Chablis is 100% Chardonnay or as the locals call it Beaunois. Chablis wines are labelled using a similar hierarchy of White Burgundy, Grand Cru, Premier Cru and Village wines, plus Petit Chablis as a level below Village Chablis.The Chablis region is the northern most wine district of the Burgundy region, the grapevines around the town of Chablis are almost all Chardonnay, making a dry white wine renowned for the purity of its aroma and taste.
The cool climate of this region produces wines with more acidity and flavours less fruity than Chardonnay wines grown in warmer climates, the wines often have a "flinty" note, sometimes described as "goût de pierre à fusil", tasting of gun flint, and sometimes as "steely".
In comparison to the white wines from the rest of Burgundy, Chablis has on average much less influence of oak. Most basic Chablis is completely unoaked, and vinified in stainless steel tanks. The amount of barrel maturation, if any, is a stylistic choice which varies widely among Chablis producers. Many Grand Cru and Premier Cru wines receive some maturation in oak barrels.
