Sensory Essence of Chenin Blanc Wines

My husband and I are fans of Chenin Blanc. When it came time to plant our vineyard, we planted nearly half of the vineyard with Chenin Blanc. Why do we like Chenin Blanc so much? Versatility, thy name is Chenin Blanc. In our first attempt in 2015, we made such a seeringly acidic Chenin Blanc that we also added back some unfermented juice to a portion of the fermented wine and made an a la Riesling-style Chenin Blanc Sussreserve. We also made a Petillant Naturel or Pét-nat, sparkling wine in 2018 and more recently, a botrysized late harvest Chenin Blanc.
In looking on the Internet, I found a very comprehensive article on Vinerra¹ on the aroma and flavor profiles of Chenin Blanc wine.
Here is the summary.
The aroma profile of a Chenin Blanc can be categorized into:¹

• Primary Aromas: Fruit notes, such as: yellow apple, quince, pear, passion fruit, lime, honeydew melon, peach, persimmon, and mandarin orange. Floral and herbaceous qualities, like: lemon verbena, ginger, honey, honeysuckle, jasmine, chamomile, saffron, and apple blossom.
• Secondary Aromas: They develop from winemaking processes and include notes reminiscent of buttered popcorn, butterscotch, lemon curd, nutmeg, graham cracker, meringue, marzipan, and brioche due to oak aging.
• Tertiary Aromas: Emerge as the wine ages, offering complex scents such as coleslaw, sake and cheese rind (in oxidative styles)

The flavor profile of a Chenin Blanc is also very varied:

• Primary Notes: Fresh and zesty fruit flavours of tart pear, quince, ginger, and chamomile in dry styles. Richer notes of ripe pear, ginger, jasmine, honeycomb and tropical fruit flavours in off-dry versions. Sweet styles bring forth dried persimmon, toasted almond, mango, ginger, and mandarin orange.
• Secondary Flavours (influenced by fermentation and aging techniques): the most common secondary notes include buttery, nutty, and creamy textures alongside baking spices.
• Tertiary Flavours: With aging, Chenin Blanc can develop flavours of dried fruits, nuts, and a complex honeyed character, alongside a notable minerality in some terroirs.

Knowing these attributes of Chenin Blanc is key to how to pair this wine with food. I'll do that on a subsequent blog. Please stay tuned!
References:
1. Vinerra, Chenin Blanc: an In-Depth Wine Profile