Chateau Wine Tasting
Indulge in a premium wine tasting experience and discover the rich history and passion for winemaking that hide behind every sip.
Tasting Room Hours of Operation
Monday to Thursday 12:00pm - 7:00 pm
Friday to Saturday 11:00 am - 8:00 pm
Sunday 11:00 am - 6:00 pm
Tastings end one hour prior to closing
Our Wines
From locally made muscadine wines to our premium Fingerprint Collection, all Chateau Elan wines are hand-crafted with love and care.
Raise a Toast to Our
Tours and Tasting
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Chateau Tour & Tasting
Take a guided, behind-the-scenes tour of our iconic winery, winery vat, and production rooms and learn how we get from grape to glass.
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Grandeur Tour & Tasting
Ready to dive deeper into your wine journey? The Grandeur Tour is an in-depth, private tour of the vineyards and winery production facility.
A Nod to Georgia’s Official Grape
It all started with a sip of muscadine wine, a sweet Southern staple made with Georgia-grown muscadine grapes. Intrigued by the native American grape’s abundance, Chateau Elan founders Don and Nancy Panoz set out to grow classic vinifera grapes. Though Georgia’s Piedmont region climate and region plant diseases proved incompatible with the classic grapes such as merlot and chardonnay, the arrival of winemaker Simone Bergese set the stage for success. By embracing the native muscadine grape and expanding the wine program, Bergese elevated the winery to its current status as the largest wine producer in Georgia.
The Team
Our winery team is made up a hand-selected group of passionate people love the wine industry, from vineyard to bottle. Amassing over seventy years of experience in wine, it’s no surprise that Chateau Elan Winery continuously raises the bar and never fails to impress. Hard work, great visions, and big dreams— that’s the recipe of our success.
About our Vineyards
Simplicity and sustainability above everything else — that’s our all philosophy behind selecting each of our grape variety and terroirs. Our more holistic approach is guided by instinct and more than 20 years of observation and experience, resulting in superior, sustainable and healthier wines.
70% of our current production comes from the native Muscadine grape, grown in several locations in north and south Georgia. Specifically, we work with the white Carlos variety and the red Noble variety. Our indigenous Muscadine has adapted to the Georgia terroir like no other grape, showing resistance to all main plant diseases and thriving with our southern climate. Therefore it’s extremely easy to grow, to manage and it is always very generous with amazing yields and constant quality.
The remaining 30% of our wines come from grapes grown in California, specifically in the Lake County and Clarksburg areas. For the most part, they are coming from gorgeous sustainable farmed certified vineyards, offering superior to super premium quality grapes every year. The 18 varieties of grapes from California are transported fresh as full clusters at 27 degrees F from the field to our winery in Georgia where the winemaking process happens from beginning to end.
Heard Between the Vines
Meet the Winemaker
Simone Bergese, originally from Ceresole d'Alba, Italy, brings 25 years of winemaking expertise to Chateau Elan Winery. With a degree in Oenology and Viticulture from Turin University, he honed his skills at prestigious wineries across Italy, Australia, and the U.S. Under his guidance, the winery has won over 300 awards worldwide. Known for his minimalistic approach and high-quality standards, Simone prioritizes the caliber of grapes above all else, consistently producing sustainable, award-winning wines. His technique includes minimal to no sulfites, relying on the natural antioxidants from the grapes and yeasts, which results in wines that age gracefully without deterioration. Additionally, he avoids filtering, stabilizing, or using fining agents, creating healthier, higher-quality wines that respect the integrity of the grapes.
