🪨 Kimmeridgian marl
Also known as: Kimmeridgian marl, Kimmeridgian, Kimmeridge marl, Kimmeridgian soil, Kimmeridgian limestone
A soft limestone-clay rock of the Upper Jurassic, full of fossil oysters, that lies under the Chablis vineyards.
Kimmeridgian marl is a soft limestone-clay rock of the Upper Jurassic, more than 150 million years old by one estimate and about 145 million by another. It lies under the Chablis vineyards and is full of tiny fossil oysters, Exogyra virgula. The name comes from the village of Kimmeridge in Dorset, England, where the stage was first defined.
Marl is a carbonate sediment mixed with clay that erosion carried in. In 1904 Professor Georges Chappaz noted the abundance of tiny comma-shaped oyster fossils in the subsoil of Chablis. They form limestone banks combined with grey marl. In places the rock comes up to the surface.
Chablis, Chablis Premier Cru and Chablis Grand Cru sit mostly on Kimmeridgian soils, on the slopes. The wine board links the subsoil to the typicity, purity, finesse and minerality of the wines. Over 5,400 hectares of Chardonnay stand on it.
Petit Chablis, the neighbour, has a different story. It is mostly planted on Portlandian soils, harder limestones about 135 million years old, on hilltops and plateaus. Around 40 million years ago the Alpine uplift cracked the hard Portlandian beds, while the softer Kimmeridgian marls absorbed the pressure better. Erosion did the rest and shaped the slopes that carry the 47 Climats of Chablis.
Facts
| Duration | Upper Jurassic, over 150 million years (another estimate: ~145 million) 12 |
|---|---|
| Region | Chablis: Chablis, Premier Cru, Grand Cru; Petit Chablis sits on Portlandian limestone 1 |
| Cultivar | Chardonnay, over 5,400 ha on this soil 2 |
How it connects to Wine
🪨 Kimmeridgian marl → then → 📜 Chablis ← main grape of ← 🍇 Chardonnay → kind of → 🍇 Grape varieties → kind of → 🍷 Wine
Links
Frequently asked questions
Why is Petit Chablis grown up on the plateaus?
It mostly sits on harder limestones, on summits and plateaus, while the higher tiers are mostly on slopes where the parent rock sometimes reaches the surface. [1]
How many climats does Chablis have?
47, on both sides of the Serein river. [1]
How did the Chablis hillsides form?
Alpine uplift cracked the hard limestones, while softer marls took the pressure better; erosion then shaped the relief. [1]
Is it true that you can taste the oyster shells in Chablis?
The sources only link Chablis's purity, finesse and minerality to this subsoil; they do not say that shell flavour passes into the wine. [1][2]
How old are the Kimmeridgian and Portlandian soils?
Kimmeridgian: over 150 million years by one source, about 145 million by another. Portlandian: about 135 million years. [1][2]
Sources
- Les vins de Chablis (BIVB). Le sous-sol de Chablis : le Kimméridgien
- Bourgogne Wines (BIVB). Chablis, the Grand Auxerrois and the Châtillonnais on the edges of the Paris Basin