Swiss wines: Petite Arvine, Cornalin and Fendant
45 bottles from Valais, from alpine whites to mountain redsA handful of grape varieties you rarely taste anywhere else, vines clinging to dry-stone terraces above the Rhône, a harvest drunk almost entirely on the spot: that is what makes this Alpine vineyard so confidential. Barely one per cent of production leaves the country, even though the vine has grown here since Roman times.
The range follows the line of the Valais, the largest Swiss vineyard. The whites first, lively Fendant, saline Petite Arvine, high-altitude Heida. Then the reds, peppery Cornalin, wild Humagne Rouge, mountain Pinot Noir, carried by Chappaz in Fully, the Cave des Amandiers and the Cave Saint-Pierre.
Blaise Duboux - Dézaley Grand Cru AOC Cuvée Z Pinot Noir 2022
A rare Pinot Noir from Dézaley, born on three terraces facing Lake Geneva, with spicy small red fruits.
Blaise Duboux - Plant Robez AOC Lavaux 2022
Lavaux's oldest red, a rare "fine" Gamay, fleshy and peppery, aged in demi-muids.
Blaise Duboux - Dézaley Grand Cru AOC Cuvée Corniche 2024
A floral, saline Dézaley grand cru, a Chasselas with a flinty imprint, born facing Lake Geneva.
Blaise Duboux - Calamin Grand Cru AOC Cuvée Vincent 2022
A racy, mineral Calamin grand cru, a Chasselas for ageing that reveals the full depth of its terroir.
Blaise Duboux - Epesses AOC Lavaux Sursum Corda 2022
A round, velvety Chasselas from Epesses, with indulgent melon fruit, born on the terraces of Lavaux.
Pierre Elie Carron - Completer Mazembroz AOC Valais 2021
Completer, an extremely rare Valais grape variety, aged for a year in barrel on an alluvial fan in Fully.
Pierre Elie Carron - Petite Arvine Pierra Plata AOC Valais 2022
A Petite Arvine from dry-stone terraces, between exotic fruit, grapefruit and a saline finish.
Gérard Dorsaz - Syrah AOC Valais 2022
A peppery, floral Syrah from Fully, born on the granite terraces of Valais.
Chappaz - Grain par Grain
A sweet wine from Valais of striking precision, between botrytised richness and saline freshness.
Christophe Abbet - Marsanne 2019
An old-vine Marsanne from Valais, broad and chiselled. Granite gives it its mineral brilliance.
Christophe Abbet - Syrah 2020
A deep and spicy Valais Syrah, combining mountain freshness with a velvety texture.
Christophe Abbet - Ermitage 2020
A spacious and luminous Valais hermitage, where the richness of Marsanne meets the freshness of the Fully hillsides.
Christophe Abbet - Arvine 2020
A precise and saline Valais Petite Arvine, where a sharp freshness meets a beautiful mouthfeel.
Christophe Abbet - Vin de voile 2010
A rare Valais "vin de voile" with profound aromatic complexity and an impressive finish.
Chappaz - Grain Noble
A high-altitude Valaisan sweet wine, combining sun-drenched richness and crystalline alpine freshness.
Chappaz - Completer 2023
A white wine from the Valais terroir with a strong character, where the ripeness of the fruit meets a precise mineral tension.
Chappaz - Grain Syrah 2024
A precise and spicy Valais Syrah with a strong terroir, combining alpine freshness and depth of flavor.
Chappaz - Grain Mariage 2023
A Valais red with character, combining the finesse of the Fully hillsides with a deep and harmonious substance.
Chappaz - Grain Pinot Les Esserts 2023
A precise and profound Valaisan Pinot Noir from the hillsides, where the finesse of the fruit meets the elegance of the terraces of Fully.
Chappaz - Grain Pinot Les Darrhes 2024
A precise and elegant Valaisan Pinot Noir from the hillsides, where the freshness of the mountains meets the depth of the Fully terroir.
Chappaz - Grain Pinot Champ Dury 2023
A precise and silky Valaisan Pinot Noir from the hillsides, which finely expresses the mineral depth of Fully.
Chappaz - Grain Pinot Charrat 2023
A precise and elegant Pinot Noir from the Valais hillsides, where the purity of the fruit meets the mineral energy of Charrat.
Chappaz - La Petite Grange 2023
A juicy and precise Valais red, where alpine freshness meets the lusciousness of the fruit.
Chappaz - Dôle La Liaudisaz 2024
A Dôle from the Valais terroir, gourmet and precise, which combines alpine freshness and charming fruitiness.
