ASSOULINE Food & Drink | Château Monestier La Tour (French)

For more than twenty-five years, the Scheufele family searched for an interesting château in France to live out their passion for wine. Château Monestier La Tour was like a coup de foudre, and the charm of the place immediately overwhelmed them. The château dates back to a thirteenth-century monastery and stands proudly on a small hill overlooking Monestier, a historic village just next to Bergerac.

Nestled in the Périgord region of France—a paradise for gourmands, wine lovers, and history buffs—Château Monestier La Tour’s heritage is as rich and elegant as the wines it produces. This exceptional volume traverses the château’s legacy of viticulture, first officially recorded in 1792; after being passed down through noble French families, it was picked up by proprietors from New Zealand and the Netherlands before being acquired in 2012 by the Scheufele family, who have restored the château to its cozy grandeur.

Written by Swiss wine expert Chandra Kurt, the five chapters are “The Périgord, a Land of Plenty,” “Gastronomy, from Truffles to Foie Gras,” “The History of Wine in Bergerac,” “Château Monestier La Tour” and “The Biodynamic Universe.” For Timeless Périgord the château opens its doors and Italian photographer Jacopo Salvi captures its beauty through all four seasons—including wine production, truffle hunting, and working in the vineyards, the biodynamic gardens and the kitchen. In addition, this Classics Collection volume is punctuated with over two dozen delectable recipes made with regional ingredients, from starters such as Eggs in Red Wine Sauce and Truffled Foie Gras Terrine, to Pot-au-Feu and Rotisserie Chicken with Sautéed Vegetables, to Crème Brûlée and Pear Tart Bourdaloue.

“We love the tranquility in this place, and when we are here time shows a different dimension. Everything takes a little longer and everything takes the time needed to achieve the qualitative perfection that we strive for,” explains Karl-Friedrich Scheufele. This book is a homage to a place that has enchanted them and its uniqueness they want to share with lovers of good food, wine, old history and healthy countryside.

Wine Tales, the yearly guide Weinseller, while also having launched the wine magazine Weinseller Journal in 2015. Chandra is an international wine consultant, a member of the Circle of Wine Writers in London, the Ordre des Coteaux de Champagne and the Confrérie du Guillon.