Correction: my apologies, but a couple of the wineries listed below are not taking part in the open house days. At Henri Cruchon, where the winery was packed out Saturday morning, they explained that they are already so busy on Saturdays that they could only add to the crowd if they are sure of good weather. Satyr in Begnins is also not taking part. I suggest you doublecheck the list of wineries taking part (pdf), top left on the map,if you’re keen to visit a particular winery. The names below are happily good year round.

LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND – You’ll need to plan ahead to get the most out of Vaud’s winery open house days, simply because the canton is large and trying to cover all of the regions isn’t really practical in two days. Happily, they are sure to offer the same thing next year.

My suggestion is to start by reading the practical details here, then choosing one or at most two regions per day, not too far apart. For a second day of tasting I would head further afield, to compare two regions, for the wines vary enormously. All you have to do is look at a map to understand why, with some on hillsides that slope back gradually towards the Jura and others in tight sun-drenched terraces perched above Lake Geneva, while yet others have Alpine backdrops and some the softness of the countryside closer to Neuchatel, Fribourg and Bern.

Starting from Geneva and fanning out, here are the wine regions in Vaud – note that the web site for the open house days provides a pdf list of all Vaud wineries that are open, on the site’s cantonal map page.

La Côte

Begnins, Lake Geneva in the distance, 14 May 2012

The size and complexity of the offer is too big to get into here, so let me simply say this: these hillsides are the birthplace of Chasselas, Switzerland’s famous white aperitif wine, and this is a must for tasters, but concentrate on comparing the differences.

Terroir, winemaker, style: they all have an impact and this is anything but a standardized product! But don’t overlook the reds, for there are splendid blends, Gamays and Pinot Noirs here.

Begnins, Domaine La Capitaine has one Vaud’s 11 new Grand Cru wines, and winemaker Reynald Parmelin has been Switzerland’s organic winemaker of the year for three years running. Down the road, at Le Satyre, You can’t go wrong here. Noémie Graf is young, energetic, creative and she is making some of Switzerland’s top award-winning Pinot Noir wines.

Bursins, Cave Beetschen, don’t let the sleek wine bar fool you: this is a family winery par excellence, with sensible prices and an extraoridnary collection. The energy and desire to improve are impressive here. Chateau Le Rosey is a beautiful spot, worth a visit for that alone, and owner Pierre Bouvier works closely with friend and neighbour Yves Parmelin, whose winery is also well worth a visit. Check out the velvety reds, mmm.

Echichens, above Morges by the hospital, is home to Henri Cruchon and family, and this is a must-stop. Henri is one of Switzerland’s top winemakers, a member of the Memoire des Vins Suisse, a delightfully generous man and the wines are exquisite. Some 20 grape variety, biodynamic and you’ll have trouble leaving, so schedule a return trip!

Fechy, I’ve written so much about this village I fear I’m repeating myself. Stop at Domaine La Colombe, where Raymond Paccot, one of the best winemakers in Switzerland bar none, makes one of my favourite white wines, a Pinot Gris. Down the road is the Kursner Brother wineries, with space or kids to play while you sample a wide range (try the bubbly).

Fully, I’m a huge fan of the Frères Dutry,  whose beautiful Romaine line with Gamay and the inky Gamaret are  complemented by a fine rosé.

Givrins, Philippe Bovet, one of the classiest and finest new winemakers around, who has a good understanding of what a new generatin is looking for. You can’t go wrong here.

Morges has a host of things going on, with discounts to the nearby iris gardens if you have a passport and beginner’s wine tasting sessions on the BAM train parked at the train station.

Nyon, most of the winemakers are coming together at the chateau, so you’ll have an easy time here.

Tartegnin is planning a cheese party for the weekend, to complement its wines, with some fine cheese on the menu, from Gruyere. You can do a shuttle loop to Mont-sur-Rolle, Rolle and Perroy, with a number of good wineries in each.

St-Prex, Domaine de Terreneuve, David Kind speaks English, sells his fine wines at prices that some would say are too low for the very good quality, and the setting, with 200- and 300-year-old trees, is magnificent. Peaceful, well worth a visit and a great address for future orders.

Côtes de l’Orbe and Bonvillars (2 regions)  plus Vully

Bonvillars

These are the wineries in the Yverdon area. A truly wonderful winery that is worth the trip is the Chateau de Valeyres, whose owner Benjamin Morel works with his childhood friend Frédéric Hostettler. The young duo are creative, talented and making a name for themselves in wine circles.  is great fun as well and really wants to know what visitors think. If you can corner him for a minute  you’ll learn a lot about wine. This is the soft side of Swiss scenery, with lovely rolling hillsides, nearby lakes and snowy peaks in the distance. Very, very pleasant.

Côtes de l’Orbe

Caves d’Orbes, Yves Monnier and the Chateau d’Eclépens, with the latter a member of the Clos, Domains & Chateaux group of very good wineries with historic homes. I particularly like some of the reds made by Francois and Georges de Coulon at the chateau, and the prices are a bargain for what you get. Francois speaks English and his enthusiasm for his wines is infectious; he is great fun as well and really wants to know what visitors think. If you can corner him for a minute you’ll learn a lot about wine.

