🍇 Chenin Blanc
A white grape from the Loire Valley, a descendant of Savagnin; the main grape of Vouvray and the most planted grape in South Africa.
Chenin Blanc is a white wine grape from France. Based on DNA markers, the VIVC catalogue names Savagnin, that is Traminer, as one of its parents; the other parent is unknown. The catalogue lists 76 synonyms, among them Steen and Pineau de la Loire.
On the Loire, Chenin has long been the main white grape. In Vouvray, an appellation since 1936, it is called Pineau de la Loire, and the rules allow only up to 5% of the local grape Orbois to be added. Still wines are made here, dry and with residual sugar, as well as sparkling ones, produced only by a second fermentation in the bottle. The wine is aged in cellars carved into soft limestone called tuffeau.
Today most Chenin is in South Africa. According to the OIV, in 2015 there were 19 thousand ha there, 14.6% of the vineyards and first place among the country's grapes. In France, according to VIVC, the area fell from 16,594 ha in 1958 to 9,828 ha in 2008.
Several grapes descend from Chenin, among them Colombard, which ranks second in South Africa: 13 thousand ha in 2015. According to VIVC, Chenin also grows in California and Argentina.
Why it matters to you. Steen on a South African label is Chenin Blanc. Vouvray is always Chenin, still or sparkling, and sparkling Vouvray is made by a second fermentation in the bottle. If a grape name appears on an EU wine, at least 85% of the wine is that grape. White wines are served at 4–10 °C.
How it connects to Wine
🍇 Chenin Blanc → kind of → 🍇 Grape varieties → kind of → 🍷 Wine
Links
- Part of
- 🍇 Grape varieties
- Origin
- 🗺️ French wine
- Where it grows
- 📍 Loire Valley, 📍 Anjou-Saumur, 📍 Touraine
- Main grape in
- France: 📜 Crémant de Limoux, 📜 Saumur, 📜 Vouvray, 📜 Anjou, 📜 Bonnezeaux, 📜 Chinon, 📜 Coteaux du Layon, 📜 Coulée de Serrant, 📜 Crémant de Loire, 📜 Limoux
- Related to
- 🍷 Sparkling wine
- Offspring
- 🍇 Meslier-Saint-François, 🍇 Chenel, 🍇 Therona, 🍇 Colombard, 🍇 Weldra
- Parents
- 🍇 Traminer
- Similar and different
- 🍇 Colombard
Frequently asked questions
Where does Chenin Blanc come from?
From the Loire Valley in France; by DNA, one of its parents is Savagnin (Traminer).
Is it true that Steen is a separate grape?
No. According to VIVC, Steen is a synonym of Chenin Blanc; that is what it is called in South Africa.
How much Chenin is there in South Africa?
According to the OIV, 19 thousand ha in 2015: 14.6% of vineyards and first place among grapes.
What wines are made in Vouvray?
Still (dry and with residual sugar) and sparkling; the main grape is Chenin, with Orbois up to 5%.
How should Chenin Blanc be served?
Like most whites, at 4–10 °C; store it lying down at 10–16 °C.
What to read next
- 🗺️ French wine — The country's wine and winemaking: regions, grapes and appellations.
- 📍 Touraine — A land of châteaux, home to Vouvray and Chinon.
- 📍 Anjou-Saumur — Schist and tuffeau with Chenin Blanc, Cabernet Franc and rosés.
- 🍇 Meslier-Saint-François — A white grape from France permitted for Armagnac.
- 🍷 Sparkling wine — Four EU categories with at least 3 bar of carbon dioxide; traditional, tank and ancestral methods; Champagne, Cava, Prosecco.
Similar
🍇 Pineau d'Aunis · 🍇 Mauzac · 🍇 Grolleau Gris · 🍇 Fer · 🍇 Petit Meslier · 🍇 Grolleau
Sources
- VIVC (Vitis International Variety Catalogue): passport Chenin blanc, area
- OIV Focus 2017: Distribution of the world's grapevine varieties
- INAO: cahier des charges de l'AOC « Vouvray »
- Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/33 (grape varieties on labels; Annex VII — Bocksbeutel)
- Simons C.T. Left out in the cold: Serving wines chilled. Temperature, 2019