Renowned in the Bordeaux region for its “cheese cave” containing around 100 different varieties of this delectable product, the restaurant offers guests a tour of France with a guided tasting entitled “An exploration of wines and cheeses” available from 10:00 am to midnight.

Spend 1 hour and 15 minutes with Françoise and Xavier, the owners, as they serve three platters of three cheeses, which change according to the season, the clients’ nationality and the hosts’ mood. Each accompanied, of course, by a carefully selected wine from the Bordeaux region.

Three “main” pairings are typically chosen to provide a balance of flavours, texture and smell, but the hosts break from the traditional pairing of cheese and red wine. White wine works just as well, as long as it respects the balance between affinity and contrast.

The tasting is a fun experience, accompanied by anecdotes of winemakers and producers (the hosts know almost all of them) as well as weird and wonderful tales about the cheeses themselves, each of which form part of our heritage!

A typical event is as follows:

TOUR ONE

Three fresh and young cheeses with little affinage (ageing), from three French regions:

Langres (cow's milk, Plateau de Langres, Haut Doubs), Cantal Jeune (Auvergne, less than 30 days of affinage) and Sainte Maure de Touraine.

Paired with white wine: Château Sainte-Marie, Vieilles Vignes, Entre deux Mers, made from Sauvignon and a little Sémillon to add a touch of fruit. A romantic, light and fresh pairing.

TOUR TWO

Three cheeses with lots of character, aged, sophisticated and full of flavour: Brie de Meaux, Tome de Brebis with Piment d’Espelette, Brillat Savarin with pepper.

And the wine? A 2011 Château Bellevue, from Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux. The young producer disassembles her tractor’s engine herself and fell into the small barrel! Her Merlot wines are velvety, round and supple in the mouth, the perfect match for these mature and creamy cheeses.

A flavoursome pairing that is intense but elegant.

TOUR THREE

To finish, three well-aged and intense cheeses: Trappe d’Echourgnac, a cheese made with walnut liqueur from the Dordogne, a 24-month old Comté and a Bleu des Causses. These are served with a Vin Doux or medium-sweet wine, preferably a Château de Commarque 2015 Sauternes. The wine selected must have enough body to reveal the intensity of the cheese, as well as the outpouring of its flavours and aromas. Opposites attract and come together: the salty cheeses with their dried texture make the perfect match for the sweet and medium-sweet wines!