One of the most frustrating (and intriguing) things about researching Swiss wine is the diligence required to gather information across three languages and twenty-six, more-or-less autonomous cantons. The bottom-up system of Swiss government means that each canton retains broad powers to regulate its own affairs. From there, it takes only a little digging to discover […]
Tea and Cheese: A Tutored Tasting in Geneva
As any athlete knows cross-training is one of the most effective ways to improve overall conditioning and performance, boost weight loss, and re-energize a stale exercise routine. It’s such a specialized niche that there are shoes designed to enhance each work-out, machines to provide a seamless transition from one activity to the next, and individual […]
The Last Man Standing — Domaine de Mucelle
It’s not everyday that a two hundred year old international treaty is invoked to settle modern customs and cross-border taxation issues, but France and Switzerland, or more specifically the Republic of Geneva, can break out The Treaty of Paris every now and then as an example. Article One, Section Three of the 1815 Treaty — […]
A Wine of Note: Domaine des Faverges, St-Saphorin, Vaud
2017 Chasselas, L’Énigme, Domaine des Faverges (St-Saphorin, Vaud) One of my favorite pastimes when researching a wine region is digging into the side stories — the whys and hows. For example, after tasting this wine and knowing nothing of the winery’s history, I wondered how the canton of Fribourg came to own property in the […]
Fête des Vignerons 2019 — Vevey, Switzerland
This post was selected for publication by Jancisrobinson.com for its 2019 writing competition. Even though the Fête des Vignerons is now history many of the recommendations here are still well worth your time should you find yourself in the area. Do you adore Las Vegas-style glitz, the pageantry of an Olympic Games ceremony or the […]
Profile: Domaine Dugerdil, Dardagny, Geneva
From the top of the slope in Dardagny (see header photo) there is so much to see. There are the undulating vineyards, of course, and the sleeping-cat form of Mont Salève in the distance. Close by is a mystical place of geological importance — the end of the Jura and the beginning of the Alps. […]
Book Review: Wines of the French Alps, Wink Lorch (2019)
Wines of the French Alps: Savoie, Bugey and Beyond by Wink Lorch, Wine Travel Media (2019) Wink Lorch’s new book, Wines of the French Alps, is a slap in the face for those who bitch about the current state of wine writing or seek to trivialize wine expertise. This is a full-blown, old-school reference work with all the details a […]
Book Review: Roche et Vin: A la Découverte des Vignobles Suisses — Edited by Rainer Kündig (2018)
Roche et Vin — A la Découverte des Vignobles Suisses edited by Rainer Kündig AS Verlag & Grafik (2018) When I moved to Switzerland from California, four years ago, I had some hard choices to make. Among them, what to do with my library of wine books. Forty years of collecting left me with hundreds […]
MUST Fermenting Ideas — Wine Summit Cascais 2019
Sometime around midnight, not far from Salamanca on an overnight train from Bordeaux to Lisbon, I took a moment to reflect on the fact that I’ve never been to a wine conference. I bookmarked this thought (for later self-recrimination), because my final destination on that sleepless, half-moon punctuated evening was MUST Fermenting Ideas in Cascais, which by […]
Swiss Grapes: Grosse Arvine — One Man’s Mission
If you’ve ever entertained thoughts of resuscitating a barely breathing grape variety you may want to give Olivier Pittet a call. He’s a fine young man and a terrific winemaker who, in his spare time, lays it all on the line for a little known cultivar that may never be commercially viable. He will no […]
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