Food and wine pairing
Pike-perch with beurre blanc and Château de Thésée
Pike-perch (sandre) with beurre blanc is the great river fish dish of the Loire Valley, the one prepared for Sunday gatherings. The estate itself recommends its Château de Thésée with a delicate fish such as pike-perch: we simply followed the advice, with the classic recipe.
The recipe
Pike-perch with beurre blanc
Serves 4Preparation 20 minCooking 25 min
Ingredients
- 4 skin-on pike-perch fillets (150 g each)
- 3 grey shallots (80 g)
- 10 cl dry white Touraine wine
- 5 cl white wine vinegar
- 200 g very cold unsalted butter, diced
- 2 cl crème fraîche
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil (1.5 cl)
- 10 g butter for cooking the fish
- 600 g waxy potatoes
- A few chives
- Fleur de sel, freshly ground white pepper
Method
- 1
Peel the potatoes, cut them into even pieces and steam for 20 minutes. Keep warm.
- 2
Chop the shallots very finely and put them in a small heavy-based saucepan with the white wine and vinegar.
- 3
Reduce over a medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until only about two tablespoons of liquid remain around the shallots.
- 4
Add the cream and bring just to a simmer: it will help keep the sauce stable.
- 5
Turn the heat down to the minimum and whisk in the cold butter one cube at a time, whisking constantly and waiting until each addition is absorbed before adding the next. The sauce must never boil.
- 6
Season with salt and pepper, strain through a chinois for a smooth sauce if you wish, then keep the pan off the heat in a warm bain-marie.
- 7
Pat the pike-perch fillets dry with kitchen paper, lightly score the skin and season with salt.
- 8
Heat the oil and butter in a frying pan, place the pike-perch skin side down for 4 to 5 minutes over a medium heat, then turn it over for 1 to 2 minutes depending on thickness: the flesh should just flake.
- 9
Arrange the pike-perch on the steamed potatoes, coat with beurre blanc and sprinkle with chopped chives.
Why this pairing works
Château de Thésée
Château de Thésée is a gastronomic cuvée for a delicate fish such as pike-perch. Its silky texture embraces the richness of the beurre blanc instead of fighting it, while the citrus tones and the discreet mineral touch, which the wine owes to its very fine siliceous terroir, refresh the palate between mouthfuls. The shallot and vinegar reduction echoes this liveliness, and the delicate flesh of the pike-perch lets the intense aromas of ripe grapes express themselves without ever masking them. Two products from the same valley, naturally in tune with each other.
Make the beurre blanc at the last moment and serve it straight away: it is a sauce that does not like to wait. Pike, another Loire fish, works with the same recipe.
Page updated on 19 October 2026