Vully

This region is tiny and at the northeastern tip of Lake Neuchatel, so it would be easy to miss – but you shouldn’t miss it because Môtier has the Cru de l’Hôpital winery whose young winemaker Christian Vessaz has been catapulted into being called one of the best in the country. He’s a serious environmentalist and a perfectionist when it comes to making wines. I love his Pinot Gris and his red blend is beautiful. Someone to encourage, by all means.

Lavaux

If you haven’t heard of this yet, I would be very surprised. This hillside, now a Unesco World Heritage site, was spotted by monks more than 1,000 years ago as the perfect place for vineyards, and they were not wrong. The region is so dense with vineyards that I can’t begin to offer suggestions, except to say two I’ve loved lately have been Patrick Fonjallaz in Epesses and Domaine du Daley high up on the hillside in Lutry. And then there is Louis Bovard, whose wines are very special and exported to top restaurants around the world, in Cully. But I’m leaving out at least 100 great winemakers, I think!

Visiting Lavaux is all about exploring: the hillsides, the villages, the wines, the views. Just let yourself go.

Chablais

Yvorne's extraordinary geography is a terroir wine lesson in itself

This is the beautiful wine country around Villeneuve and Aigle, at the east end of Lake Geneva, with spectacular Alpine vistas behind the villages and towns. It is wine country par excellence and a good place to start seeing the impact of geography on wine. This is where the glaciers left their mark, where the Rhone meets Lake Geneva, and where more rain falls than in nearby Valais or along the Lavaux stretch above Lake Geneva.

You’ll find magnificent Chasselas wines here, and I suggest making tracks to the Artisans Vignerons Cooperative in Yvorne as well as Domaine de l’Ovaille in the same beautiful village. Don’t miss the Chateau d’Yvorne, justifiably famous for its wines. Shuttles between Aigle and Yvorne, both noted for their good restaurants, so build in lunch here.

Aigle is home to the old, large winery called Henri Badoux, famous for its Les Murailles Chasselas, a fine example of the minerality in this grape for which Vaud has a great reputation. Head winemaker Daniel Dufaux is the president of the Swiss Oenologists Association and the winery’s range is both large and very good. I like their Viognier, but definitely try some of the top of the line reds if you can.

Aigle has a very good wine museum at its Chateau and the village’s charming, winding little lanes among stone walls, moving out from the chateau, make for good walks (mostly flat). Expect plenty of music this weekend.There are plenty of small, good wineries here, one of which is run by mother-daughter team Christine and Stéphanie Delarze, whose tree-shaded garden alone is worth the visit, and Stéphanie speaks English. Ask her about the latest wine Dou-dou.

Villeneuve, at the tip of Lake Geneva, is celebrating its main festival of the year, with music all weekend, a big market with local products and its wines at the centre of the party.
Vully

Canton Vaud wineries open days 2012 (map, ©2012 OVV)

LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND – Canton Vaud follows Neuchatel, Geneva and Valais with its wineries open house this weekend, and wine-lovers will find that this year the event really comes into its own. Good transportation solutions are one of the major improvements, the price is a bargain, and the 300 wineries in a canton with enormous terroir variety offer a wonderful chance to learn about wine.

And if you haven’t yet worked out that Swiss wine holds its own at the international level, this is your chance to make that discovery for yourself. Swiss wines, including several from Vaud, have taken gold and silver medals at a number of important international competitions in the past 12 months.

The basics

Winery La Capitaine in Begnins: organic winery workers destalking spring growth 2 weeks ago

Hours: Wineries are open from 10:00 to 19:00 Saturday and Sunday 26-27 May. Some are holding their own additional fetes Friday evening or Monday to take advantage of the long Pentecost weekend, which is celebrated in some but not all Swiss cantons.

Price: CHF15 for the “passport” souvenir glass (don’t lose it!) that gives you entry to all the wineries as well as use of the free shuttle buses. You buy the glass at the first winery you visit and use it for tasting throughout the day.

Transport: This is a great deal: 20 percent off from any train station in Switzerland to your destination in canton Vaud (see the list) with the CFF’s RailAway offer, plus CHF3 off your wine passport. If you haven’t yet bought tickets using the CFF iPhone app, try it – it makes life simpler.

You can drive, but don‘t if you can avoid it. Most wineries are small family affairs with limited parking, in villages with small narrow streets. Drive your car and you’ll miss the charm of these villages. Remember the one small glass (= 1dl) driving rule in Switzerland. Vaud police are not known for their tolerance on this point.

Getting around: Vaud is so spread out, from the suburbs of Geneva to the far end of Lake Neuchatel and far to the east of Lake Geneva near Valais, that free shuttle buses like much smaller Geneva has used were not an option in the early years of this wine event. This year Vaud has really organized transport, and free shuttle buses are included in the price of entry, in several areas:

• Bonvillars : Yverdon-les-Bains.
• Chablais : Aigle, Bex, Ollon, Villeneuve.
• Côtes de l’Orbe : Yverdon-les-Bains.
• La Côte : Allaman, Gland, Morges, Nyon, Rolle.
• Lavaux : Chexbres, Cully, Grandvaux, Lutry, Vevey

Eating, overnight stays: A number of hotels are offering special deals, and several offer you three bottles of wine when you leave, as part of the open house days. Many of the wineries have organized food, especially featuring local products.

Details and addresses are on the excellent cavesouvertes.ch web site where you can download a brochure (French, German). You’ll find the wineries listed according to their regions.

My personal recommendations follows soon on GenevaLunch!

