Wines made from Pinot gris grapes of Switzerland
Discover the best wines made with Pinot gris as a single variety or as a blend of Switzerland.
Pinot Gris is a grey grape variety mutated from Pinot Noir. It has its origins in Burgundy, where it is called pinot-beurot in reference to the colour of the grey robes worn by the monks of the region. Established in Alsace since the 17th century, pinot gris was called tokay until 2007. It is made up of bunches of small berries that vary in colour from pink to blue-grey. It is particularly well suited to the continental climate because it is resistant to the cold in winter and to spring frosts. This variety also likes dry limestone soils with plenty of sunshine in the summer. Pinot Gris is well suited to late harvesting or to the selection of noble grapes, depending on the year and the concentration of sugars in the berries. Pinot Gris wines are distinguished by their aromatic complexity of white fruits, mushrooms, honey, vanilla, cinnamon, etc., and their great finesse. In the Loire Valley, pinot gris is used in the Coteaux-d'Ancenis appellations. It gives dry or sweet wines with pear and peach aromas.
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.
The grapes have been picked and Argentina is able to file another successful harvest for 2022, to match the previous four years. However producers are reporting that 2022 was the most singular of recent vintages, with each region experiencing its own challenges. Mendoza ‘The 2021-2022 season reminds me of a good Hollywood movie,’ said Martín Kaiser, viticulturist at Doña Paula in Mendoza. ‘It certainly kept us entertained. Our hearts were in our mouths all the way through, but it had a great end ...
I clearly remember the summer of 2014 in the Rhône. We were there on holiday, staying not far from the hill of Hermitage. It rained incessantly, I got tonsillitis and we had to rush our two-year-old son to hospital with a severed thumb. It wasn’t the best holiday we’ve ever had. That wet summer of 2014 also made an indelible impression on the wines. The 2013 vintage wasn’t without its challenges either – it was certainly unlucky for some. Positioned between the excellent 2012 and 2015, the 2013s ...
Moneypenny, James Bond, Q. Not a bad trio for your wine to share the screen with in its latest cameo. I’ll try not to give too many spoilers if you haven’t yet seen No Time To Die, but I don’t think it gives too much away to say that Bond can’t resist swiping two generous glasses of Château Angélus (2005, although you don’t see the vintage on screen) for himself and Moneypenny from a bottle that Q had carefully opened for his date later that night. This is the third Bond film in which Angélus ha ...