Email Question

Welcome to Vine to Wine this is your host Linda Moran and today we are going to answer an email questions. A listener wrote to ask, “If, as you say, California Chablis probably has no Chardonnay in it, why is it called Chablis?”

Well to answer the question why is the California white wine known as Chablis named that if there is no Chardonnay in it, you must first understand the wine laws of the French region of Chablis from which the name came. There are strict laws for the making of Chablis. In this case, the most important of which, is that the wine be made from 100% Chardonnay grapes. Now in California the early winemakers “borrowed” the names of famous French regions to label and market their wines without regard to the laws, which governed them in France. Thus, the wines are named without regard to the grapes that are used in them. Since each viticulture region in the world has a different governing body, there is little consistency. In the United States, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms at the time allowed this naming to take place. The practice is fairly well known and most Americans recognize that this is not one of the California wine industries best products. Unfortunately, many of those same consumers believe that this also the case with wines that bare the name from France. How ironic is that? Remember to send your wine questions to Linda at vine to wine dot net and thank you for joining me on today’s Vine to Wine.