La Tourangelle - Toasted Sesame Oil

La Tourangelle believes the finest toasted sesame seed oil should be bold and complex but not overpowering. This is only achieved through carefully selecting the highest quality sesame seeds, which are lightly toasted, expeller-pressed, and gently filtered to perfection. The result is this golden-brown oil which adds rich, nutty flavor to your vinaigrette, stir-fry or BBQ marinade for authentic Asian cuisine. Get to know the fascinating history of La Tourangelle below.

Abraham Lincoln had yet to be elected president when Mr. Morillon and Mr. Bechet founded La Tourangelle, a small animal-powered oil mill, in the idyllic French town of Saumur (the castle of Saumur is our logo!).

In the early 1990’s ownership passed to the Kohlmeyer family and La Tourangelle entered in a renaissance phase that saw its business expand internationally fueled by awards and a passion for promoting specialty oils. In 2002, the second eldest son Matthieu moved to California’s Bay Area to recreate his family’s French artisan oil mill. To replicate the century-old equipment, he had to have it custom-made and his American staff was then trained by an oil-roasting artisan from France. The new oil mill in Woodland, California, produces oil from nuts grown in the fertile Central Valley of California. The highest quality nuts are selected, hand roasted in cast iron pots, mechanically pressed and lightly filtered. These elegant oils each have their own unique flavors. The cast iron pots used to roast the nuts came from the mill in France, and they are as critical to the process as the artisanal know-how. “If you simply press a fresh walnut, the oil you get lacks character. But when the nuts are roasted just perfectly, the rich flavor of the nuts is brought out in the oil,” explains Matthieu. A great deal has occurred in the world since La Tourangelle first began handcrafting nut oils in France, but their traditional process has remained virtually the same. The only difference is that now these oils can be enjoyed fresh from California.