Franck Bonville Grand Cru Unisson NV

'Unisson' Grand Cru 93WA
Brut Blanc des Blancs NV
*(2016/2017 base vintages) 

• 100% Chardonnay
• multi-plot blend that can change depending on the vintage 
• 2016/2017 vintages
• 5 years on the lees sur latte
• 6.7 g/L dosage

93 pts Wine Advocate
Franck Bonville’s NV Unisson Grand Cru is a Blanc de Blancs (100% Chardonnay) derived from grapes planted in the village of Avize. Offering up aromas of pastry, vanilla, lemon oil and spices with hints of butter, it’s medium to full-bodied, round and supple, vinous and tense with a delicate, slightly bitter finish. Based on a blend of 2016 and 2017 vintages, it was disgorged with a dosage of 6.7 grams per liter in March 2023.

Our Tasting Note:  Deeper gold - still medium though. Lots of tiny bubbles, a nicely persistent mousse. White orchard and stone fruits, subtle spice, saline and chalk mineral, elegant and finessed. Additional age broadens palate, density and texture, med+ well integrated and mouthwatering acidity. Med bodied, med+/pronounced nose, flavors and a long finish.

As with their flagship Blanc de Blancs, Bonville’s Grand Cru cuvée “Unisson” (“unison”) can vary from year to year in vineyard sources, reserve wines, and dosage levels, but their aim here is a more complex and mineral-dominated character than the flagship—a profile enhanced by spending more time on the lees before disgorgement. This release comes entirely from holdings in the grand cru Avize, from roughly equal proportions of the 2017 and 2016 harvests, and it was disgorged after nearly five years on the lees with a dosage of 6.7 grams per liter. A salty, authoritative nose introduces a palate of greater depth than that of the flagship, with a clean and stony finish of impressive length.