Champagne Bonnaire

“Bonnaire makes textbook Cramant for the sensualist. My private cellar is full of Bonnaire.” Richard Juhlin, 4000 Champagnes

Located in Cramant in the Côte de Blancs to the south of Epernay the Bonnaire family own some of the very best sites of Cramant making a range of  beautifully precise blanc de blancs and Chardonnay predominant Champagnes. Bonnaire use only their own estate grown fruit from 100% Grand cru rated vineyards in Cramant and Cuis and Oiry together with small holdings in the Marne Valley and Bergeres-les-Vertus for a little Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier to craft their small range of crystalline pure champagnes.

Established since 1932 the Bonnaire estate is now run by the new generation of Jean-Etienne and Jean-Emmanuel who in recent years have taken over from their father Jean-Louis who has lead the estate for more than 50 vintages establishing them as one of the leading producers in the Côte des Blancs.

All champagnes at Bonnaire are fermented and raised in stainless steel with malolactic fermentation used to soften the austerity so often found in blanc de blanc champagnes. This results in a range showing wonderfully fine textures allied with richness and depth and exceptional purity.

Whilst the region of Burgundy has enjoyed a huge revival of its fortunes in the past 3 decades as a result of the surge in quality coming from the small growers who are now estate bottling, Champagne is also now seeing a similar surge of interest in small high quality grower champagnes. In Burgundy the best sites for each variety are well researched and have proven their capacity to produce wines of a certain quality level for centuries. Similarly in the Champagne region, the best sites of land are rated and the prices of grapes that can be achieved from those sites will depend on the rating of each site. Cramant is one of the few villages rated 100% Grand cru and these champagnes come from those superbly sited vineyards.

NEW

Cramant Nature 2022 Coteau Champenois (STILL WINE)
Cramant Nature is a still white wine from Champagne (AOC Coteaux Champenois), formerly known as vin nature de Champagne. This 100% Chardonnay wine comes from one of the oldest plots of the "Les Marmouzes" estate, planted by our founder Fernand in 1962 on the Cramant terroir. 94 points (Bettane & Desseauve)

Pure precise and chiselled Champagnes from some of the best vineyard sites in Cramant in the Côte des Blancs

Terroirs Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Extra Brut NV (available in bottles and halves)
100% Chardonnay made from a blend of 2019 and 2020 vintages for the current shipment. Coming from the villages of Cramant, Chouilly and Oiry. Fermented in stainless steel and matured on lees for minimum of 36 months, this lot disgorged in April 2024 with an extra brut low dosage of 4 g/L.

This cuvee shows the finesse capable from the chalky soils of the Côte des Blancs terroir being a blend of their 3 Grand cru villages of Cramant, Chouilly and Oiry. Oozing freshness, it shows at once great acidity and a balanced dosage enabling the aromas to express themselves freely. Very pale bright colour with fine yet intense citrus and white flower aromas. Great length in the mouth finishing on fresh and mineral notes with suppleness and balance. This Blanc de Blancs is full of character and natural elegance, with great depth and minerality.

’The NV Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Brut is a clear, fresh and chalky Chardonnay from Cramant in the Côte des Blancs that opens with lovely intense and soft white fruit aromas. It is a mouth-filling, very elegant and finessed Cramant with highly digestible balance and stimulating lightness in alcohol (12%). The finish is charmingly round and fruity but also has the typical chalky texture that gives it perfect balance. This is an excellent cuvée with a delicate, salty, well-structured finish. I didn't see a lot number on the label nor on the bottle, but this should be a pretty fresh disgorgement and is mainly based on the 2013 vintage, as Jean-Emmanuel Bonnaire told me. Tasted April 2018.’ 90 points, Stephan Reinhardt, The Wine Advocate, September 2018.

Cramant Vintage Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs - last bottles
2013 100% Chardonnay made from the oldest vines of the estate, grown on two of the very best parcels in Cramant: the lieu-dits of Le Bateau and Les Terres des Buisson. Showing a very fine mousse with chalky minerality and citrus notes it finishes with great length and palate presence. This is the essence of Cramant, a stunning blanc de blancs with impeccable finesse and pinpoint balance. Matured for 6 years on lees and disgorged in March 2020, with a 5 g/L dosage.

Cramant Vintage Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs
2014 100% Chardonnay made from the oldest vines of the estate, grown on two of the very best parcels in Cramant: the lieu-dits of Le Bateau and Les Terres des Buisson. Showing a very fine mousse with chalky minerality and citrus notes it finishes with great length and palate presence. This is the essence of Cramant, a stunning blanc de blancs with impeccable finesse and pinpoint balance. Matured for 6 1/2 years on lees and disgorged in December 2021, with a 5 g/L dosage.

