Franck Bonville Grand Cru Brut Blanc de Blancs Champagne

Franck Bonville Grand Cru Brut Blanc de Blancs Champagne SKU #1002262

$34.99

WE 91

WS 90

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Professional Reviews

Wine Enthusiast
91
From the heartland of Chardonnay in Champagne comes this rich, creamy, apple-flavored wine. It has lively acidity, balanced with some sweetness from the dosage. It has weight and a crisp aftertaste. (RV)

(12/2012)
Wine Spectator
90
Lightly floral, this creamy crowd-pleasing Champagne shows good balance, with a lively mix of Honeycrisp apple, passion fruit and smoked almond. (AN)

(12/2015)
Jancis Robinson

100% Chardonnay from Oger, Cramant and Avize. From a 50-ha estate. Olivier Bonville is the third generation to make wine here. Super-clean fresh nose, smells like a health scrub. Vigorous mousse. Crisp edges and a creamy middle, streaked with verbena. More green than lemon, and just slightly sour. Quite weighty and substantial yet with a cutting edge, like prow of a ship. *Good Value* (TC)

(12/2014)

K&L Notes

All Champagne producers should be judged on their entry-level wine, and Olivier's is as good as they get. This is always the fastest non-vintage Champagne to sell out--so get it while we have it! The nose is effusive, with baguette, white flowers, and a nice salinity, while the flavors have a fine balance of white fruit, cream, and precise Avize chalk. Don't miss this. The Underground Wine Letter also rates this wine Outstanding Plus: "This is a terrific Champagne with great balance, flavor, and style, and it is a real value. Pale yellow in color, the wine has a lovely perfume with hints of peach and citrus and faint floral nuances accented by a kiss of vanilla. Creamy and very flavorful, this is a Champagne that is very harmonious showing subtle hints of peach, citrus, and spice. Elegant and long on the finish this is gorgeous to drink now or keep for many years." Our current release has a primary blend from 2014 and 2015 and is dosed at a very low 5g/L.

Staff Reviews

By: Christina Stanley
2/9/2018
K&L Staff Member

This wine is made from 100% Grand Cru fruit from Avize, Cramant and Oger. The palate is clean and subtly floral, but is fairly robust and has hints of under-ripe tropical fruit, a testament to the warmer vintage. With a dry, soft finish, this is an elegant wine sure to please the most discerning.
By: Jordan Stone
2/8/2018
K&L Staff Member

Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Champagne for just $ 34.99! Lively and rich with flavors of apples some bready notes with a touch of saline and vanilla. Crisp and clean with persistent bubbles. This is a favorite at my house
By: Cliff Spinola
2/6/2018
K&L Staff Member

During our staff Champagne tasting today, this one stood out for me. Based on the 2015 vintage and using their estate-grown Grand Cru Chardonnay (50% of which are reserve), this wine is supple, refreshing, and refined. It checks all the boxes of what Champagne is supposed to be and leaves you wanting for more.
By: Rachel Vogel
2/6/2018
K&L Staff Member

The Franck Bonville Blanc de Blanc was the first Champagne I bought on the first night I worked at K&L, and it will always have a special spot in my heart. What makes it so special is the care and quality Olivier Bonville pours into his wines. Based on 2015, the Blanc de Blanc is half reserve wine from all estate fruit. Some time in barrel gives this Chardonnay a creamy, sweet citrus character, like that of a Meyer lemon or pink grapefruit. The chalky soil is not lost in this wine, either. A soft structure of dry white chalk elongates the palate and adds an extra level of complexity. It is a wine that never disappoints.
By: Alex Schroeder
1/11/2018
K&L Staff Member

Olivier Bonville carries on the tradition of his grandfather, Franck, producing wines of incredible richness and complexity from his estate vines in the Grand Cru villages of Avize and Mesnil on the picaresque Cote de Blancs. It has the rich flavors of Anjou pear, Meyer lemon, white apricots and a touch of delicate spice. The real magic is in the chalky minerality and zippy acidity that the Cote de Blancs is famous for. When you consider that similar offerings from the Big Houses cost three to four times more, this becomes a must-buy for anyone calling themselves Champagne enthusiasts.
By: Gary Westby
6/20/2017
K&L Staff Member

