Château de Ferrand is no stranger to the Great Wine Capitals Best Of Wine Tourism Awards. In 2017, thanks to the spectacular renovation and preservation of this 18th-century estate, Château de Ferrand was awarded the Best Of Wine Tourism Award for Architecture and Landscapes. Then, in 2023, it won in the Best Of Wine Tourism Award in the Art and Culture category for its contemporary art project BIC Art à Ferrand.
They have won again this year, sharing the Regional Best Of Culinary Experience with Maison Martell. Always rooted in art, this time it is Les Arts de la Table with their 4 Colours Experience – an experience where art, wine and gastronomy all come together.
©Guillaume de Tapol
Art is a key part of the whole Château de Ferrand experience. At the entrance to the property, Le Capuchon Mordu, the 2.80 m-high sculpture by Julien Gudéa, sets the tone. From the floor-to-ceiling fresco in the tasting room, where Alexandre Doucin used BIC® Cristal® pens, to interpret a 360° view of the estate, to over 30 contemporary works all inspired by BIC, art is ever-present. Even the new label, launched with their first certified organic 2024 vintage, was created with a BIC® pen in the signature blue ink.
The Art of Hospitality
A Grand Cru Classé of Saint-Émilion since 2012, the estate was bought by Baron Bich in 1978. After the death of her father in the 1990s, Pauline Bich Chandon-Moët, with her husband Philippe Chandon-Moët, unlocked the enormous untapped potential of the estate. Joined in 2017 by director Gonzague de Lambert, they have renovated and redesigned the entire property to welcome visitors, creating an immersive experience with art at its heart.
©Celestin_Coutaud
Colourful
The 4 Colours Experience includes an in-depth discovery of the estate and the cellars. Guests are then invited into the château where, Champagne in hand, they discover the unique BIC Art collection, created with or inspired by the famous pens and inks, including works by Giacometti, Dalí and Pietro Ruffo, not normally viewed by the public.
Guests are then taken into the château dining room to experience the colourful cuisine of Chef Marilyn Madray at her ‘Table Privée’. The four-course menu is designed as a series of monochrome dishes, each inspired by the four colours of the ‘Stylos BIC, created with fresh, seasonal produce and each paired with a great vintage of Château de Ferrand. The wines are served in beautiful Fatto a Mano glasses from Riedel, that add an elegant and artistic final touch to the experience
©Celestin_Coutaud
It is at once a culinary and an artistic journey, engaging all the senses and offering a unique opportunity for wine and art lovers to bring their two passions together.
The Art of Food and wine
Originally from Marseille, Chef Marilyn has worked in the region for over 20 years, and exclusively at Château de Ferrand since 2022. Her modern cuisine, with a nod to her Mediterranean origins, creates food and wine pairings often outside traditional tropes – perfectly in line with the contemporary spirit of the château.
©Château_de_Ferrand
The 4 Colours Experience is not the only gastronomic offering from Chef Marilyn. Wine Time is an original take on English tea time, where she creates sweet and savoury bites to be served with a glass of wine. It is held in the stunning ‘Orangery’, a relaxing lounge beneath a unique ceiling that resembles a cloud filtering the daylight. A circular tasting ‘bar’, a nod to the barrel cellar, rotates on its axis to suit the number of guests joining the tasting.
Private dining is available, in the château or in the tasting room suspended above the Louis XIV cellar on one side and the vines on the other. This year a new food and wine workshop pairs different flavours with the wines. Two creations by the chef and two by local artisans, are paired with four different vintages from the property, each pairing highlighting a different aspect of the wine, examining the balance between aroma, textures and taste, stimulating all the senses.
Stay over
Seduced by the atmosphere, guests can extend their experience by staying on the property. Three stunning guest rooms beautifully marry contemporary chic with tradition.
Visiting Château de Ferrand, you enter into the heart of a work of art. The château, the vines, the wine and now gastronomy brings everything together in one unforgettable experience.
Author: Wendy Narby for Great Wine Capitals Video credits: ©fakhry_nader et ©schz.Farah