Wines

In Switzerland, the Chasselas grape is nearly ubiquitous and is known as the Fendant. When allowed to produce with no control, this grape variety is notorious for its abundance and consequent lack of concentration and character. But, when grown in the proper zone by a serious vigneron like Caloz who prunes severely to limit harvest levels, the Fendant can produce marvelous wines with a steely character, bright acidity, exceptional length and vitality. Here, the cépage captures the essence of this mountain terrain.

This Sylvaner, locally known as Johannisberg, highlights the nervy raciness of the varietal with aromas of white flowers and roasted almonds leading to fresh fruit and minerality on the palate with a touch of residual sugar. From the La Tsapouige vineyard on a high terrace above their village of Miège.

The Petite Arvine is very much a local grape found only in the Valais and on the other side of the mountain in the Italian district of the Valle d’Aosta. At its best, and Caloz produces a classic example, the Arvine is a full-bodied white with a tendency to show an enticing note of grapefruit zest. Excellent density married to balancing acidity marks the Arvine from “La Mourziere” as a wine worthy of aging.

This version of the famous Savagnin (the grape in the Jura responsible for the great Château Chalon and the full range of Vin Jaunes) does not share the oxidative notes of its cousin from the Jura. Rather, it is a dry wine with tantalizing aromas that capture the smell of the mountain herbs, the pine forest and the crisp Alpine air. A shy-bearing vine that matures late, the Heida-Paien requires a patient and talented vigneron to display its complex character. The “Les Bernunes” vineyard is recognized for its capacity to produce this grape variety at its best.

From the Pinot Gris grape, this late harvest wine is rich and viscous, packed with all the elements necessary to keep the wine in focus. A pleasant minerality reminds us of the source, lest we get carried away in the honeyed notes of the rich fruit. The grapes are left to raisin on the vine and are frequently harvested in late December or even into January of the following year.

Ethereal and beautiful in the glass, a translucent and gently coppery pale red, with more lightness and clarity than this variety often shows. Aromatically speaking, it’s completely intoxicating—the purest and most vivid ripe-strawberry, with glimmers of white pepper and Indian spices. The palate is seamless, with the strawberry theme echoing—actually, it’s very much like biting into that elusive Perfect Strawberry, where the acid is bright and clean and the fruit is ripe and succulent, and the whole thing is just so impossibly delicious that you just know, at the moment you’re eating it: fruit doesn’t get any better than this. The tannins are all but nonexistent, and the wine is a delicate dance of acid, limestone power, and fruit perfection.

From the steeply-sloped, south-facing, terraced Mourzière vineyard near Miège. After destemming 80%, the clusters undergo a 1–2 day cold soak, fermenting spontaneously in stainless-steel tanks for two weeks. A minimal 25 mg/l dose of sulfur is applied only after malolactic fermentation, and after 6–9 months in inox, the wine is bottled without fining or filtering. Pinot Noir from the Valais at its best displays the elegance and delicacy key to the variety’s success. On the nose, Caloz’s offering presents notes of ripe strawberries, cherries and cedar, above all expressing the limestone terroir of the hills of Sierre.

An expression of exuberant wild berries marks the best of the Cornalins produced in the Valais. Again, the exceptional exposure of the “Les Bernunes” vineyard permits the Cornalin grape to ripen well, producing a purple-tinted wine that is vivacious and lightly tannic in the finish.

At our urging, Conrad Caloz has begun to raise his Humagne Rouge, a local grape notorious for its fickle nature and stubborn refusal to ripen quickly, in a larger barrel format (demi-muid). We believe that this élevage helps to tame this wine which has rustic nature and firm structure.

This varietal famous in the northern Rhone valley finds a special expression in the mountain vineyards of Miège, leading with a spicy, smoky nose married to a palate of fresh red fruits with notes of game and earth. The grapes are destemmed and the wine is raised in an equal proportion of cuve and demi-muid.