Where Swiss vines grow
The vine occupies the best-exposed slopes, along the Rhône, above the great lakes and on into the Alpine valleys of the east. Each canton defends its own grape and its own vocabulary.
| Canton | King grape variety | The style | The marker |
|---|---|---|---|
| Valais the country's largest vineyard area | Chasselas, known as Fendant | Salty whites and spicy reds, in a dry high-altitude climate | Fully, Saillon and CharratChappaz, Cave des Amandiers, Cave Saint-Pierre |
| Vaud and Lavaux | Chasselas, known as Dorin | Light, floral whites, ripened by the light of Lake Geneva | The terraces of Lavaux, a World Heritage site |
| Geneva | Gamay and Chasselas | Supple reds and lively whites, at the gates of the city | Satigny, one of the country's largest wine-growing communes |
| Neuchâtel | Pinot Noir and Chardonnay | Pale reds, and Oeil-de-Perdrix, a Pinot rosé | The limestones at the foot of the Jura, by the lake |
| Ticino Italian-speaking Switzerland | Merlotplanted after phylloxera | Ripe, fleshy reds, sometimes vinified as whites | Sopraceneri and Sottoceneri, on either side of the Monte Ceneri |
| Graubünden the Bündner Herrschaft | Pinot NoirBlauburgunder in German | Fine, taut reds, on Alpine scree | Fläsch, Maienfeld and Malans, warmed by the foehn wind |
The country has four official languages, and the name of a grape often changes as you cross a pass. The next table gives the equivalences you need to read a label, and the appellations page lists the names used in the catalogue.
What the Swiss names tell you
Swiss wine vocabulary is local: the same grape goes by three names depending on the canton, and several varieties grow more or less nowhere else.
| Grape variety | Its other name | In the glass | Dinner's ready |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chasselas | Fendant in Valais, Dorin in Vaud, Perlan in Geneva | Light, green apple, almond, salty finish | Fondue, raclette, perch fillets |
| Petite Arvine | Simply Arvine, unique to Valais | Grapefruit, lime, rhubarb, a salty touch | Asparagus, trout, fresh goat's cheese |
| Cornalin | Rouge du Pays, its historic name | Black cherry, pepper, tight tannins | Grilled meats, air-dried meat |
| Humagne Rouge | Cornalin d’Aoste, on the other side of the Alps | Black berries, leather, rustic character | Game, daube, aged cheeses |
| Heida | Païen in French-speaking Valais, Savagnin Blanc in France | Pineapple, honey, almond, an alpine backbone | Poultry in cream sauce, Comté |
| Ermitage | Marsanne, as in the Rhône Valley | Broad, honey and apricot, long ageing potential | Poularde, veal sweetbreads, pressed cheeses |
| Completer | An old Graubünden variety, recorded in the Middle Ages | Biting acidity, yellow fruit, dense texture | Fish in sauce, roast poultry |
| Sylvaner | Johannisberg on Valais labels | Ripe white fruit, roundness, fine bitterness | Asparagus, fondue, lake fish |
Païen also lends itself to ageing under a veil of yeast, in the spirit of the Jura’s vin jaune: the Vin de voile from Christophe Abbet, €176 a bottle sold singly, gives the Valais version of it, on fresh walnut and curry.
A bottle for every mood
Eight ways into this Alpine vineyard, from the fendant for the aperitif to the sweet wine at the end of the meal.
Discover Fendant from Valais
Valais chasselas in its most direct form: green apple, almond, a saline finish that calls for fondue.
Cave Saint-Pierre Fendant Du Valais 2022 · €27 per bottle, sold individuallyTaste the emblematic white of Valais
Grapefruit, lime and that salinity that is the mark of petite arvine. The canton’s most sought-after grape, at a measured price.
Cave Saint-Pierre Petite Arvine Réserve Des Administrateurs 2022 · €43.40 a bottle, sold singlyA mountain red for the table
Cornalin partly aged in wood, on stony terraces: black cherry, pepper and firm tannins, for grilled meat.
Pierre Elie Carron Cornalin Pietra Plata 2022 · €49.50 per bottle, sold individuallyThe canton's wildest red
Black berries, leather and damp earth, from a rare grape variety farmed biodynamically. The companion for game or a daube.
Cave des Amandiers Humagne Rouge 2022 · €74 a bottle, sold singlyA great Arvine from Fully
Old terraced vines, biodynamics, ripe citrus and marked salinity. The benchmark for the grape variety, on its home terroir.
