-making, a veil of yeast grows over the surface, protecting the wine from further oxidation but leaving deliciously intense characteristics of salted nuts and spice. The deep flavours of the 2012 harvest are effortlessly kept fresh and beautifully balanced. An ideal partner to the region’s aged Comté cheese.

£28.99, LesCavesdePyrene.co.uk. Call 01483 554750

2013 Ivo Varbanov, Clair de Lune, Bulgaria

Winemaker Ivo Varbanov’s chardonnay is an ode to Debussy’s Clair de Lune as well as to lovers of oak. The wine is fermented in Bulgarian oak, by the former concert pianist, giving heavier flavours of spice and toast than you would get from French. Pale golden in colour, herbal and citrus on the nose. From front to back, the palate takes you from lemon to rich and juicy stone fruit, honey blossom and warm ginger, nutty spice, crunchy apple acidity and a rounded, creamy finish. The oak keeps things interesting – giving depth and balance to the fruit.

£14.95, bbr.com. Call 0800 280 2440

2015 Les Crêtes Chardonnay

For Burgundy lovers, this Italian chardonnay from the mountainous Valle d’Aosta has an exotic fruit core, refreshing acidity, and a well-rounded, smooth finish. Steel-fermented with only six months on lees, this medium-bodied Chardonnay, rich and pure on the palate, will take you from starter through to the cheese course.

£24, LesCavesdePyrene.co.uk. Call 01483 554750

2013 Petit Chablis, Domaine des Hâtes

The Petit Chablis appellation lies on the edge of the town of Chablis. Often overlooked for creating wines with high acidity and tart flavours in favour of higher-ranked appellations in the region, young winemaker Pierrick Laroche has created a something of a niche for his wines. The vines are grown high on the chalky, contouring slopes, creating an intense, stony minerality on the palate, dry with balanced, refreshing acidity and a scintillating, saline finish. Light, pared-back hints of honeysuckle and floral peep through but the draw is all in the crisp, nervy energy. Enjoy chilled with egg-based dishes, including omelettes and quiche, as well as oysters or grilled sardines. Avoid too much spice.

£16 on special offer until 30 April, stannarywine.com. Call 0207 582 6865

2014 Schnabel Morillon

Weingut Schnabel grows its Morillon – the local name for Chardonnay in southern Styria – on vines at 550-metres altitude on the craggy island of Sausal. This Austrian family of five has a vehement commitment to forgo all chemical and technical manipulation, using only the best raw material and natural practices. All their whites are made in the orange style – white grapes undergoing extended skin contact during maceration, the same procedure for making red wine. The 2014 Morillon is wild fermented in open vats, aged for one year and bottled with no fining or filtration. Honey-yellow in the glass, with intense aromas of herbal and orange citrus, peach stone fruit, bitter pith, walnut, hazelnut and dried herbs on the palate. At only 11.5 per cent ABV, the intense flavours are very light and beautifully refined. The herbal, savoury finish is dry, delicious, very moreish and will elevate any dish.

£32, sout. LesCavesdePyrene.co.uk. Call 01483 554750

2016 Arnaud Aucoeur ‘Vieilles Vignes’ Beaujolais Blanc

Packing fuller flavours than other mineral-driven Chardonnays due to the use of old vines, the delicate orchard fruit flavours of Arnaud Aucoeur’s Beaujolais Blanc are magnified, paired with bracingly fresh acidity and no oak, keeping the finish mineral-pure and arrow-straight. This will cut through many seafood dishes, including crab, mussels and oysters.

£12.50, Yapp Brothers, yapp.co.uk. Call 01747 860423

2015 Jean Durup Père et Fils, Les Valery Chablis

Dip your toe into Chablis with this fine and affordable example. Durup’s trademark style is unoaked, pure and terroir-driven. A classic nose of wet stones, honeysuckle, green fruit and steel in youth. Light and lean on the taste buds, with citrus, apple, pear and seaside salinity, this will enhance the flavours of shellfish, seafood and fish and chips, but the wine’s hallmark acidity will also cut through the richness of scallops and wash-rind cheeses such as Stinking Bishop, Epoisses and Taleggio.

£16.50, tanners-wines.co.uk. Call 01743 234 455

2012 Jean-Marc Brocard Chablis Grand Cru Bougros

For those already well acquainted, Chablis Grand Cru can often taste like a still version of champagne, with which it shares a great ability to stay fresh with age. This 2012 vintage, from one of the region’s best producers, has layered aromas of sun-ripened citrus fruit, honey, brioche and toasted hazelnut. Aged without oak to keep the flavours pure and fresh and the acidic structure tight. More mature chablis can enhance the creaminess of dishes such as foie gras; steamed lobster dipped in melted butter; mushrooms cooked in butter, parsley and wild garlic; roasted quail; cream-based fish and chicken dishes, and black truffles over rich polenta.

£40, marksandspencer.com