How to visit winery open house days in Switzerland

Visiting Swiss wineries lets you see the villages, the vineyards and meet the workers. Here, destalking 15 May 2012 at Domaine La Capitaine, Begnins, Vaud

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Swiss cantons are becoming increasingly organized and coordinating their work for the cantonal wineries’ open house days. The same basic tips apply for visiting all of them:

Your starting point should be the GenevaLunch news story on the event (search name of canton + wineries open house). The open houses are designed to make it easier for the public to meet the country’s wines and the people behind them. It’s a great way to learn about Switzerland’s often excellent local wines while seeing some of the world’s most beautiful scenery. I try to make suggestions for types of wineries you might want to visit, from ones with great views to ones with sublime wines.

You’ll get the most out of the visits if a) you spit out the wine after you’ve tasted it, in the small buckets provided for this and b) you ask questions, without worrying that you sound like you know nothing.

How to decide what wineries to visit, how to get there

Select the village(s) you want to visit, based on how you’re planning to get around. The advantage of having a car is that you can buy and pack bottles in the car as you go. The disadvantage is that even if you spit out the wine most of the time, strongly recommended, you have to be careful about the amount you consume: Switzerland’s legal limit is 0.5, the equivalent of one small glass of wine (please note that it was recently incorrectly reported on a radio programme to be 0.8).

Most wineries will ship to you, with next-day service via the post office. This means that if you’re using one of the shuttle options you can carry home that one bottle you think you must have for dinner and leave the rest to show up later in the post. Wineries’ policies vary, but the shipping cost is not high and if you buy more than 6 or 12 the postage is often free or discounted.

Check for CFF Railaway offers . In Vaud, for example: 20 percent off to get there and back, another 20 percent off on the Mobilis regional public transport system and  20 percent off for the CHF15 “passport” glass that gets you in to all the wineries.

The tasting process, from white to red as a general rule

A good general rule is to start with whites and move on to reds. So how do you do this when you’re visiting several wineries? My approach is to select, for example, three wineries whose white wines I particularly want to try, then six whose reds interest me. I allow 30-45 minutes per winery, which gives me a chance to taste the wines, ask other visitors what they like and why, talk to the owners – and relax a bit. This means that I can realistically fit in three in a morning, take time out for lunch and do another three in the afternoon. Or two, lunch and four post-lunch.

Village restaurants are one option for lunch, with several offering special Open days menus, and several of the wineries offer meals. Keep in mind that many of the wineries also offer excellent snacks, so some people simply snack their way through the day!

The fun of these open days lies in exploring and visiting new places, so be adventurous. You won’t always find wines that are magical, but you’ll learn while looking for them and there are enough world-class wines from Switzerland for you to easily find some real treasures.

Geneva wineries open house day celebrates its 25th year

Winey open house day is 12 May, Saturday, in canton Geneva: 90 wineries for CHF5!

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Geneva’s Caves Ouvertes, or winery open house day, has good reason to celebrate this year. It is the 25th year of the event and in that short time it has gone from a handful of visitors in 1987 to an estimated 20,000 last year.

The canton pioneered the concept of producers opening wide their doors and inviting in the public to learn more about the canton’s wines, and now others are successfully following suit.

Geneva has 90 wineries, virtually all of them, taking part this year, giving a wealth of options to wine-lovers and anyone who simply wants to explore the region’s wines.

Expect to be introduced to the 2011 vintage, an excellent year, and to meet 2010 wines that have been oaked for several months, all bottled within the last few days or weeks. New this year: a CHF5 souvenir glass that visitors can use, an effort to provide a good solution to the problem of keeping enough clean glasses on hand and to reduce breakages.

The canton has three main wine regions, all in the countryside, but just at the door of the city. The best-known, the Mandemant, lies just beyond Meyrin and includes the villages of Satigny, Russin and Dardagny. The area between the Arve and Rhone rivers includes Lully, Bernex and Soral. The Arve and Lake area covers Jussy, Anieres and Gy.

The TPG pubic transport system in Geneva is participating again this year by providing free shuttle buses, a good idea considering that the alcohol limit for drivers is one (small) glass of wine.

Map of Geneva’s wineries

Terrific Terroir, free marketing magazine produced by the canton’s agricultural office, with tips for visiting wineries. Note: a print version is also available from Geneva Tourism, the Pont-de-la-Machine Information Arcade, the Geneva Welcome Centre, the UN Kiosk and OffTheShelf English Bookshop

Review of the new Geneva wines presented officially last week

Vins de Genève stand at Arvinis 2012

MORGES, SWITZERLAND – A couple people have said what they would really like are some suggestions about how to visit Arvinis and a) not end up drunk and b) learn something about wine c) while enjoying themselves.

The problem with any wine fair is that it’s daunting, especially if you’re not familiar with many of the wines.

