Franck Bonville : Pur Avize Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru 2019

Characteristics and tasting notes for the Pur Avize Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru 2019 by Franck Bonville

Tasting

Appearance
The wine displays a pale, luminous golden hue with subtle green highlights. The effervescence stands out for its fine, steady bubbles, which form a persistent bead.

Nose
The first nose opens with great freshness, blending citrus aromas such as lemon and grapefruit with white fruits like green apple and pear, highlighted by delicate touches of white flowers. With aeration, the bouquet gains in complexity, revealing hints of white peach, apricot and fresh hazelnut, along with a mineral thread reminiscent of damp chalk.

Palate
The attack is lively and clean, driven by fine tension. The palate proves straight, saline and vertical, with a creamy texture thanks to a perfectly integrated mousse. Flavours of citrus and white fruits come through, enriched by brioche and almond notes. The remarkably long finish extends into an elegant, chalky minerality.

Food and wine pairing

This Champagne is an ideal match for seafood, oysters or raw fish, such as a sea bass carpaccio with citrus. It also pairs beautifully with more elaborate dishes such as roast poultry, veal rump or an asparagus risotto, as well as lightly aged cheeses like a young Comté.

Serving and ageing

To fully appreciate the Pur Avize Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru 2019, it is best served at a temperature between 8 and 10°C. This wine can be enjoyed upon release, but its ageing potential allows it to be cellared for around ten years after disgorgement.

The purity of a Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru from the Côte des Blancs by Franck Bonville

The estate

The history of the Franck Bonville house begins in the early 20th century, when Alfred Bonville purchased his first vines, but the estate was officially founded in the 1930s under the leadership of his son Franck. Based in Avize, in the heart of Champagne, the property covers some fifteen hectares. Today, this family estate is run by Gilles Bonville and his son Olivier. A renowned Chardonnay specialist, the house stands out for its meticulous plot-by-plot approach and its environmental commitment, producing cuvées that showcase the grands crus of the Côte des Blancs.

The vineyard

The house's vineyard covers around fifteen hectares divided into 77 plots, located exclusively in three villages classified as Grand Cru in Champagne: Avize, Oger and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. The vines dedicated to this cuvée are rooted on the slopes of Avize, characterised by crumbly chalk soils riddled with micro-fissures that provide excellent drainage. The estate has practised sustainable viticulture, free from herbicides and insecticides, since 2011, favouring ploughing, partial grass cover and the preservation of biodiversity.

The vintage

The 2019 vintage yielded perfectly ripe grapes in excellent health, with an ideal balance between richness and acidity, providing conditions well suited to crafting a wine built for long ageing.

Vinification and ageing

The grapes are pressed at the historic facilities in Avize. The Pur Avize Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru 2019 is vinified with great precision in small stainless steel tanks to preserve the aromatic purity of the fruit. The wine then undergoes a long period of ageing on the lees in bottle, lasting around five years, in the 19th-century underground millstone cellars, before being disgorged.

Grape variety

100% Chardonnay