The oldest nougat factory in Montélimar fires up its kettles
The scent of warm honey and toasted almonds hits you the moment you walk through the door. Inside, copper kettles are still bubbling away just as they did in 1837, the year confectioner Mathieu Arnaud and Marguerite Soubeyran founded the business that still carries their name.
The Arnaud Soubeyran Nougat Factory Museum is not a static display. It is a working factory where you wander between workstations, close enough to catch every aroma coming from the copper vats.
Why visit this nougat factory and museum?
Montélimar has several nougat makers, but Arnaud Soubeyran is the only one to have operated continuously for nearly two centuries. Taken over in 2000 by Caroline Brotte and Didier Honnoré, it remains a family-run operation. Their son Thomas now manages 17 hectares of organic almond orchards and maintains about 50 beehives just a few miles from the factory to supply the kitchen with local ingredients.
Montélimar nougat also received its Indication Géographique Protégée (IGP) status in November 2024, the result of an eight-year certification process. The official standards require a minimum of 30 percent almonds and 25 percent honey among the sweeteners. Visiting the factory helps you understand exactly what those figures look like inside a copper kettle.
The tour: between workshops and exhibits
The audioguide and staging
The tour path, updated in 2019, is self-guided via an audioguide. The voices of Marguerite and Mathieu Soubeyran provide lighthearted narration, sharing anecdotes about the family and the history of the Nationale 7 road. You will see 1950s archival footage alongside displays from contemporary artists, photographers, and model makers. The tone is engaging without feeling like a tourist gimmick.
Live production
The real highlight is that the museum rooms look directly into the active kitchens. From Monday to Friday mornings, you can watch the master confectioners work the white paste, pull it from the vats, and pour it into molds. A tip: walk back past the glass partitions at different stages of your visit, as the production process moves quickly.
The sound hive and the world of bees
Added in 2021, the InRuche® is one of the most striking features of the tour. This immersive setup lets you listen to the life of a honeybee colony across all four seasons through headphones. You can hear the buzzing modulated by temperature, the movements of the queen, and hive alerts. For a museum dedicated to candy, this detour into apiculture is surprisingly gripping.
Families and a sweet finish
Three free tours are available for children under 11. The newest, called PtitNougat, uses QR codes on smartphones to provide mini-video games and animated stories. Younger children (ages 5 to 8) receive a paper booklet titled "Mamie nous gâte" (Grandma spoils us) filled with riddles and drawings. Low tables and chairs are set up in every room so they can work on their booklets comfortably.
The visit ends with a tasting initiation featuring three confections: soft nougat, black Provence nougat, and calisson. Guided by a video, this step encourages you to engage your sense of touch, smell, and taste, similar to a wine tasting. The attached shop sells the entire range of house products, including old-fashioned marshmallows, caramels, chocolate-covered fruits, and biscuits.
Insider tip: to see the production line in action, visit on a weekday morning, excluding holidays. Call 04 75 51 01 35 the day before to confirm production is scheduled. The workshops are often inactive on Saturdays and during the afternoons.
When you think of Montélimar, you think of nougat! I was thrilled to discover all the secrets behind how it is made. The inside is lively and colorful, with detailed explanations. Kids and adults alike will find something to enjoy. All of this will definitely make you hungry. And that works out perfectly, because there is a tasting area at the end of the tour!