This is one of K&L's best selling Champagnes for a very good reason. The Bonville family has some of the best terroir imaginable for growing Chardonnay--every acre that they own is super chalky, east-facing Grand Cru on the Cote des Blancs. They have been making their own Champagne here since the 1920s, and growing here for many generations before that. This is their entry level bottling, and what a way to start! It is made of at least half reserve wines, giving it not only the dry, chalky drive that makes this area famous, but also giving the wine toasty, creamy, delicious drinkability. A must-try for any Champagne lover.
By: David Othenin-Girard
5/27/2016
K&L Staff Member

This is basically the non-vintage champagne that everybody wants, everybody needs, and everybody can have! It checks every box. It suits any occasion. It fits nearly any budget. It delivers in every single way. Perfect blanc de blancs nose, vibrant soft white fruit, fresh crisp apples and citrus, slight saline, and that grand cru chalkiness that you can't miss. Lively, pointed and open - it slips from the glass like a slithering snake, just disappears. Where did it go? I don't know. Buy another.
By: Daniel Maas
5/24/2016
K&L Staff Member

One of the following three statements is true, and the others are false! Let's see if you can pick the fact. 1: THE EARTH IS BIGGER THAN THE SUN 2: STANLEY KUBRICK WAS HIRED BY NASA TO FAKE THE MOON LANDING. 3. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO GET HIGH-END CHAMPAGNE FOR LESS THAN $35. Well? What do you think? I was on the fence between the moon landing and champagne, UNTIL I opened a bottle of this unbelievable Grand Cru offering from what has become a huge staff favorite here in Hollywood. Immensely refreshing with clean peach and citrus fruit, subtle vanilla, and a long finish, this amount of deliciousness is even more ridiculous than those two false facts! Think about it!
By: Mari Keilman
5/18/2016
K&L Staff Member

The Franck Bonville Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs is crisp, refreshing and vibrant with just the perfect balance of green apple and lime on the nose and palate. This cuvee sets itself apart from other Blanc de Blancs with how the Bonville family is able to create a creamy, full-bodied palate in conjunction with the bright and zesty flavor profile. They were able to achieve the harmonious balance between the acidity, the elegance, finesse and balance in this entry level cuvee.
By: Kyle Kurani
2/19/2015
K&L Staff Member

Update 2014: The 2011 Vintage in Champagne was pretty terrible, turns out to be a blessing in disguise for one of my favorite bottles of Champagne in the store. Wanting to make sure he kept the quality up, Olivier Bonville declassified all of his high end and old vine vineyards into this little gem. The depth of fruit and minerality is what catches me off guard when I drink this wine, light and elegant, the chalk in the soils sing through the nose and offer a back bone that frames the entire wine. White flowers, golden apple, and a hint of spice cake. Vintage Champagne in disguise. 2011: The picture of elegance and class. Such pure and clean lines, a touch of citrus, a hit of minerality all delivered effortlessly on a find bead and sensuous mouth feel. One of my annual holliday favorites and sure to please any Champagne snob that might haunt your gatherings.
By: Mahon McGrath
4/16/2014
K&L Staff Member

Fresh and racy, showing crisp apple and citrus, with hints of mineral and brioche rounding out the palate, this focused and elegant Champagne is as good as--or better than--its previous incarnations, and remains a steal for the price.
By: Chiara Shannon
4/24/2012
K&L Staff Member

I was reminded at today's Champagne staff tasting of what a fabulous bottle of bubbles this is for the money. Based mostly on the 2007 vintage, with the rest older reserve wines, this Champagne offers an expressive nose of golden apple, creamy lees, chalky minerals, and the subtlest of baking spices. It is full on the palate, with a creamy mousse lended structure and power by vibrant acidity. The chalky mineral component adds edge and focus to the long finish. Its richness and fruit offers broad appeal, but its complexity and depth promise to intrigue even the most discerning of palates. This is a superb Champagne to enjoy now and over the course of the next five years, for any occasion!
By: Christie Brunick
12/14/2011
K&L Staff Member

