Georgia
Resort Winery, Chateau Élan,
offers Southern Luxury
by Constance E. Richards
The
palatial grounds of Chateau Élan
Winery and Resort hide behind a rise off
Interstate-85 near Braselton, GA. The
resort's showpiece — a Loire Valley chateau-style
winery — visible on the way to Atlanta
from the mountains, is but the face of
this multi-faceted property that includes
an inn, conference center, seven restaurants,
full-service spa, equestrian show center,
walking trails, four golf courses, tennis
center and other diversions.
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Chateau Élan Inn sprawling across Georgia’s countryside |
The brainchild of Donald and Nancy Panoz
— whose pharmaceutical company pioneered
development of the nicotine patch — Chateau Élan began with 200 acres of Vinifera
grapes on 3,500 acres of the Georgia countryside
in 1981. The first wines were released
in 1985, but the couple noted that visitors
to the vineyards were looking for more
than just a bottle of wine.
In 1988, they answered that call by developing
the 42,000-square-foot chateau, housing
two restaurants, a visitor's center for
winery tours and tastings, a wine market,
small art gallery, full-production winery,
aging cellars and temperature controlled
warehouse. The creation of rest of the
immense estate followed in the decades
thereafter, creating a veritable playground
for adults.
Wining and Dining and
then Some
Chateau Élan is Georgia's largest
producer of wines with 22 varietals, including
an American port and a collection of Georgia
Muscadine wines. Today, rows of mature
vines lead up to the winery. But my recent
visit was driven by more than curiosity
about Georgia winemaking.
What was this place that beckoned from
the sidelines every time I drove to Atlanta?
Venture behind the magnificent structure
and a getaway of both leisure and activity
promises a full weekend, or at the very
least, a grand lunch if you have only
a few hours to spare.
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Chateau Élan Founder’s Reserve Wine |
One of the best ways to acquaint
oneself with the Chateau is through its
culinary venues. Seven restaurants grace
the estate, all under the tutelage of
Chef Mark Suennemann. Originally from
Hamburg, Suenneman oversees
the culinary operation and creation of
menus for the eateries, each
with different themes and cuisine leaning
toward French and Mediterranean.
With its stone flooring and wine barrel
accents, Café Élan will
be the first place most visitors encounter.
And it's a wise choice to begin here —
experiencing the Mediterranean-inflected
menu complemented by Chateau Élan's
pinot grigio, chardonnay, riesling, merlot,
Chambourcin or other wines.
Juicy bites of buttermilk batter-dipped
calamari seasoned with black pepper and
a mixed greens salad with the fresh green
herb house dressing refreshed before a
meal of New York strip steak with skinnier-than-skinny
pommes frites. Braised osso bucco, grilled
salmon, chicken marsala and a daily-caught
fresh fish special also make appearances
on the dinner menu. Lunch offers lighter
fare of soups, artisan sandwiches and
hearty salads. Indulge with a sweet flan,
pecan-studded bread pudding or
house-made ice-cream.
For a different experience,
the adjacent Le Clos opens Thursday
through Sunday with an elaborate prix-fixe
menu with winemaker Dan Baldwin's wine
pairings. The Italian courtyard ambiance,
replete with painted tiles, stucco walls
and a gurgling fountain, seats 28
and provides a romantic backdrop for many
occasions.
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Le Clos, French Dining at Chateau Élan |
Other restaurants are well-incorporated
into the resort, such as the L'Auberge
Lounge, a sports bar in the Inn that
features everything from wings to fillet
mignon. Also available are
the charming Paddy's Irish pub — designed in Ireland and shipped in
to be reassembled on the estate,
Clubhouse Grill on the golf course and
Spa restaurant, Fleur-de-Lis.
The sprawling Inn, with its large meeting
rooms, doubles as a conference center,
offering a state-of-the-art fitness center,
hotel boutiques and large atrium restaurant
Versailles. This is also where inn guests
take in a sumptuous breakfast of smoked
salmon, omelets, house-made croissants
and sweet pastries, fruit and granola
bar and hot Southern breakfast buffet
under a 45-foot soaring glass ceiling
reminiscent of the Musee d'Orsay in Paris.
Grapes and Granules
With 277 rooms and an international staff,
the Inn has the feel of a European hotel
with American spatial sensitivities. Large,
bright rooms overlook the vineyards and
the large pool in the courtyard. Suites
include a comfortable seating area with
sofas, coffee table with the
addition of magazines, large stone-tiled
bathrooms with deep whirlpool tubs and
walk-in showers, coffee maker and mini-fridge.
Regular rooms are smaller and offer similar
amenities.
However, for a truly unique, more intimate
experience, 14 guest rooms in the Spa
transport visitors into another era, another
culture and another dimension, with its
Gatsby-era, Serengeti French themed rooms.