Here are my suggestions, valid for any wine festival or fair where the offer is bigger than your body can handle:

1. Do look at the English version of Arvinis‘s site, where you’ll find a map, information on the guest of honour (Swiss Wine Promotion) and the list of exhibitors, to start.
2. Decide before you go how to limit yourself, because with 3,000 wines available for tasting you’ll be lost if you walk in and start with the first one, moving in a straight but increasingly crooked line.
3. Spit it out! This is crucial, because once you’ve drunk one glass of wine you can’t really do justice to the others; you simply won’t be able to taste them accurately and really judge them. Everybody spits; that’s why the crachoirs/spitoons are there. Just grab it if it’s not next to you, and use it. Tip: Keep a tissue handy if you’re not used to doing this and worry about dribbling.
4. Some people opt to just taste white wines, others to do just red wines. Every stand offers both, so be disciplined and stick to your plan.
5. Some old hands like to do it geographically, maybe sampling wines from 5 neighbouring towns and villages. The easiest way to do this is to open the pdf document on the exhibitors’ page, then note the location of the wineries. They are listed here alphabetically but each entry shows the region or sub-region, such as La Côte in Vaud or central Valais.
6. I like to pick grape varieties and sample wines made from the same grape from a group of producers. If you want to try this Chasselas and Sauvignon Blanc or for those who like very dry wines Sauvignon Gris work for the whites. Try Pinot Noir, Gamay and Gamaret for the reds. These are all widely grown in Switzerland, so you’ll have plenty of options.
7. Take notes. Write down anything you like, or do like the pros and try to note what you smell (aromas of rose or apple or pear or hmmm, rubber?) and then what it feels like in your mouth (racy, smooth, big and fills your mouth, tannins pinch your mouth dry?). But mainly, make a note of what you don’t like and what you love. Tip: I photograph the wines I like with my cell phone, so I don’t have to note label details.
8. Ask questions. What does the winemaker find in the nose (always a good question if you don’t trust your own nose)? Is it oaked, meaning it has spent some time in wood, or how soon is it bottled after the harvest? What was 2011 like as a vintage for this wine? Don’t be afraid to say you know nothing or next to nothing; wine producers love that as it gives them a chance to explain their wines.
9. Spit it out! This is the most important rule, so I’m repeating it. You’ll enjoy the wine more, believe me. And save your favourite for last, going back and trying it again, and this time, feel free to drink it. But just one, if you’re driving (and I hope you’re not).

A note for Arvinis: wine producers come from a number of countries and this is a good opportunity to compare Swiss wines to those from other countries. Keep in mind that the downside of wine point systems such as Robert Parker’s is that while they might help us decide what wines are good value, they encourage us to compare wines when we shouldn’t: one of the great glories of the wine world is its diversity. Enjoy the differences!

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Ellen’s Wine World has just kicked off on Facebook, home to tasting notes, shared wisdom from other Swiss wine fans, videos, photos of Swiss vineyards throughout the year, events on the wine calendar and special daily or near-daily nuggets from Ellen’s Wine Almanac.

That Ellen and this one are the same person, so here is what it happening with Among the vines: I will continue to post wine news and longer features here, and these will be shared on Facebook.

The format on FB works better for a mix of information about wine, but it’s also a far better way to be part of the conversation about what’s happening with wine. A big part of the decision was due to videos working better on Facebook, and you’ll be seeing more of these in coming weeks.

Join the fun!

Swiss Chasselas captures its terroir and in the glass it reflects the beauty of summer here

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Switzerland produces and consumes more red wine than white, a fact that surprises many people. Surely, I hear the protesting voices, the lovely crisp white aperitif wine that you see and drink everywhere must be the main wine?

We’re talking about Chasselas, Switzerland’s justifiably most famous grape, of which some 40 million m2 were planted in 2010, the second most widely grown grape, with just 3 million m2 less than Pinot Noir, or about about 18 percent of the total space given over to grapes in Switzerland. The country has 160 grape varieties (planted on more than 100m2), and 42 percent of the total grape-growing surface is planted with white wine varieties.

Old traditions die hard and the Swiss white wines are gradually giving way to red: the country produces about 22 percent less white wine than it did 30 years ago, as consumers shift to a wider variety of wines and to higher quality wines, including more reds.

Chasselas nevertheless remains particularly popular in French-speaking areas. It’s a good all-around white wine and it carries the imprint of its terroir beautifully, which means it gives us good variety, making it an interesting wine for winelovers.

Its birthplace dating back centuries is canton Vaud, and nowhere in the world does it grow better than in Switzerland and, arguably, in Vaud.

Summer is the time when this wine is out in force, after the previous harvest’s bottles are put on the market, around May. GenevaLunch has been posting a series of video reviews by Romanduvin of selected Chasselas wines, in late July and early August.

About the grape

Chasselas has an afinity for beautiful places, here: Flchy, canton Vaud, in autumn, overlooking Lake Geneva

The grape known as Chasselas in Neuchatel and Vaud was called fendant in many parts of Vaud in the 19th century and it is still known as that in canton Valais, while it is known as gutadel in German-speaking Switzerland and Genevans often call it perlan.

The name fendant originates from the grapeskin’s tendency to melt away from the juicy interior when it is pressed, rather than to squirt out the juice. It is aromatic and in Switzerland is virtually always vinified dry.

The grape has mutated and is known under scores of other names outside Switzerland; it is used mainly in blends in France and is often vinified sweet in New Zealand.

Within Switzerland there are several varieties of Chasselas, all close cousins, so the precise variety is rarely mentioned.

How and why Chasselas varies from one region to another

Robert Taramarcaz in Sierre/Granges regularly wins awards with his Chasselas wines, available as a traditional version and classic

Terroir is more than the soil where a grapevine is planted: it is the mix of light and air, soil and water, climatic conditions in general. A short drive or train ride through Switzerland makes it quickly apparent why a grape such as Chasselas, very sensitive to its terroir, can have so many different profiles.