The best deal in direct import Blanc De Blanc Champagne Yet! Its an entire staff favorite here at K&L, and once you try it you'll understand why. Its elegant and pure but has a richness on the palate that is creamy and fulfilling. This is my personal house Champagne! My favorite Champagne under $50 by far! This has no hard edges at all; it's completely seamless from start to finish. Crisp, with elegance, round and creamy richness, the Bonville is full of bright fruit and mineral notes. As much fun as bubbly gets! Try it ASAP!
By: Steve Bearden
7/7/2011
K&L Staff Member

When it comes to Champagne this is probably our all time staff favorite. The fact that it is a direct import and sells for less than half what it would if it went through the same distribution system as the big name brands doesn't hurt either. Fresh and ripe Chardonnay flavors, intense mineral notes and hints of earth leap from this vibrant and full-textured bubbly.
By: Jim Boyce
6/30/2011
K&L Staff Member

This is another outstanding, easy to like champagne from Bonville. 100% estate chardonnay from three vintages, this bottle intertwines clean citrus and crisp apple with solid, chalky minerality to create some seriously great bubbles. Refreshing alone on a warm summer day or paired with some of your favorite seafood appetizers, this champagne is sure to please.
By: Mike Barber
5/31/2011
K&L Staff Member

Always one of our best direct import champagne producers! Clean, crisp, bright - and the price is amazing!
Top Value! Drink from 2011 to 2015
By: Jason Marwedel
10/26/2010
K&L Staff Member

Made from all estate fruit from Bonville’s Grand Cru vineyards in Avize, this champagne displays ripe citrus and apple fruit on the nose, followed by a rich mid palate and a snappy mineral finish. The Bonville Prestige has everything I am looking for in a Blanc De Blancs at an extremely reasonable price!
By: Illya Haase
7/29/2010
K&L Staff Member

For me, one of the best finds at our recent Champagne tasting! It's off-dry, with beautiful fruit and a nice toasty nose. All this from third generation winemaking family whose holdings consist of 15 hectares of Grand Cru vineyards. The winemaking here is all about elegance and finesse and allowing the terroir to speak for itself and it shows.
By: Jeff Garneau
2/9/2010
K&L Staff Member

This may be the best deal in Champagne that K&L offers. 100% Chardonnay. 100% Grand Cru fruit from some of the best vineyards in the Côte des Blancs. Don't write this wine off because you didn't pay more for it! This is an outstanding Champagne at an unbelievable price. It will delight you with its rich, creamy texture. Ripe pear and chalky mineral notes give way to toasty, fresh baked apple tart on the mid palate. The wine finishes with a crisp, zingy citrus note of Meyer lemon. Enjoy this wine alone, as a refreshing aperitif or together with chilled, cracked Dungeness crab.
By: Jeffrey Jones
11/2/2009
K&L Staff Member

What a great producer Franck Bonville is! This excellence shows in the Brut Selection Blanc de Blanc. When one opens the bottle and pours some of this Champagne into a glass, beautiful aromas are the first teasing impression. The Champagne is dry and crisp with clean delicate flavors. Great alone or with lighter foods.
By: Jacques Moreira
10/20/2009
K&L Staff Member

If there is such a thing as a Champagne for everyday use, well this has to be it. Not because of the price, but for its quality and poise. Very crispy, citrousy end elegant. Perfect for hors d'oeuvres, seafood, egg dishes, guacamole, goat cheeses, and "fantastic" with caviar!
By: Joe Manekin
7/6/2009
K&L Staff Member

Very easy to like - soft textured, citrus and cream flavors. Plump, round and delicious. For someone who usually goes for a bit lean and austere, I'm always surprised I like this as much as I do. It's just delicious stuff.
By: Scott Beckerley
12/27/2008
K&L Staff Member

There is simply no better Blanc de Blanc in the store at this price! Classic Avize minerality with crisp apple-y fruit, lemons, limes and wet stone aspects. A wonderful Chamnpagne with caviar or baked Brie. Too good of a value to pass up. We can also go for months without having this sparkler in stock. Also available in 375ml and magnum. It also comes in a gorgeous 2002 vintage as well!

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