La Tour d’Argent in Paris Unveils Stunningly Reimagined Historic Wine Cellars

Beneath the cobblestones of Paris’s 5th arrondissement lies La Tour d’Argent, a renowned restaurant celebrated for its impressive wine collection of nearly 300,000 bottles. Recently, the restaurant completed a stylish revamp of its historic cellars, giving wine lovers the chance to explore this extraordinary collection through newly offered guided tours.

La Tour d’Argent first opened in 1582 as an inn for nobility during King Henry III’s reign, quickly becoming a fashionable dining destination in Europe. The restaurant underwent reconstruction after the French Revolution, achieving its current form in the 1930s through an upstairs repositioning to capture stunning views of the Seine and Notre Dame Cathedral.

Following extensive renovations that began in 2022, coinciding with Notre Dame’s restoration, André Terrail, the current president, emphasizes the balance between preserving history and integrating contemporary aesthetics. The updated cellar now controls optimal environmental conditions for the wines, which may mature for decades.

One of the building’s most interesting historical aspects is the secret wall constructed during the Nazi occupation. Claude Terrail, André’s father, disguised valuable wine bottles behind this barrier, ensuring that they aged peacefully while the Nazis overlooked them.

However, La Tour d’Argent faced modern challenges as well. In January 2024, it reported the theft of over 80 bottles valued at $1.63 million during renovations, including prized bottles from Burgundy’s Domaine de la Romanée-Conti.

The recent renovations included a re-engineering of the climate control system, which now maintains temperatures between 12° and 14° C (53° to 57° F), essential for the wines’ long aging process. The philosophy at La Tour d’Argent favors serving wine by the bottle, enhancing the dining experience by allowing guests to engage with the wine’s evolution throughout their meal.

The restaurant embraces a blend of traditional and modern approaches to its wine collection, focusing mainly on Burgundy while exploring innovative selections from regions like Jura and Savoie. La Tour d’Argent offers a Personal Wine Shopper service, fostering relationships with guests through personalized wine experiences.

The upcoming guided cellar tours will be launched soon, providing insights into the wine collection’s management, long-term cellaring strategies, and the intricacies of wine selling. Guests are promised a unique experience exploring one of the most significant private wine collections globally.

More details about the tours can be found here.

About the Author: Chris Lehoux

Meet Chris Lehoux, an experienced wine connoisseur and dedicated blogger with a deep passion for all things wine-related. With years of expertise in the industry, Chris shares insightful wine reviews, valuable wine tasting tips, expert pairing advice, and captivating tales of vineyard visits. Join Chris on a journey through the world of wine, where every sip is an adventure waiting to be savored!