Wines made from Douce noire grapes of Switzerland
Discover the best wines made with Douce noire as a single variety or as a blend of Switzerland.
The douce noire, as its name indicates, is a black grape variety. It originated in the region between the valleys of the Isère and Saône rivers. Often in autumn, its foliage takes on a red hue. The bunches of the black sweet are larger than average. They are compact and winged. Spherical, its berries are of normal size. The flesh is juicy, soft and sweet. Although it is on the verge of extinction, this variety is still present in some Jura vineyards. Some call it corbeau, especially in Savoie, but it has other names such as gros noir, plant de Calarin and pecot. The sweet black is associated with an average budding and a late first ripening. Hardy and vigorous, it adapts to poorly irrigated soils. This variety produces a wine with low alcohol content, flat, soft and without much finesse. It should be consumed within the year. Sweet black is generally grown with Persian. It must be associated with other grape varieties to be better. Nowadays, this variety is not multiplied at all.
Switzerland may not be the most famous of wine-producing nations, but this small mountainous country in Western Europe has been producing wine for over two thousand years. The lack of awareness of Swiss wine is not due to a lack of quality or quantity, but to the fact that it is produced primarily for (and enjoyed by) the Swiss themselves. But things are slowly changing; the world beyond the Alps is now discovering the high quality of much of Switzerland's Grape/pinot">Pinot noir and white wines made from the country's flagship grape, Chasselas. High-end Vineyards can be found in almost every corner of the country, but the vast majority are in the Alpine Valais and around Lake Geneva, in La Côte and Vaud/lavaux">Lavaux.