Christain Bourmault - Avize

Avize is all about lead pencil and spice. There are subtle minerals and a hint of sweetness but the power and weight of the graphite spice is always there. I can remember a vivid tasting at a vigneron in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. He had a pure Le Mesnil cuvée and a blended cuvée of 70% Le Mesnil, 10% Oger, 10% Avize, 10% Cramant. I asked him why the blend was so complex and spicy. He immediately replied that 10% Avize is enough to make such a huge difference.

The Bourmault household originates in 1870 from the famous Blanc de Blancs village Cuis – which is adjacent to Cramant Grand Cru. Through the merging of various portions of the family vineyards, Christian created this property in Avize in 1998 - which now consists of 4ha of premium located mid slope Chardonnay in Avize and Cuis as well as 2ha of Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier in the Marne Valley. Vineyards are all farmed organically with low yields and fastidious attention to detail. Christian is a very gentle person with amazing knowledge and passion – this translates into superb Champagne. All wines are fermented in small oak barriques and then aged for 7-8 months in oak depending on the wines characteristics. The malo-lactic fermentation is blocked and dosages are low using reconstituted must concentrate not sugar.

We have been chasing Christian for a number of years - but he has never had any wine to sell us – every last bottle is reserved. Finally this year he allowed us to visit and taste – wow – we were impressed and begged him for some bottles. I think he has taken pity on us and couldn’t bare to see grown men cry – he gave us a tiny allocation. Christian and Yveline are wonderfull hosts and live in a delightfull house directly on the main corner in Avize – at the turn-off up to Grauves. Like most vignerons – they are totally confused and puzzled as to how on earth these ‘ozzies’ heard about them and why they have made such a long trek to knock on their door. Try these Champagnes and discover why!