La Maison de la Truffe et du Vin
The House of truffle and wine of Luberon is located in a picturesque old village of Menerbes, just a short ride from the region’s commercial hub of Apt. Driving through the hilly countryside crowned with the lush vineyards one wonders about how all these different wines might taste.
Now, you can stop wondering and just stop by at La Maison de la Truffe et du Vin in Menerbes and try as many wines as your palate desires. Here, you can also learn a bit about the diamonds of human food gems – the truffles. The exhibition is well-presented, organized and extremely interesting not only for connoisseurs but also anyone seeking knowledge about good things in life.
I have learned that there are truffles in countries one would not expect them to be found. For example in the US or in China. The quality though is a far flight from the truffles from Piemonte (Northern Italy) and Provance (South of France). You can discover more about the types, prices, quality, recipes and history of truffles at this great museum.
There is also a restaurant serving dishes – of course – made all with truffles and offering wines from Luberon. It has a lovely garden with magnificent views across the lush valley. The menu spans from truffle scrambled eggs, risotto to deserts made with truffles! We came after lunch so we have not tried it, but it looked seductive so it is on my “must do” list for my next trip to Luberon.
Wine tasting cellar
Heading downstairs you will find the wine tasting cellar, where a very helpful gentleman guided us through the wines and later gave us to taste everything we have selected. The choice of local wine here is tremendous. From whites, through rosés and reds you will find bottles from a majority of the wine producers in the region. Not everyone though submits their wines to the Maison de la Truffe et du Vin. The reason might be that the tasting is free of charge and some producers do not wish their wines to be tasted in other places than their own property and restaurants.
It is a shame though, since offering their wine for tasting here is a great opportunity for the wineries to promote their wine. On the other side of the coin the wine enthusiasts as well as newcomers to the region can find their favorite wine from Luberon excluding the products from those not participating.
We were surprised how many red wines we liked. Most people know only rosé and white wine from the region, but as this tasting taught us there are some great value gems in the realm of red wines as well. Even the current French legend, the Rhone Valley based producer Michel Chapoutier makes red blend from the area.
Address: Place de l’Horologe, 84 560, Menerbes, France
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