Cramant Vintage Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs
2017 100% Chardonnay made from a selection of the finest Cramant plots, ideally exposed at mid-slope, revealing all the power and elegance of this privileged terroir.. Showing a very fine mousse with chalky minerality and citrus notes it finishes with great length and palate presence. This is the essence of Cramant, a stunning blanc de blancs with impeccable finesse and pinpoint balance. Matured for 7 years on lees and disgorged in April 2024, with a 2.5 g/L dosage.

Cramant Vintage Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs lieu-dit Le Bateau
2016 100% Chardonnay made from the oldest vines of the estate, grown on the very best parcels in Cramant: the lieu-dit of Le Bateau. Aged in stainless steel tank with no maloloactic fermentation. Showing a very fine mousse with chalky minerality and citrus notes it finishes with great length and palate presence. This is the essence of Cramant, a stunning blanc de blancs with impeccable finesse and pinpoint balance. Matured for 6 years on lees and disgorged in May 2023, with a 1.5 g/L dosage.

Cramant Vintage Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs lieu-dit Les Terres des Buisson
2016 100% Chardonnay made from the oldest vines of the estate, grown on the very best parcels in Cramant: the lieu-dit of Les Terres des Buisson. Aged in barrel with maloloactic fermentation. Facing the hill of Saran, this place has a chalky, deep and mineral soil, which resonates in balance with the oaks of the Argonne forest. Showing a very fine mousse with chalky minerality and citrus notes it finishes with great length and palate presence. This is the essence of Cramant, a stunning blanc de blancs with impeccable finesse and pinpoint balance. Matured for 6 years on lees and disgorged in May 2023, with a 1.5 g/L dosage.

Tradition L’Esprit du Temps Extra Brut NV - ON-PREMISE ONLY - new name and labelling in 2026 Les Versants
Made from a blend of all 3 varietals with Chardonnay in the majority of the blend at 50%, plus 30 % Pinot Noir and 20 % Pinot Meunier. Vinification takes place mainly in vats, complemented by around 10% ageing in small oak barrels, which imparts a subtle spicy note. Currently based on 2017 and 2018 vintages with approximately 15% vins de reserve and 4 grams/litre of dosage. Aged on lees for a minimum of 30 months as well as another 3 months after dosage before bottling. Pale yet bright colour with precise and fine red fruit aromas with hints of grapefruit and white flowers. The mousse is very fine and elegant. The palate shows excellent depth and clarity of fruit with hints of red fruits showing and excellent finesse finishing long and dry. Beautifully precise and expressive and perfect for both aperitif and would also partner perfectly with most seafoods and poultry as well as much Japanese cuisine.

50% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot noir, 20% Pinot meunier Dosage: 4 grams
Medium yellow, fine perlage. Expressive, mineral, ripe berries. Delicate mousse, gripping acidity, pleasantly dry, juicy middle part, cool aromas, nice length. An attractive, harmonious, tightly built champagne. Drink Now.’ 18/20 Swiss Wine News, November 2021.

Bonnaire “les Versants” Extra Brut NV (Cramant) - ON-PREMISE ONLY - new name and labelling in 2026 Les Versants
Made from a blend of all 3 varietals with Chardonnay in the majority of the blend at 50%, plus 30 % Pinot Noir and 20 % Pinot Meunier. Coming from several plots in Cramant, Cuis, Bergères-les-Vertus and from the Vallée de la Marne in the village of Fossoy and the Montagne de Reims in Bouzy. Our first shipment from the base vintage of 2022 disgorged in November 2025 with a dosage of 5 g/L.
The les Versants bottling of non-vintage Brut from the Bonnaire brothers is composed from a blend of forty percent chardonnay and thirty percent each of pinot noir and pinot meunier. The vins clairs are fermented and raised in stainless steel and go through full malo. The current release is from the base year of 2021 and was aged two and a half years sur latte prior to disgorgement and a finishing dosage of four grams per liter. The wine’s bouquet is bright and complex, wafting from the glass in a mix of pear, lemon, a touch of passion fruit, chalky soil tones, bread dough, citrus zest and a gentle floral topnote of fruit blossoms. On the palate the wine is brisk, young and full-bodied, with a fine core of fruit, lovely soil undertow, frothy mousse, snappy acids and lovely focus and balance on the long, nascently complex and very promising finish. To my palate, this needs a year or two in the cellar to let its acids ease back a bit and the wine to blossom properly, but it is going to be very tasty once its structurally relaxes. 2028-2045. 91 points, John Gilman, View from the Cellar, June 2026