And here’s another installment on the Women Winemakers of Chablis. We’ve got nine total. Today, we’re featuring Clotilde Davenne, in the Chablis region of France. Chablis is also the delicious white wine made from the chardonnay grape (remember, European wines are usually named after where they’re made, rather than by what they’re made of). This series is from a group of email interviews with six women winemakers from the Chablis region, translated from the original French by someone else because Anne’s French is in terrible shape. We asked each woman the same three questions.
1) What makes Chablis different from other wines made from chardonnay?
Chablis is a different chardonnay, as it comes from a very particular soil in a region where the climate is also special. Soil and climate are the combination that makes this Chardonnay expression so unique. The wine is fresh and straightforward, right, vivid.
2) If my reader sees Chablis on the label of a bottle of wine, what should she expect to taste in the wine?
The tasters should expect a wine expressing minerality. Rather complex and aromatic. Neither soft nor sweet.
3) Finally, how are things changing for women winemakers in France? In the U.S., making wine is still very dominated by men. Are there more women becoming winemakers? Do women make wine differently than men, and if they do, what do they do that’s different?
- Wo men who make wine are still few, but talk about it more and more. Wine consumption by women is less taboo and it is the women themselves who speak about female wines. I do not know if there are more women than in the past, but for sure we talk more about it. Women who make the wine often are successful because they make wine on the harmony of flavors and tastes. The wines are characterized by their elegance and not by the power of the alcohol.