Maison Louis Latour Masterclass Chardonnay
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Maison Louis Latour Masterclass Chardonnay Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 1 Introduction Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay MASTERCLASS CHARDONNAY Introduction Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 2 Definition Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay • Burgundy white grape variety • Soils : limestone or calcareous clay that are not too dry • Used for dry still wine, sparkling or even sweet wine • High quality • Susceptible to : powdery mildew and grapevine yellows (eg • Easy to ripen flavescence dorée and bois noir), flower abortion (coulure) • Good adaptation to different climates and millerandage • Small to medium bunches • Early buding = Fragile to spring frost • Small and curved berries • Thin skin = susceptible to botrytis bunch rot in rainy harvest • Early budding Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 3 Origins Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 17th Century • Son of Pinot Noir (and • Clearly differenciated 20th Century Gouais blanc) from Pinot Blanc • Earliest reliable mention • Name comes from the • The name is becoming • Grafting on american of the word Chardonnay Village of Chardonnay reconized rootstock (1689) (Burgundy) • Phylloxera !!! • Development and Expansion • The name is not currently of the Chardonnay grape used yet Unknown date 19th Century Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 4 Development and Expansion Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay The second most popular white grape variety in France • Evolution size planted area in France: multiplied by 7 from 1958 to 2011 • 7325 Hectares in 1958 to 46630 Hectares in 2011 • Now, France’s 2nd most planted white variety after Ugni Blanc • Strongholds in France are Burgundy, Languedoc- Roussillon and Champagne • Reprensents 48% of the vineyard area planted in Burgundy (BIVB figures) Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 5 Development and Expansion Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay The most popular grape variety in the world? • Late 20th century: in some countries, Chardonnay had been so popular that it became synonimous with dry white wine • Nowadays, planted all over the world: 160 000 Ha in total Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 6 Different styles of Chardonnay Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay • Wide array of aromas depending on where it is grown and how it is made • Good adaptation to changes in climate and different types of soils Style of wine Altitude Latitude Soil Climate Kimmeridgian clay- Cool – Continental (hot in summer Lean France - Chablis 120 à 150m 47,8° limestone and cold in winter – frost in spring) (high acidity level) Volcanic, alluvial, clay Mediterranean (wet and mild winter – Round California – Napa Valley 450m 38,5° & gravelly-sandy hot and dry summer) (high suger level) South Africa – Clay, Limestone, Mediterranean (wet and mild winter – More tropical (citrus, tropical 136m -33,6° Stellenbosh vineyards Granite & schist hot and dry summer) fruits & exotic spices) Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 7 Different styles of Chardonnay Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Temperature Sunshine Latitude / Altitude / Slope Rainfall Exposition Rootstock Genetic Clone Date of harvest Vintage Effect Soil Type, age and compostion Type of aromas Watering / Nutrition Sugar Culture Pruning Acidity Yield Density Style Date Scarcity Harvest Price Method Malolactic Yeast Winemaking Oak treatment Batonage / stirring lies Length Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 8 Different styles of Chardonnay Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 9 Different styles of Chardonnay Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 10 Different styles of Chardonnay Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 11 Different styles of Chardonnay Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Average sunlight (hours) Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 12 Winemaking Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 5 1 4 Alcoholic & Malolactic Fermentation + Ageing Vine-Growing Pressing & Racking of sediments Some wines in barrels for 10 to 14 months From April to September Just after the sorting Harvest Bottling Sorting Some wines in stainless stell vats After cold stabilisation Mid-September in average for 8 to 10 months Just after the harvest 6 2 3 Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 13 Maison Louis Latour Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Corton MASTERCLASS CHARDONNAY Comparative tasting Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 14 Comparative tasting Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Chardonnay de l’Ardèche Grand Ardèche Bourgogne Chardonnay Region Côteaux de l’Ardèche Burgundy Average altitude 270 m 150 m Latitude 44,5° 47° Soil / Terroir Clay & limestone (Kimmeridgian) Clay & limestone (Jurassic) Average Sunlight 204,2 hours 150,5 hours Average Temperature 14,5°C 11,5°C Average Rainfall 89,2 mm 62,5 mm Density (feet/ha) 4 000 10 000 Average date of harvest End of August Mid-September Type of harvest Mechanical Hand picked Vintage Effect Low Important Winemaking specificities stainless steel vats oak barrels, 20% new stainless steel vats Almonds, vanilia, brioche, Type of aromas White fruits, crisp acidity Floral, white fruits yellow fruits Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Comparative tasting Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Dates of harvest 12-Oct 2-Oct 22-Sep 12-Sep 2-Sep 23-Aug 13-Aug 3-Aug 24-Jul 14-Jul 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Bourgogne Ardèche Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Comparative tasting Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Chablis Mâcon-Lugny Pouilly-Fuissé Region Chablis Mâconnais Mâconnais Average altitude 140 m 230 m 290 m Latitude 47,8° 46,3° Soil / Terroir Kimmeridgian clay-limestone Clay & limestone Limestone & heavy clay Average Sunlight 142,7 hours 157,5 hours Average Temperature 11,3°C 12,3°C Average Rainfall 60,1 mm 78,4 mm Density (feet/ha) ? 10 000 Average date of harvest Late September Mid-September Type of harvest Mechanical Hand-picked Winemaking specificities 8 to 10 months ageing in stainless steel vats Vintage effect Low to medium Medium to important Floral, fresh, citrus & white Floral, fresh, citrus & white White & yellow fruits, almond, Type of aromas fruits, mineral fruits, notes of muscat honey, ample, Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Comparative tasting Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Meursault Chassagne-Montrachet Average altitude 240 m 250 m Latitude 47 Soil / Terroir Stony marl Chalk and clay Winemaking specificities 10 months ageing in Louis Latour oak barrels, 15% new Vintage effect Important Type of aromas Hazelnut, buttery Exotic fruits • Only 10 kilometers separate Meursault and Chassagne-Montrachet appellations • Characteristics that differentiate Chardonnays elsewhere are very similar here • This is the “Exception Bourguignone“ : latitude, exposition, rain and sunshine are similar but the wines are complex and very different • This is because the soil here varies from hill to hill • All contain at least some of this limestone clay which contains nutrients from the fossils of shellfish from past eras • Nevertheless the composition, proportion and age of the soil components vary between each vineyard • The partition of the vineyards dates back to monastic times and their names hail from ages gone by • For just as long as they have been famous, attempts have been made to duplicate the particularities of white burgundies • The quality, longevity and unique features of this particular blend of terroir and know-how have, despite all, resisted the test of time... Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay Thank you for your attention Maison Louis Latour – Masterclass Chardonnay 19.