Marie-Therese Chappaz Grain Noble Petite Arvine
Tasting notes: Individually sorted, botrytis-affected Petite Arvine berries from Marie-Therese Chappaz's Demeter-certified Fully estate; one of the reference sweet wines of the canton.
The iconic bottles that define Valais: what they are, who makes them and what they cost.
Iconic bottles of Valais
Jean-Rene Germanier Cayas Syrah
Tasting notes: The flagship Syrah from Domaine Jean-Rene Germanier's 34-hectare Vetroz estate, farmed under Bio Suisse organic certification and one of the wines the house is best known for alongside its Amigne.
Jean-Rene Germanier Amigne de Vetroz
Tasting notes: Amigne is grown almost exclusively in Vetroz, and this bottling is one of the signature expressions from Jean-Rene Germanier, a house built on Amigne and Syrah.
La Madeleine Amigne Fletrie sur Souche
Tasting notes: Amigne left to wither on the vine (fletrie sur souche) at La Madeleine in Vetroz; Amigne carries a bee symbol on Vetroz labels marking its sweetness level, and this is among the sweetest of the estate's range.
Serge Roh Amigne de Vetroz Grand Cru
Tasting notes: Serge Roh's Grand Cru de Vetroz designation applies to select Amigne parcels; the estate's Amigne is the house speciality, including a barrel-aged late-harvest style.
St. Jodern Kellerei Heida Grand Cru Visperterminen
Tasting notes: Heida from some of the highest vineyard terraces in Europe above Visperterminen; the cooperative's Grand Cru bottling is built from its oldest, highest-altitude parcels.
Chanton Himbertscha
Tasting notes: One of the near-extinct Upper Valais white grapes the Chanton family has worked to keep in cultivation around Visp; almost no other cellar bottles it as a single variety.
Denis Mercier Reze Goubing
Tasting notes: Reze is the grape behind the Val d'Anniviers's traditional Vin des Glaciers; Denis Mercier's Goubing-slope bottling is a rare single-variety expression from outside the glacier valleys themselves.
Domaine du Mont d'Or Ermitage Grand Cru
Tasting notes: Ermitage (Marsanne) grown on the terraced, schist Montorge hillside above Sion, farmed since 1848 and Bio Suisse certified organic; this is the estate's top designated bottling of its signature grape.
Domaine La Rodeline Le Chargeux Completer
Tasting notes: Completer is a rare Grisons-origin white grape that Domaine La Rodeline farms as part of its Bio Suisse certified, biodynamic-practicing 13-variety range in Fully.
Domaines Rouvinez Grains Nobles Assemblage Surmature
Tasting notes: A late-harvest Petite Arvine and Ermitage assemblage from the fourth-generation Rouvinez family estate above Sierre, part of the ten domains the family works between Loeche and Fully.
Gregor Kuonen Lafnetscha Traditionnel
Tasting notes: Lafnetscha survives almost exclusively around the Salgesch and Visp area; Gregor Kuonen's Caveau de Salquenen is one of the few Upper Valais cellars to bottle it as a single variety.
Marie-Therese Chappaz Grain Cornalin
Tasting notes: Cornalin from Marie-Therese Chappaz's Demeter-certified biodynamic parcels in Fully, one of the benchmark expressions of the Valais's signature indigenous red.
Maison Gilliard Dole des Monts
Tasting notes: Dole is the Valais's traditional Pinot Noir and Gamay blend, and Dole des Monts has been Maison Gilliard's signature red since Edmond Gilliard founded the Sion house in 1885.
Cave Emery Onyx Noir
Tasting notes: A Cornalin, Humagne Rouge and Diolinoir assemblage from Cave Emery's Ayent cellar, one of about 28 AOC Valais wines the family produces from a cellar founded in 1954.
Philippe Darioli Petite Arvine Grains Nobles
Tasting notes: A noble-rot Petite Arvine from Philippe Darioli's three-hectare, hand-farmed holding in Riddes, one of the small-grower dessert wines of the Leytron-Chamoson terraces.
Signature Wines in Valais, FAQ
When is the best time to visit Valais for wine?
Peak wine-travel season in Valais is spring through autumn, with harvest the standout window.
Do I need an appointment to taste at Valais estates?
classified-growth and grand-cru estates require booking days to weeks ahead; smaller family domaines often take walk-ins midweek.
What hours do Valais cellars and tasting rooms keep?
most estates open 10:00 to 17:00 by appointment, often closed Sunday and Monday.
How does tipping work at Valais tastings?
tipping is not expected at tastings; buying a bottle from the cellar door is the customary thank-you.
What is the one wine to try in Valais?
If you only open one bottle, open Marie-Therese Chappaz Grain Noble Petite Arvine by marie-therese-chappaz. It is the wine most associated with Valais.