Winds off Lake Geneva that change dramatically with altitude, hugely varying amounts of rainfall, and exposure to the sun depending on the angle of a slope, are just some of the elements that shift significantly in this landscape.

The soil left behind when the Rhone glacier scoured the land varies, too, from one place to another depending on the steepness of the slopes, for example.

Geneva’s Chasselas wines tend to be more floral and lighter than those from Vaud, where the mineral aspect the grapes pick up from the soil often creates an almost sparkling (known as petillant) wine when the bottle is opened. Award-winning Chasselas wines tend to come from a number of different villages, but Féchy, between Rolle and Morges, has some of the finest Chasselas terroirs in the La Côte region and the whole of Lavaux, but particularly Dézaley is known for producing superb Chasselas wines.

Fendant in Valais tends to be smoother, making it the wine of choice to accompany cheese fondue and raclette cheese.

Neuchatel is famous for its unfiltered Chasselas, a variation on the wine that is available starting the third Wednesday in January every year.

When to drink a Chasselas

If you think Chasselas can only be drunk young, you're wrong: a vertical tasting last November with wines now 30 years old shows that a finely-made one can age well

Traditionally, these wines are drunk young, before they are three years old, when they tend to be fruity, aromatic and smooth in mouth. Increasingly, very good Chasselas wines are being aged and for those lucky enough to sample these, it is a tasting experience: they have a golden robe unlike their pale youthful colours, rich smells of honey and beeswax and in mouth they can resemble fine dry sherries. The Memoire des vins suisses group, 40 of Switzerland’s best wine producers, have been keeping members’ bottles and testing their aging abilities.

I sampled some beautiful older Chasselas wines at a vertical (several vintages) tasting session offered by Vaud’s Clos, Chateaux & Manoirs group a few months ago and I’m now convinced these can make a very special older wine.

Can you simply sit on your Chasselas wines for a few years? I’ve accidentally done this a few times, with very mixed results. A 2005 La Colombe from the winery of the same name in Féchy recently resurfaced in our house and it was surprisingly good. If you want to try keeping some for a few years, ask a good producer to recommend bottles that will hold up to this.

The birthplace of Chasselas, one of the world’s most widely planted grapes

José Vouillamoz's research put an end to the debate: the cradle of Chasselas is the Lake Geneva region

The grape first appears in historical documents in the 16th century, and its origins were long debated, with Egypt and Turkey mentioned as possible homes until 2009.

Chasselas was the focus of a geneological study by Swiss biologist and DNA specialist José Vouillamoz at the University of Neuchatel, who works at the Swiss federal Agroscope Changins-Wädenswil ACW research station in Conthey, Valais. Vouillamoz and C Arnold in 2009 published the results of their research (pdf, Fre), showing definitively that the grape originated in the Lake Geneva region between Italy, France and Switzerland, almost certainly in canton Vaud.

Chasselas spread, through numerous mutations and carrying a number of different names. Hungary is the country today with the largest plantings, but it is also found close to home in France, Germany, as well as further afield in New Zealand and Mexico.

Links to other sites:

• Jancis Robinson on José Vouillamoz’s work, describing him as “one of the world’s best-informed experts on vine identification through his work with DNA analysis”
• “Un conservatoire pour valoriser le chasselas”, Le Temps, 26 August 2010 (Fr)
• “Chasselas“, a web site from Schenk SA

If you find a corked wine in Switzerland, by law you can ask to be reimbursed; note that some of the best use screwtops, which avoid the problem

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Even the best winemakers’ products are occasionally corked. If you’re uncertain, leave the wine for a few minutes: it might just need to open. But if you suspect it is corked, or you’re sure it is: don’t drink it. Corked wine is likely to provide a headache and an unpleasant drinking and dining experience.

And don’t keep sniffing it to check, because your tolerance level for that corked smell rises with each sniff. Even your dog running in from a swim in the summer pond will smell all right after this!

Don’t panic, either, if you have a wine snob at the table and you’re not sure. Ask his or her advice and if the verdict is “corked!” but you don’t believe it, stopper the bottle and check it out again yourself, later. The smell won’t disappear and you’ll learn from it.

Serve another wine if you have one handy.

In Switzerland, you can get your money back

The good news is that if the wine has been bottled in Switzerland, you can get your money back. Here’s the law covering it:

(art. 197 and following CO 10 June 1988) “Swiss and foreign wines that are bottled in Switzerland will be replaced or reimbursed during one year starting from the delivery date. Foreign wines that are bottled in their country of production will not be reimbursed.”

Be sure to keep the receipt, which shows the date. But most winemakers will take back their own goods without question, as long as it is in the original container. If you drank a glass while you were trying to determine if there is something wrong, don’t worry: the producer will immediately spot the problem, if there is one, or won’t ask, in the interest of good customer relations.

You’ll have to pay for the shipping or the trip to the winery. If this seems like too much hassle, write it off to experience and have one last quick sniff of the wine to register the smell in your memory.

The knowledge of what “corked” smells like is gained the same way we learn all other smells. We learn to recognize and identify them over time, thanks to our memories. This is why wine experts are often found sniffing fruits and vegetables in the supermarket produce section! I have trouble distinguishing rose from pear smells, strange as that might seem, so I routinely smell pears at the store to improve my memory of them. I blame it on a childhood of canned-only pears, which smell more of syrup than the fruit.

Will corked wines hurt you?

No, they are just unpleasant.