Chappaz Grain Arvine de Fully 2023 · €115.50 per bottle, sold individuallyHigh-altitude Pinot Noir
Fresh red fruit, fine tannins, lively acidity: Valais Pinot plays on finesse rather than power. Serve slightly chilled.
Chappaz Grain Pinot Les Darrhes 2024 · €85.75 a bottle, in lots of 2A sweet wine to end the meal
Botrytised Ermitage from the hillsides of Fully: candied apricot, quince and orange zest, held by an Alpine acidity.
Chappaz Grain Noble · €164 per 37.5 cl bottle, sold individuallyFollow Pinot Noir elsewhere
Burgundy, Germany, Graubünden or Valais: the grape’s own page compares the origins and brings together the bottles in the catalogue.
Section page · Pinot Noir
What the price of a Swiss bottle pays for
The first reaction, faced with a Swiss label, concerns the price. It is explained first of all by geography. In the Valais, the vine grows on terraces held up by dry-stone walls, where mechanisation stops very quickly: everything is done by hand, from pruning to harvest, sometimes with a monorail to carry equipment up the slope.
To that is added an economic fact. Swiss wages are among the highest in Europe, and domestic demand absorbs almost the whole harvest. In exchange, you get grape varieties that few countries grow, viticulture that is often biodynamic and wines of a rare Alpine freshness.
How do you choose
We taste every cuvée before listing it in the catalogue. In this range, two criteria settle it: the saline tension on the finish, which is the mark of high-altitude terroirs, and the clarity of the fruit on the reds, sometimes covered over by heavy-handed ageing. We give priority to estates that champion the native grape varieties.
The Wine Wanderer Team
What you ask us about the wines of Switzerland
Why is so little Swiss wine found in France?
Swiss production remains modest and goes almost entirely to the domestic market: barely one per cent of the bottles crosses the border. The cellars sell their harvest to their local customers and to the country’s restaurants, which leaves very little volume for export.
Why do Swiss wines cost more?
Three factors add up. Terraced vines are worked by hand, which multiplies the hours per hectare. Swiss wages are among the highest in Europe. And the volumes produced remain tiny, which rules out any economy of scale. The price therefore reflects an artisanal way of growing.
What is Fendant?
It is the Valais name for chasselas, a discreet white grape that conveys its terroir better than its own aromas. Fendant gives a light wine, on green apple and almond, with a saline finish and a slight prickle. It is drunk young and very cold, with fondue or perch fillets.
What is Petite Arvine?
A white grape peculiar to the Valais, grown there for centuries. It gives wines that are rich and taut at the same time: grapefruit, lime, rhubarb, and that final salty note that makes it recognisable. It exists as a dry wine, as a barrel-aged version and as a sweet wine from nobly rotted grapes.
Cornalin and Humagne Rouge: what's the difference?
Cornalin, once called rouge du pays, gives a dense, peppery wine with tight tannins that asks for a few years’ rest. Humagne rouge is more rustic, on black berries, leather and damp earth. A curiosity of vocabulary: the Valais humagne rouge becomes cornalin in the Aosta Valley.
Does Syrah really grow in Switzerland?
Yes, on the warmest hillsides of the central Valais, a few dozen kilometres from its original Rhône home. There it gains a peppery, smoky profile, tightened by altitude, with fresher fruit than in the south. The syrah range lets you compare this Alpine version with the other origins.
Why are some cuvées sold in packs of two bottles?
A few estates send us their rarest cuvées in small lots, and we keep that format to hold the price as keen as possible. The price shown on each listing is still the bottle price, with the sales format right beside it. Most of the range can be bought singly.
How good are Swiss pinot noirs?
Pinot noir is the most planted red in the country, from Graubünden to the Valais by way of Neuchâtel. At altitude it gives pale, perfumed wines with fine tannins and lively acidity, closer to a slender Burgundy than to a sun-drenched red. Serve them at around 15 °C.
How long do these wines keep?
It depends on the grape. A fendant is drunk within its first three years, while its prickle stays lively. A dry petite arvine holds five to ten years and gains in depth. Cornalins and ermitage from good sites go beyond a decade, and the sweet wines are counted in decades.
Where should you start?
Start with a fendant to grasp the Alpine style, then a petite arvine, which shows what the Valais does that is most singular in white. A cornalin completes the picture on the red side, with a meat dish. Those three glasses set out the country’s grammar. The white wine page places these whites among the other origins in the catalogue.