Guests may dine right here at the Spa's
restaurant Fleur-de-Lis, which won't skimp
on flavor with its definite healthful
edge. Spa guests enjoy tea at 4 p.m.,
served in the dining room overlooking
Chateau Élan's nine-hole
golf course, a peaceful pond and gazebo.
Inn guests may also take advantage of
the Spa's 33,000-square-foot
quarters of wet area, saunas, whirlpools
and showers. A small fee applies if you're
not scheduling any treatments.
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Chateau Élan’s luxurious spa offers escape and relaxation |
A yoga and exercise studio provides classes
throughout the day. Several lounges offer
hot herbal tea, lemon and cucumber water,
orange water, trail mix, apples, magazines
and plush couches. The wet
area has a step-up soaking pool that an
attendant will draw for you. The spa also offers a dry sauna, and a wet sauna, providing a
heavenly mixture of eucalyptus, spice, and blissful,
enveloping steam.
One floor up, co-ed mani-pedi rooms buzz
with conversation of ladies and gents
clad in thick terrycloth robes, soaking
their digits in burbling basins. Step
up to the manicure bar - an L-shaped counter
with high stools - and sip on a glass
of chardonnay with one hand, while the
other soaks.
Rooms on the lower floors are dressed
out in natural earth tones with subdued
lights, as one might expect for body treatments
like massage and wraps. With three floors
of treatment facilities, the brightest
rooms upstairs that overlook the lawn
of the spa appear to be reserved for facials
and cosmetic therapy. Being at a winery,
the grape seed facial seemed a proper
choice — an exfoliation with smooth seed
fragments and fragrant potions. While
the experience was surprising in its vigorous
treatment of delicate facial skin by an
enthusiastic therapist, the results were
indeed a glowing and smooth visage. Expect
to be taken into the small skin care boutique
on the same floor to see what products
were used.
Golf and Greener Acres
Hardly an afterthought, golf at Chateau Élan resonates highly within the
tournament quality Chateau, Woodlands
and Legends courses. Golf, a passion of
owner Don Panoz, has become a primary
attraction of Chateau Élan in only
a few years.
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Woodlands Golf Course at Chateau Élan |
The PGA staff provides weekend and private
instructions for varying skills levels
and maintains a well-regarded Golf Academy.
Women, in particular, may be interested
in the Monday through Friday, November
through March Free Golf for Ladies program,
which waives the $50 fee.
"We hope to inspire women of all
skill levels, including beginners, to
become golf enthusiasts…whether for
championships, business, or joining your
spouse on links during vacations,"
said Chip Spiler, Chateau Élan's
director of golf.
Golf villas on the grounds are available
for those serious enough about their game
to build a vacation around it, and also
provide a taste of what living in the
handsome 3,500-acre gated community of
Chateau Élan may be like.
Whether for a few hours, a weekend or
a lifetime, this stop on the highway proves
much more than just a pretty façade.
If
You Go…
Chateau
Élan Winery & Resort
100 Rue Charlemagne
Braselton, GA 30517
(678) 425-0900
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Extravagant Expressions
Chateau
Élan has frequently been
the site of weddings, marriage proposals,
television shows and motion pictures.
The estate's picturesque setting
allows for over-the-top celebrations
and expressions of creativity.
It has been the subject of more
than 40 television shows, including
a recent Rachel Ray show episode
and the PBS series Barbecue America.
The newly-completed culinary studio,
built for cooking classes, brings
the cuisine of the Chateau into
the hands of regular visitors.
Perhaps even more unique are the
Chateau Élan gift certificates
that range from the charming to
the extraordinary. "Name your
Vineyard" for $41,000, or "Dole
out the Barrel" for only $19,000.
A certificate for a spin at the
Panoz High Performance Racing School
will only set you back $1,150.
For $41,000, a half acre site at
the vineyard will be dedicated and
marked by the name of the certificate
holder for one year. The recipient
has a choice of Merlot or Cabernet
Sauvignon vines, and will receive
the entire production of that half
acre (approximately 1.5 tons of
grapes). That equals some 1,200
bottles, or 100 cases of wine. The
certificate also gives the bearer
several nights at the resort and spa with
dinner and private winery tour and
tasting with the winemaker.
On the smaller end of the scale,
a package may be arranged to Chateau
Élan's motor sports racetrack
"Road Atlanta," a 2.54
mile-Grand Prix course, the Panoz
High Performance Driving School
and Audi Driving Experience.
If desires run on a more personalized
scale, then a specialty staff will
create a rose petal and candle oasis
in your room for a romantic evening,
along with other delightful touches
- extravagant gestures, large or
small.
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