{"product_id":"larmandier-bernier-champagne-grand-cru-blanc-de-blancs-les-chemins-davize-extra-brut-2016","title":"Larmandier Bernier Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Les Chemins d'Avize Extra Brut 2016","description":"\u003cp\u003eLarmandier-Bernier’s Les Chemins d'Avize Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut 2016 is a precise, terroir-driven Champagne that captures the chalky soul of Avize in a single-vineyard expression. Crafted exclusively from Chardonnay and drawn from two old-vine parcels in this famed Grand Cru village, it offers a rare window into one of the Côte des Blancs’ most coveted sites. Produced in very small quantities and with a focus on minimal intervention, it represents the estate’s long-standing commitment to single-site Champagnes, building on a journey that began with VV de Cramant in 1988.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTasting Notes\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the glass, the 2016 Les Chemins d'Avize shows a pale, luminous straw-gold color with fine, persistent bubbles forming a delicate mousse. The nose is refined and layered, with notes of lemon zest, white flowers, fresh almond, and green pear over a deep core of crushed chalk, brioche, and a hint of salted butter and hazelnut from extended lees aging.\n\nOn the palate, this Champagne is both incisive and creamy, with a striking tension between crystalline acidity and a silken texture. Flavors of citrus oil, ripe orchard fruits, and white peach are interwoven with oyster shell, chalk dust, and subtle pastry tones, leading to a long, saline, and intensely mineral finish. The Extra Brut dosage highlights purity rather than richness, giving the wine a vertical, elongated profile. Already expressive, it will gain complexity and nuance over time, with excellent aging potential of at least 8–15 years from vintage in a good cellar, developing more toasted, nutty and honeyed characteristics while retaining its vibrant backbone.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProduction\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLes Chemins d'Avize comes from two old-vine Chardonnay parcels situated in the heart of Avize, one of Champagne’s most revered Grand Cru villages on the Côte des Blancs. Here, vines sink their roots deep into pure, friable chalk, which imparts the wine’s hallmark tension, salinity, and finesse. Larmandier-Bernier farms these plots organically and biodynamically, working the soils and harvesting by hand at optimal ripeness to preserve both fruit intensity and natural acidity. In 2009, the domaine acquired a smaller press specifically to vinify the Avize grapes separately, allowing for a true single-vineyard cuvée. The must is fermented with indigenous yeasts, largely in oak barrels and foudres, with long aging on the lees and minimal intervention, very low dosage, and restrained use of sulfur. The result is a Champagne that speaks clearly of site, season, and soil rather than cellar technique.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood \u0026amp; Serving\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis Champagne’s precision and chalky structure make it a superb match for refined, delicately flavored dishes. Serve it alongside oysters, langoustines, scallop carpaccio, sushi and sashimi, or simply prepared white fish with beurre blanc to highlight its saline, citrusy edge. It also pairs beautifully with fine poultry, veal tartare, and aged cheeses such as Comté or a mature goat’s cheese. For optimal enjoyment, serve at 8–10°C (46–50°F). A brief decant of 15–20 minutes or simply using a larger white wine glass can help the wine open up aromatically, especially if enjoyed in its youth.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProducer\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLarmandier-Bernier is a benchmark grower in the Côte des Blancs, based in Vertus and renowned for its terroir-focused Champagnes crafted almost exclusively from Chardonnay. The family’s roots in Champagne stretch back to the 19th century, but it is in recent decades that the domaine has become a reference point for serious, site-expressive grower Champagne. Farming is certified organic with strong biodynamic influence, and the approach in the cellar is minimalist, emphasizing indigenous yeasts, old oak, and long lees aging. Their pioneering work with single-vineyard cuvées—beginning with VV de Cramant in 1988, then Terre de Vertus in 1995 and Rosé de Saignée in 1999—has helped redefine what Champagne can be, shifting the focus from blends to the character of individual villages and parcels. Les Chemins d'Avize is a natural extension of this philosophy, underscoring Larmandier-Bernier’s position among the most respected grower-producers in the region.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Larmandier-Bernier","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54255199060305,"sku":"XW-51037","price":184.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0874\/0614\/9969\/files\/larmandier-bernier-champagne-grand-cru-blanc-de-blancs-les-chemins-d-avize-extra-brut-2016_51037_1_fa87d5ce-efb0-4976-a965-2f7ea95f0b12.webp?v=1783457246","url":"https:\/\/bottlehero.com\/products\/larmandier-bernier-champagne-grand-cru-blanc-de-blancs-les-chemins-davize-extra-brut-2016","provider":"Bottle Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}