FOOD TIME
TIME FOR A FINE WINE
Welcome to Ticino, Switzerland’s sunny,
Italian-speaking home of Merlot. Although the climate in Ticino ultimately
proved to be ideal for Merlot, it wasn’t until 1906 that this
venerable grape found its way there from Bordeaux.
With well-sited vineyards and the highest density of quality wine makers
in Switzerland, Ticino wines have no problem holding their own on an
international level. The Merlot del Ticino can vary from relatively
light to as full-bodied as a traditional Bordeaux.
Originally part of the Duchy of Milan and fully part of Italy for a
while, Ticino wasn’t incorporated into the Swiss Confederation
until the 15th Century. Although under Swiss sovereignty, not much
effort was made to integrate Ticino into the Swiss Confederation before
1803. Today Ticino’s Italian culture still remains firmly in
hand.
Dramatic, Eclectic Valais Wine Region
The wind whips through vineyards clinging to the steep south-facing
terraces overlooking the Rhône valley. Most of the vineyards
in Valais are between Martigny and Leuk, and peaking at 1,100 meters
in Visperterminen (Upper Valais), they are among the highest and most
dramatic vineyards in Europe.
With an average rainfall of 600 mm, water can be scarce too. But with
irrigation – sometimes still the traditional wood canals called “Bisses”,
and the benefit of over 300 sunny days a year, plus the help of the
infamous Föhn*, Valais produces a wide range of world class wines.
With over 60 grape varieties used, this is perhaps the most eclectic
of Swiss wine regions.
Valais is the third biggest Canton in Switzerland, and the biggest
wine region: over 50 Kilometers long, it stretches from German-speaking
Oberwallis to the French-speaking Unterwallis. With Sion as its center,
the principle wine areas are Ardon, Chamoson, Conthey, Fully, Leuk,
Leytron, Martigny, Muraz, Ort, Salquenen (Salgesch), Sierre, Sion,
St. Pierre-de-Clages, Vétroz and Visp. An AOC-System was introduced
in 1993.
Vaud Wine Region
Vaud, Switzerland's second most important wine canton, is where Chasselas,
the French outcast grape, seems to have found ideal conditions; chalky
limestone soils, underlying alkaline earth, and a nurturing climate.
It is in Vaud that the finest Chasselas based wines are found, including
the prestigious Dézaley.
Athough the Chasselas grape accounts for over 80% of plantings, you
will also find Pinot noir, Gamay, a humbled Chardonnay, and Pinot gris.
The Vaud wine region is distributed across three wine sub-regions:
Chablais, La Côte and Lavaux*. Here the steep terraced vineyards
plunge from hillside villages right to the edge of Lake Geneva, stretching
from the north shores of lake Geneva to the Rhône Valley.
Big and Small Graubünden
Tucked in the southeast corner of Switzerland is Graubünden, or
Grisons. In the north of the canton, between Bonaduz und Fläsch,
is its main wine area the Bündner Herrschaft. It is here, thanks
to its geographic situation and the Föhn, that some of the best
red wines in German-speaking Switzerland come from, and its speciality
is the Blauburgunder (Pinot noir). Although over 80% of the wine from
Graubünden is red, they also produce some fine white wines, including
a bit of sweet Freisamer wine.
Graubünden is not a small canton, but everything in it seems to
be. The total area under grape cultivation is just over 400 Hectares
(ha); the entire area of Misox only has around 30 ha. Here the 380
vintners, some with only a couple ha, pursue their craft, and a majority
of them (62 %) do their own vinification and marketing. Many of them
are working together in various organizations to share logistic and
promotional resources.
Trivia: Graubünden is the only canton of Switzerland with three
official languages: German (54%), Romansh (31%), and Italian (15%).
We thank FineSwissWine for these texts and trackback:
See Fine Swiss Wine:
Ticino Wine Region
See Fine Swiss Wine:
Valais
See Fine Swiss Wine: Vaud Wine Region
See Fine Swiss Wine:
Graubuenden
Comment on this article
Try this taste of summer
Melon and mint salad with honey mousse – sweet’n
easy…
Honey mousse:
- 250 g cream cheese
- 200 cl crème fraîche
- 2 – 3 tablespoons of honey
- Juice and zest of 1⁄2 a lemon
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
Mix cheese and crème fraîche until it is soft and smooth, stir in
the other ingredients.
Cut plenty of melon in different colours in small dices or make small melon balls.
Mix with fresh mint leaves.
Serve the melon and mint salad with the mousse, topped with a few drops of honey,
a sprinkle of cinnamon and a couple of fresh mint leaves.
ENJOY!
Previous foodtime articles
Roasted Chicken with Bears-Garlic
How
to improve the quality
of your everyday coffee
Menu planning
St.Lucia
Taste of Africa
Kürbis
suppe - Pumpkin soup
The King Bolete
Zwetschgenwähe
Spaghetti & Pesto
Barbecuing
Fresh Morels
Bärlauch
Swiss cooking
foodtime@mamizeit.com
NEW IN JUNE:
Learning
from our kids – adapting to a new environment
Swiss
German, French, Italian or Romansh?
Do
you speak - sprechen Sie - parlez-vous - schwätzt du…?
Tax
relief that makes sense
Cesarean
Section in child birth
Walking
in Memphis
Time
for a fine wine
Summer
camps 2009
Camping
with kids
Find
a babysitter