Are corked wines a sign of a lower quality?

Not at all: it happens to even the greatest wines. I recently interviewed a wine expert from Sotheby’s following an auction where wines that cost hundreds of Swiss francs were sold and I asked what he would think if he paid such a price and then discovered the wine was corked. “My bad luck!”

Has a corked wine been mishandled during vinification?

No. The presence of TCA or other tainting factors can be due to a number of factors that are often beyond the control of even the most hygienic producers.

Will sniffing the cork tell me if the wine is off?

Sometimes but not necessarily. If a wine is well and truly corked, the cork itself may carry the unpleasant odour, but if the wine is a bit corked, enough to ruin an otherwise good wine, its presence in the cork might be too subtle to detect. Corked wines are more obvious as wines warm up, and in the glass, where the smell opens up.

So should we avoid wines with corks and buy screwcap wines?

That’s a whole different matter, and the debate is long over about whether quality wines can have screwcap tops (the answer is a resounding yes), but many of us sometimes enjoy the ceremonial side to drinking wine, where we unscrew real cork from an elegant bottle. Viva the cork!

More on corked wines:

• wikipedia
• Jancis Robinson on serving a corked wine to one of the world’s top sommeliers
• NY Mag on what to do when served a corked wine in a restaurant

If you think Chasselas can only be drunk young, you're wrong: a vertical tasting last November with wines now 30 years old shows that a finely-made one can age well

LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND – Your starting point should be the GenevaLunch news story on the event, with some real changes this year that promise to make it easier, more fun and a great way to learn about Switzerland’s often excellent local wines.

You’ll get the most out of the visits if a) you spit out the wine after you’ve tasted it, in the small buckets provided for this and b) you ask questions, without worrying that you sound like you know nothing. Here are some pointers that I’m reposting from my piece on the Valais wine days, followed by suggestions for types of wineries you might want to visit, from ones with great views to ones with sublime wines.

How to decide what wineries to visit, how to get there

Select the village(s) you want to visit, based on how you’re planning to get around. The advantage of having a car is that you can buy and pack bottles in the car as you go. The disadvantage is that even if you spit out the wine most of the time, strongly recommended, you have to be careful about the amount you consume: Switzerland’s legal limit is 0.5, the equivalent of one glass of wine (please note that it was recently incorrectly reported on a radio programme to be 0.8).

Chasselas vines above Lake Geneva in September, harvest time

Most wineries will ship to you, with next-day service via the post office. This means that if you’re using one of the shuttle options you can carry home that one bottle you think you must have for dinner and leave the rest to show up later in the post. Wineries’ policies vary, but the shipping cost is not high and if you buy more than 6 or 12 the postage is often free or discounted.

The CFF Railaway offer is a good deal: 20 percent off to get there and back, another 20 percent off on the Mobilis regional public transport system and  20 percent off for the CHF15 “passport” glass that gets you in to all the wineries.

The tasting process, from white to red as a general rule

A good general rule is to start with whites and move on to reds. So how do you do this when you’re visiting several wineries? My approach is to select, for example, three wineries whose white wines I particularly want to try, then six whose reds interest me. I allow 30-45 minutes per winery, which gives me a chance to taste the wines, ask other visitors what they like and why, talk to the owners – and relax a bit. This means that I can realistically fit in three in a morning, take time out for lunch and do another three in the afternoon. Or two, lunch and four post-lunch.

That said, at the press conference for the Vaud Open Days, where journalists  I tasted a red with some strong cheese and before moving on to the dessert wine with chocolate I had the first wine offered, a Chasselas designed to be drunk as an aperitif. It also made an excellent palate-cleanser between courses.

Village restaurants are one option for lunch, with several offering special Open days menus, and several of the wineries offer meals. Keep in mind that many of the wineries also offer excellent snacks, so some people simply snack their way through the day!

Suggestions for varied approaches

These are a handful of wineries I personally like, but the most fun involves exploring and visiting new places, so be adventurous. You won’t always find wines that are magical, but you’ll learn while looking for them. The complete list/map is on Caves Ouverte’s web site. I’ve put an *asterisk where I know they speak English.

Wineries with great views

Cellars in Vinzel, Begnin, Mont-sur-Rolle, Bougy-Villars and Fechy, for the stretch between Nyon and Rolle, as well as the higher altitude wineries in Lavaux and, at the eastern end of Vaud, Aigle. Particular favourites for this: Caves des Rossillonnes, Vinzel, Caveau de Langins, Riex, Chateau Maison Blanche in Yvorne – but the list is far too long! We are spoiled for spectacular views from wineries, in Vaud.

Organic top wines

*Domaine La Capitaine, Begnins (see below)

Cellars with sublime wines

*Domaine La Capitaine, Begnins, *Chateau Le Rosey, Bursins, *Domaine La Colombe, Fechy, Domaine Louis Bovard, Cully

Wineries along La Cote that are special for other reasons

*Les Dames de Hautecour, Mont-sur-Rolle (guaranteed warm welcome and rare Chasselas violet), *Cave Cidis, Tolochenaz (don’t expect a romantic setting, but there is a huge selection from this excellent cooperative, for a good idea of what Vaud wines are all about, with knowledgeable staff)

Weather forecast: highs of 19C Saturday and 21C Sunday, with some showers replaced Sunday by haze: take an umbrella and sun cream.

