Chasselas () or Chasselas blanc () is a wine grape variety grown mainly in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

and

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

. Chasselas is mostly vinified to be a full, dry and fruity white wine. It is also suitable as a

table grape Table grapes are grapes intended for consumption as fresh fruit, as opposed to grapes grown for wine production, Juicing, juice production, jelly and jam making, or for drying into raisins. ''Vitis vinifera'' table grapes can be in the form of e ...

, grown widely for this purpose in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

and

History

Genetic analyses made in 2009 in a laboratory of the University of Dieppe showed that Chasselas is a grape variety originating in western Switzerland.J. F. VOUILLAMOZ et C. ARNOL
Etude historico-génétique de l’origine du ‘Chasselas’ (PDF)
, Université de Neuchâtel, NCCR Plant Survival, 2009. Its name was first mentioned in the 16th century. In 1940, Chasselas was crossed with

Silvaner Silvaner or Sylvaner () is a variety of white wine grape grown primarily in Alsace wine, Alsace and German wine, Germany, where its official name is Grüner Silvaner. While the Alsatian versions have primarily been considered simpler wines, it ...

to produce the white grape variety Nobling.J. Robinson ''Jancis Robinson's Guide to Wine Grapes'', p. 129.

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

1996 .

Wine regions

Chasselas is widely grown in Switzerland, where it has several regional synonym names, the main one being ''Fendant'' in the canton of

Valais Valais ( , ; ), more formally, the Canton of Valais or Wallis, is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of thirteen districts and its capital and largest city is Sion, Switzer ...

. It is considered an ideal pairing for

raclette Raclette (, ) is a dish of Swiss cuisine, Swiss origin, also popular in the other Alpine countries (France, Italy, Germany, Austria), based on heating cheese and scraping off the melted part, then typically served with boiled potatoes. Raclette i ...

fondue Fondue ( , , , ; ) is a Swiss dish of melted cheese and wine served in a communal pot ( or fondue pot) over a portable stove () heated with a candle or spirit lamp, and eaten by dipping bread and sometimes vegetables or other foods into the c ...

. Chasselas is also known as ''Perlan'' in the Mandement district of Geneva. In 2009, it was Switzerland's second-most planted grape variety at .Office fédéral de l’agriculture OFAG: Das Weinjahr 2009 / L'année d'viticole 2009
. In Germany, with , it is almost exclusively grown in the wine region of

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in southern Germany. In earlier times it was considered to be on both sides of the Upper Rhine, but since the Napoleonic Wars, it has been considered only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Ba ...

under the name ''Gutedel''.German Wine Institute: German Wine Statistics 2007-2008
. In France it is mostly grown in the Loire region, where it is blended with Sauvignon blanc to produce a wine called "Pouilly-sur-Loire". Californian and Australian growers know this variety under the names ''Chasselas Doré'' and ''Golden Chasselas''. Michel Chapoutier has stated that he is looking for land for a vineyard in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, which would be planted with Chasselas. He said that he believed Chasselas would suit the English climate and

terroir (; ; from ''terre'', ) is a French language, French term used to describe the environmental factors that affect a crop's phenotype, including unique environment contexts, farming practices and a crop's specific growth habitat. Collectively, th ...

very well.Adam Lechmere
Chapoutier looks for English vineland
Decanter.com News, 12 May 2011. Retrieved 27 January 2022. Image:Roter Gutedel Weinsberg 20060909.jpg, A red-skinned version of Chasselas ripening on the vine Image:Grožđe Crvena plemenka.jpg, A fully ripe red-skinned Chasselas in Međimurje, northern Croatia

References

{{Authority control White wine grape varieties Table grape varieties

History

Wine regions

See also

References