While stalking the tables of the most recent Mémoire des Vins Suisses tasting in Zürich I overheard some interesting news. It seems that several prestigious, even iconic, Swiss labels will soon be entering the U.S. market, some for the first time. European Cellars, a prominent American importer headed by Eric Solomon and based in North […]
Tag: Swiss Wine
The True Cost of Cheap Wine: An Update
Back in April I wrote a piece titled The True Cost of Cheap Wine in which I set out to advance the narrative that cheap, industrially made wine has cost consequences beyond the obvious. It was easily the most read piece in these humble pages, inspiring both praise and criticism alike. While it is the avowed purpose […]
A Wine of Note: Domaine du Clos des Pins (Dardagny, Geneva)
Gamaret, Mandragore 2013, Domaine du Clos des Pins, Dardagny, Geneva I was introduced to this wine by the sommelier at Le Philanthrope, an excellent new restaurant near Plainpalais in Geneva, as a potential match for a course of raw milk cheeses. Two things militated against his suggestion: I prefer white wine with cheese and I’m not […]
Mondial du Chasselas: Les Palmarès 2017
Whatever you call it—the Super Bowl of chasselas, the World Cup of fendant or the NBA Finals of gutedel—make no mistake, this is the Grand Daddy of them all: the Mondial du Chasselas. Sporting analogies are particularly apropos in this, the year of the upset. Never one to flinch at competition, I answered the call […]
Some New Wine from Geneva’s “Monsieur Natural”: Paul-Henri Soler
It’s been awhile since I last visited with Paul-Henri Soler (see: Profile) so I recently caught up with him at his usual Saturday haunt, the Carouge Farmer’s Market in Geneva. Unlike a lot of wine on offer at such venues, Paul-Henri’s are really attention-grabbing and worth exploring. He’s very engaging and encourages impromptu tasting among […]
Profile: Cave Caloz (Miège, Valais)
A recent visit to Miège was my first trip to the vineyards since the devastating frosts of late April. From all reports I expected worse but was still struck by the sheer randomness of it all. Spring began optimistically with an early bud break, courtesy of a lengthy and uncharacteristic warm spell, followed by an […]
Four From La Cinquième Glorieuse: Martigny 2017
This annual event grew out of frustration and two canny wine lovers’ need for organization. Old friends and fellow amateurs, Nicolas Reuse and Christophe Roch, grew frustrated with the time they spent wandering the vineyards of Valais just to keep up with old contacts and new releases. Things became untenable—there were simply too many important visits […]
