Château Troplong Mondot is truly one of the most captivating estates in the Saint-Émilion wine region of Bordeaux. A highlight of visiting Château Troplong Mondot is due to its high elevation, which provides breathtaking views of the vineyards, surrounding countryside, and the medieval town of St. Émilion. In addition to touring the château and winemaking facilities, enjoying a lunch at the on-site restaurant Les Belles Perdrix is also highly recommended. Should you want to spend more time in this countryside retreat, there are a couple of rooms available at their bed and breakfast as well.
For over 100 years, Troplong Mondot has remained family-owned, which is starting to become more rare in the region. Major efforts in the past couple of decades have been undertaken to improve the quality of wine. All of their hard work eventually paid off in 2006, when Troplong Mondot received its Premier Grand Cru status. This is not only a beautiful property, but its wines are considered to be among the best in Saint-Émilion.
Our visit to the château was arranged by a group tour with the Union des Grand Crus in Bordeaux. Typically we prefer private tours (which are available at the château), but we made an exception in this case. Our tour consisted of touring the winemaking facilities and then concluded with a wonderful tasting. During the tour, we stumbled upon the owner, Xavier Pariente, and his very friendly dog. He was very personable and enjoyed taking photos and speaking with the group.
The views at Troplong Mondot are simply incredible and found throughout the property, as even the vat room has a large window with an amazing view. It is worth the trip just to walk around the property and look out onto Saint-Émilion. There are also beautiful flowers everywhere, which creates a number of great photo opportunities. But beyond the views and landscaping, the winemaking facilities are also unique. From the state-of-the-art vat room to the crystal chandeliers in the barrel cellar, the aesthetics are just superb. After touring the barrel room, we tasted the 2011 vintage, which was a treat. As Troplong Mondot typically only sells their wine to negoçiants and merchants, there is no pressure to buy wine at the château during the tour (which is true throughout Bordeaux).
An even better tasting awaited us at lunch at the on-site restaurant, Les Belles Perdrix. It is hard to imagine a better setting for a restaurant, with the panoramic view of the vineyards and neighboring châteaux. During lunch, we tasted the 2011 Mondot (the château’s second wine) and both 2002 and 2006 from Château Troplong Mondot. The food that accompanied the wine was fresh and delicious.
While it can be difficult to get a true sense of place during a group tour, there were a number of things that became apparent at Troplong Mondot. First, the staff is very friendly and accommodating. This could be a great place to stay when visiting Saint-Émilion, as the town and other châteaux are very accessible. You can tell that the personnel at Troplong Mondot are very welcoming and love having visitors tour the beautiful grounds, so if you find yourself in St. Émilion, you should definitely consider a visit here.
