Chardonnay originates from the Burgundy wine region of eastern France but is now grown almost wherever wine is produced. An important constiuent of most Champagne blends. The Chardonnay grape itself is very neutral, with many of the flavours commonly associated with the grape being derived from such influences as terroir and oak. It is vinified in many different styles, from the lean, crisply mineral wines of Chablis, France to New World wines with tropical fruit flavours and lots of oak. Indeed its the Chalky soils of Chablis and Champagne which tend to lead to the wines of the greatest finesse, and the limestone on which Burgundy lies which has a great influence on the style of wine produced there.
