Each month the French #Winophiles blogging group explores a particular French wine theme.  Sometimes it’s a notable region whose wines we’d like to explore in-depth; other times it’s more about exploring a grape variety vinified throughout the country.   This month we are exploring grower Champagne.

If you’re not familiar with grower Champagne.  Have a look at this post which includes a Q&A providing an overview of grower Champagne.

I decided to feature a, new to me, cuvée from the grower Franck Bonville, because it’s the grower Champagne I’ve had more often than any other.   I’ll also share what I think makes it terroir special.

There are 5 major regions in the Champagne AOC,  Montagne de Reims, Vallée de la Marne, Côte des Blancs, Côte de Sézanne and Côte des Bars.

There’s a slope in Champagne that produces magic. Spanning 12 miles of chalk-rich soils, the Côte de Blancs is home to magnificent Chardonnay vineyards. -Roger Voss, Wine Enthusiast Magazine

Champagne Franck Bonville is located in the village of Avize, in the Côte des Blancs (literally the Hill of Whites) located south of Epernay.

What makes the Côte des Blancs special?  According to aforementioned Roger Voss, “The grapes grown here are used to make some of the region’s finest Champagnes. Called blanc de blancs, meaning “white of whites,” these are Champagnes made exclusively from white grapes—in this case, Chardonnay.

What makes this slope and these vines so special? Champagne is the coolest vine-growing region in France, one that sees bitterly cold winters and mild summers. Chardonnay generally loves such cool-climate conditions, but these vineyards excel particularly well thanks to chalk-heavy subsoil and the east-facing vines that capture ample warmth from the morning sun.

But it’s more than that: The chalk soil was once ancient seabed, and now it contains millions of small, fossilized creatures. The minerality and saltiness it imparts on Chardonnay translates into crisp, tight, well-balanced Champagnes with a pure and elegant aromatic intensity. ”

The villages in the Côte des Blancs ,  built in the style of amphitheatres on the hillsides, are famous worldwide.

In Champagne, its villages (rather than vineyards as in Burgundy) are classified grand cru, premier cru, or simply cru.  There are 17 villages classified as Grand Cru in Champagne.  Six of the those seventeen grand cru villages are in the Cote des Blancs.

Avize is one of them.

Located to the south, southeast of Épernay, Avize is one of the villages on the “genuine” Côte des Blancs slope. The upper part of the village itself is located in the middle of the slope.

The eastern-facing vineyards in Avize are located around the village.  Virtually all of the vineyards are planted to Chardonnay.   There are 267.9 hectares (662.0 acres) of vineyards in the commune  with over 300 owners.  Champagne houses that control vineyards in Avize include Duval-Leroy, Jacquesson, Moët & Chandon, Mumm, Perrier-Jouët, Piper Heidsieck, Pol Roger, Roederer, and Taittinger.  But growers abound in the village too, including renown growers Agrapart & Fils , and Jacques Selosse. 

Franck Bonville Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut Prestige

The Bonvilles were grape growers in the Côte de Blancs until after World War II, when they began making Champagne themselves with fruit from the grand cru villages of Avize and Oger. The domaine, a true family-run enterprise, is now in its third generation. It’s run by Olivier Bonville, who grew up in the business working side-by-side with his parents, Ingrid and Gilles.

Today, the estate is composed of 77 plots covering 15 hectares (34 acres) in three grand cru villages, Avize, Oger, and Le Mesnil sur Oger.

I was introduced to Champagne Franck Bonville by the Champagne buyer at K&L Wine merchants.  It wasn’t until after I had a few different bottles that I realized they were a grower.

This wine is the fourth of the six cuvees they produced that I have tried.

Tasting Notes

Color – Pale yellow
Aromas – Granny Smith apple, quince paste, brioche, toasted hazelnuts, citrus blossom, chalk and a hint of honey
Body – Medium-bodied with a delicate, creamy mousse. Full of finesse and freshness.
Taste – Ripe Granny Smith apple, quince paste, Meyer lemon peel, brioche, and vanilla with a chalky minerality.
Finish -Medium finish.

12.5% abv. Blend of 2012 and 2013 vintages from Bonville’s best tanks. Aged for 4 years. Dosed at 7.5 g/L; SRP -$45 (90pts)

Food Pairing

I was craving fish and chips, but we opted to pair the wine with a salad, crab cakes and white truffle potato chips!  Yum…and a great pairing!

What I appreciate about the Champagne Franck Bonville wines is that they deliver a lot of bang for the buck.  Considering the Brut Prestige is all Grand Cru fruit from Bonville’s best tanks, and it’s aged for four years,  at $45 is very good QPR!

Check out what my French #Winophiles have in their glasses and on their plates!

• Jeff of FoodWineClick will be Taking a Saber to Farmer Fizz
• Camilla of  Culinary Adventures with Camilla says Skip The Butterbombs and Pair Champagne with Alpine Cheeses Instead
• Robin of Crushed Grape Chronicles  will be diving into Farmer Fizz? An exploration of Grower Champagne
• Jane of Always Ravenous will be Pairing Pizza with Grower Champagne
• Lynn of Savor The Harvest will be sharing Fourth Generation Grower Champagne – Pierre Peters and Bourgeois-Diaz
• Jill of L’Occasion will be taking A Closer Look At Grower Champagne With Champagne André Jacquart
• Gwendolyn  of the Wine Predator is sharing  #Winophiles In Grower Champagne Heaven! Part One: Biodynamic Wine with Caroline Henry 

Join Our French Winophiles As We Sip grower Champagne!
If you’re up early enough, join the conversation over on Twitter on Saturday August 18th from 8-9am  PDT on Saturday, August 18th. We’re a friendly group.  Please consider joining the fun as we sip,  and tweet about grower Champagne.

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