Rhone valley vineyards in Valais, 1 June 2011

Update 21:00  SION, SWITZERLAND -  It doesn’t get much more perfect for wine-tasting weather, as Switzerland’s largest wine-producing canton opens its winery doors for three days, to present the newly bottled 2010 vintage. It was a very good year, the wines are a delight, the sun is shining and temperatures are expected to be 23-25C for the duration of the Valais Open days.

Here are the basics of how it works, and some suggestions for where to go – my highly personal selection that offers a good mix.

The real specialty of canton Valais is that it offers such a varied collection of wines, many of them found nowhere else in the world: a dozen easily found white grape varieties and almost as many reds, plus some excellent rosés and blends. Valais is increasingly being touted as one of the world’s top producers of late-harvest sweet wines, which age beautifully and are the after-dinner par excellence wine to share with friends.

The basics

Start with the cantonal wine web site

The Vins du Valais web site offers a wealth of information in English on the canton’s wines, including a database that you can search by producer, grape type and food/wine pairings. Its pages on the 2011 Open days are not in English, but its search tool for the 2-4 June event is very useful because you can search by location. Everyone who can grows grapes for wine in Valais, mostly on a family-consumption scale, but this still leaves some 600 growers-producers and another 190 cellars that trade wine: too much to experience in one or even three days! Note that most, but not all, wineries are taking part in the three-day event.

Select the area you want to visit: consider public transport

Select the village(s) you want to visit, based on how you’re planning to get around. The advantage of having a car is that you can buy and pack bottles in the car as you go. The disadvantage is that even if you spit out the wine most of the time, strongly recommended, you have to be careful about the amount you consume: Switzerland’s legal limit is 0.5, the equivalent of one glass of wine (please note that it was recently incorrectly reported on a radio programme to be 0.8).

Most wineries will ship to you, with next-day service via the post office. This means that if you’re using one of the shuttle options you can carry home that one bottle you think you must have for dinner and leave the rest to show up later in the post. Wineries’ policies vary, but the shipping cost is not high and if you buy more than 6 or 12 the postage is often free or discounted.

Sion and Sierre offer free shuttle buses, for the first time, to groups of wineries. It’s a great way to sample several without worrying about alcohol limits and driving, but also a way to avoid the problem of parking. Several villages have set up their own shuttle buses with drop-offs and pick-ups at a number of participating wineries. Others are organized as tours; some of these charge a fee, worth it in terms of simplifying things.

Bed-and-breakfast and farm stays are a good option in Valais, and the cantonal wine site has an online reservation option for these.

Select the wineries: consider concentrating on Valais specialty wines

A good general rule is to start with whites and move on to reds. So how do you do this when you’re visiting several wineries? My approach is to select, for example, three wineries whose white wines I particularly want to try, then six whose reds interest me. I allow 30-45 minutes per winery, which gives me a chance to taste the wines, ask other visitors what they like and why, talk to the owners – and relax a bit. This means that I can realistically fit in three in a morning, take time out for lunch and do another three in the afternoon. Or two, lunch and four post-lunch.

Village restaurants are one option for lunch, with several offering special Open days menus, and several of the wineries offer meals. Keep in mind that many of the wineries also offer excellent snacks, so some people simply snack their way through the day!

To buy or not to buy, and how many wines in a day?

I sample anywhere from three to six wines at a winery, using the bucket provided to spit out. If you don’t do that, you won’t be able to tell one wine from another after the first winery! If your really are there just to visit one or two neighbouring wineries, sit back and drink, santé! Just remember that these are mostly small family wineries, with very few exceptions, and this is the one day of the year when they invest in a major marketing effort: they will welcome you, but do the decent thing and buy at least three bottles to help cover their costs. Glasses will be poured small: you’re there to sample, not consume, remember.

If you’re really exploring and learning about the local wines, no one will expect you to buy, so relax, learn what you can, ask questions and ask for a brochure/order list. You can note on these what you like and what you don’t and decide at the end of the day where  you want to spend your money.

My personal list

These are not necessarily where I’ll be visiting this weekend, but I can recommend these villages and these wineries, as a good way to sample a cross-section of the best regional specialties. I’ve put an asterisk* in front of these where I know they speak English.

Fully – closest to Geneva and Lausanne, white and especially bio (organic) and biodynamic wines, is the long string of a village of Fully, with scores of wineries. This is home to Marie-Thérèse Chappaz, arguably one of the country’s best wine producers, albeit a tiny winery; she no longer holds open house days because she can’t keep up with demand. The dramatic mountainside covered in vines lends itself beautifully to fine wines.

Jacques Granges-Faiss, Caves Beudon, with a glass of his Schiller wine, an unusual wine with curiosity value

Caves Beudon, les vignes dans les ciel, a wonderful source of information about biodynamic growing, a step beyond organic methods, in a magical setting that you can reach only on foot, a steep climb. You can save that for another day, however, as owners Jacques and Marion Granges-Faiss have happily set up a stand and tables at the foot of their mountain home, for three days.

Jacques is a great raconteur and source of information about the geology, flora and fauna of the area. Quality-wise, in the past their wines have been somewhat irregular, so I’m keen to see what the 2010 wines are like. His wines are always interesting and be sure to ask why he created a second, golden Fendant called “Antique”. His best-seller is his very dry Petite Arvine. They also grow apples, pears and more down on the plain.

