Thursday 23rd April 2026
The second event of 2026 for the Oxford University Society South West France will be a visit to Pomerol and Saint-Émilion combining a visit to a wine barrel making factory, lunch and wine tasting, followed by time spent exploring the historic wine town of Saint-Émilion.
Please note that the tonnellerie tour element of this event has limited numbers, so members are asked to book early to avoid disappointment. Please let Marion Tempé (moustemp@aol.com) know as soon as possible but certainly no later than Monday 13 April if you are coming and advise her of any dietary requirements.
Guests, as ever, are very welcome and this invitation is also being extended to Cambridge University alumni.
We will start with a guided tour of the Tonnellerie Sylvain, 23 route de Lyon (D1089), 33910 Saint-Denis-de-Pile. (www.tonnellerie-sylvain.fr/en/). The tour will start at 10h00, so we advise that you aim to arrive a few minutes beforehand.
We will be shown the whole process from end to end, from the harvested 200 year-old oaks piled up waiting to be transformed into barrels, all the way through to the individual branding of the finished barrels with the distinguishing marks of the destination vineyards and their readying for shipment world-wide. We will see the craftsmen at work, still using traditional methods, together with the application of technology to the manufacture at scale.
The family that own the tonnellerie also run château Rose Perrière, Lieu-dit La Perrière, 33570 Lussac (www.chateau-laroseperriere.com), a beautifully-restored small family place, selling wine at a reasonable price, in pleasant grounds with a lake for those who want to wander. The charge for the tonnellerie tour is €25 per head, payable on arrival. This charge includes a wine tasting at the château after lunch.
In between tour and tasting we will stop for lunch at “La Table de Catusseau”, 86 Rue de Catusseau, 33500 Pomerol (www.latabledecatusseau.fr). This restaurant provides a fixed menu du jour priced at €29 per head (again, when booking please advise Marion if you have dietary requirements). There is an extensive, though pricey (this is Pomerol!) wine list. The Committee has therefore decided to provide with lunch one glass of wine or one coffee per head from Society funds. As usual, those attending are asked please to settle their bill individually with the restaurant before departure.
After wine tasting, we will go to Saint-Émilion. This small but beautiful 7th century town is perhaps the only one of its kind in France, dedicated to oenotourisme, though today it is diversifying with several art galleries and a famous jazz festival in the summer. We recommend finding a place to park and then to explore on foot: there is an excellent tourist office. Take the suggestions over lunch of those who know the town (Mark, Greg and maybe others), but don’t miss the monolithic church
Travel
The tonnellerie is on the left side of the D1089 going north-east from Libourne, about a 15 minute drive from Libourne station. The guest car park is to your right in front of the main building, which has a small door into the reception. Libourne is on the main TGV line from Bordeaux St Jean to Paris. If you decide to come by train please let us know when you book: we will try to organise you a lift from and back to the station.
Our lunch restaurant is about a 10 minute drive back down the D1089, turning left into Pomerol then on into the hamlet of Catusseau.
The wine tasting is at the château in Lussac (Saint-Émilion), another 15 minutes or so by car from the restaurant: the route takes you past the famous (though remarkably low-key) Château Petrus: those sans a Platinum Amex card need not stop there.
Château Rose Perrière in turn is about 15 minutes from Saint-Émilion itself (which is 10 minutes from the restaurant for those skipping the château.) In Saint-Émilion the best places to park are usually found by approaching the town at the North end and from the roundabout on the D243 turning onto the Avenue de Verdun: there is parking on your left side close to the centre and the tourist office. We expect the town not to be too busy, but if we are wrong there is a hack the locals use: continue east on the D243 from aforesaid roundabout and turn right onto the Chemin des Fossées: park up there and walk into town through the Porte Brunet.
We suggest you put the full addresses into your satnav.
We are happy for members and guests to take in the full itinerary as above, or to skip the Tonnellerie and Château and just come for lunch and company in Saint-Émilion, as we know one or two people who are coming have been before and places on the Tonnellerie tour are limited. Saint-Émilion has innumerable opportunities for wine tasting.
On the other hand, if you are coming from afar or want to make sure you explore more fully, there are many excellent places to stay overnight in Saint-Émilion. (The château La Rose-Perrière also offers some accommodation.)
We are looking forward to another successful event and hope many of you can join us.
The Committee 27 March 2026
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