Elsa Picard

The Path

The first formal step in Elsa Picard’s career was an oenologist role at Château Le Bouïs in Corbières, Languedoc, France (2007–2008). That early period established the practical foundations of her approach, with vineyard and cellar work shaping an attention to precision and place. Her career has stayed close to the realities of winemaking, where judgment is exercised in small details and character is assembled gradually, step by step. At La Tour Melas, Elsa Picard now holds the roles of Technical Director, Head Winemaker and oenologist, and that combination places her work at the center of the estate’s style.

The Work Today

At La Tour Melas in Achinos, Elsa Picard works in the overlapping space of technical direction, head winemaking and oenology. That concentration keeps the decision-making close to the wine itself: one estate, one standard, one relationship between method and expression. The role is practical rather than decorative, and her expertise is embedded in the daily running of the cellar and the estate’s technical choices.

Signature

Cyrus One and Idylle D'Achinos are the wines most closely tied to Elsa Picard’s name. They sit at the center of her reputation and mark the cellar in a way that is the estate’s identity. In that sense, they function as the clearest evidence of her approach: controlled, attentive, and grounded in the place she helps define.

In Their Words “An aged Xinomavro is one of my favorites, or a Cycladic Mavrotragano. For a white variety, although it is a bit banal, I lean toward Assyrtiko for the complexity it can have.”

Acclaim

The preference Elsa Picard names points to a palate drawn to layered expression and structural interest. “An aged Xinomavro is one of my favorites, or a Cycladic Mavrotragano. For a white variety, although it is a bit banal, I lean toward Assyrtiko for the complexity it can have.”