Benoit Dorsaz, note that despite the road closed signs, you can reach him by car: he makes beautiful wines, possibly because his vineyards are beautifully situated but also lovingly cared for but this grower who is passionate about nature and working hand in hand with it. Whites: his dry (it’s vinified in Valais from very dry to dessert sweet) Petite Arvine is reliably excellent and his Viognier and Petite Arvine sweet wines are lovely. His reds are also recommended.

St-Pierre-de-Clages and Chamoson, central Valais – broad and nearly flat, where the Rhone valley opens out and orchards are plentiful on the left bank, with vineyards covering the right bank. The first village is best known for its summer used-books sale, but it has several excellent wineries. Two are separated, a distinction more apparent to locals than to visitors, by a handful of wineries. Among the good ones here:

Cave du Vidomne, Catherine and Meinrad Gaillard (some English), one of the most startling little wineries in the region, with small volume and extraordinary red wines that are beautifully aged. These are not cheap wines by Swiss standards, but they are hand-crafted and barrel-aged for five years before being released, and the wait and price are worth it. They are generally only open by appointment, since this husband and wife team are almost always out in the vineyards, so this is the rare opportunity to drop in.

*René Favre et Fils, brothers Mike and Jean-Charles offer excellent wines, great knowledge about the region’s wines and vineyards, and Mike in particular, who has held several positions in the world of Valais wines, is a colourful character who enjoys what he does immensely. Some of the family vines are the oldest in Valais, tucked up on the hillside just below the abrupt mountain above the village, and they are treated as great treasures.  Their Johannisberg and Humagne blanc are good examples of these wines, and for the sheer pleasure of the names and fun labels, if not the wine (which is good), try the blends: the white Blue Bike and Red Pickup. Blue Bike is full-bodied compared to the varietal (single grape) whites and Red Pickup, with Merlot, Syrah and Diolinoir is hearty and designed to go with a meal.

*Maurice Gay, at the other end of the spectrum size-wise, will leave you wondering where to begin with its huge selection of wines. This is a winery that regularly wins awards and that consistently produces very good quality wines, in a large range. For whites, try the Johannisberg for which this area is famous, dry and crisp, the Heida/Paien, a Valais classic, and the wonderfully perfumed dry Muscat. The latter is a special treat for lovers of dry wines and anyone who wants to better understand how a wine can be both dry and very fruity. But given the large selection here, it’s a great place to just follow your temptations and try a new wine. Hint: The muscat is a great wine with Asian foods that are not too spicey. The winery is out in the vineyards below the town, easy to spot from the autoroute.

Sierre and vineyards in Valais at dawn, 1 June 2011

Sierre/Salgesch (aka Salquenen) - This is the language divide between French- and German-speaking Valais. A great mix of small and large cellars, includes Provins, the country’s largest and a cooperative winery that sets a great example for others, is open for the weekend on the main street of Sierre, at the entrance to the town, coming from the east side autoroute exit. Three of my favourite Swiss wineries are here:

Maurice Zufferey, discreetly one of the best winemakers around, with an understated elegance to his wines and the man himself: he has served as mentor for more than one good, young Swiss winemaker, and with reason. This is a small winery on the hillside above Sierre, near the easily visible Chateau Mercier, in the suburb/hamlet of Muraz. Start with his Fendant to get a sense of what a good Valais Chasselas is like and how it differs from the more mineral ones from Vaud, but be sure not to miss his Zirouc, if you’re lucky enough to find some left to try! It’s a fine sweet wine, so before you try it, sample his beautiful Pinot Noirs and two Valais specialties, Humagne Rouge and Cornalin. The first is a rustic wine, often saved for the game season, but it goes well with barbecued meats. Cornalin is a difficult grape and difficult wine, and here it is in the hands of a pro. His wife manages the Sierre/Salgesch vine and wine museums, which are well worth a visit.

*Domaine des Muses, Robert Taramarcaz, whose winery is in the industrial estate of Sierre, so he is not surprisingly playing host for the Open days at his other winery “home”, a charming farm at the foot of his vines in nearby Grange (see web page for map), with raclette on offer. The wines themselves are worth the trip, however. This extraordinarily hard-working young producer is a frequent winner of top wine prizes (eight gold medals in 2010) and while he is a specialist in late-harvest sweet wines, his Fendants are superb and his new Merlot is a great surprise: good nose, but smooth and very long in mouth. Be sure to try his “Seduction” line. For details about the wines, visit his web site.

*Rouvinez wines, sits in a spectacular hilltop spot next to a monastery, above the town’s aqua-blue Gironde Lake. You’re in a world-class winery here, in terms of size (they export) as well as quality, and the cellar itself, with its recently renovated area for guests, reflects this. A must-try is my favourite Swiss wine, their almost grapefruity Petite Arvine, Chateau Lichten, and their Marsanne is a lovely white wine that will suit others who are not great fans of dry and acidic wines. Their red blends are particularly worth trying. This is a great place to learn more about what makes Valais wines so special, as the educational part of the display is very good, with explanations about the climate, geography and soils.

Be sure to remember to look up while in Valais: the peaks, the mountains and the skirts that are traces of glaciers all add up to a very special place for making wine, as changeable as the magnificent clouds and light.

I’ll be visiting as many of the wineries as family permits, and taking photos, so expect to see some of the wineries featured here in coming days. This is part of my warm-up to judging at the Grand Prix des Vins Suisse, in which I’ll be taking part again this year, later in June.