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In 2022, Salgesch’s Mounirs’ Cave du Rhodan will win. This year Leukersonne from Leuk/Susten der Seewers. The Upper Valais seems to have become the center of the Swiss wine world. And yes, Diego Mathier is the only winemaker to have won the coveted title of “Winner of the Year” three times. It’s also from Salgesch. The small German-speaking part of Switzerland’s largest wine-producing canton always shines. And Valais will dominate in 2023, too, with at least 8 of the 15 category wins.
An obvious winner
This time under the Leuk sun. “Our joy is immense,” says Damian Seewer, who runs the business with his wife Fabienne. “Because we have been working for this for years. And now we’ve done it. I still don’t understand…”
If you look at the three criteria, the 2023 winner is certainly understandable (which wasn’t always the case). The ratio between the wines offered on one side and the wines awarded with gold or silver. Second, the number of wines nominated, i.e. wines that placed among the top six wines in a category. Leukersonne entered the race with four people; which was twice the next best. The third is the number of places on the podium. The Leuk/Susten winery won three awards: victory in the red ensembles category and second place in Merlots and Rosés/Federweissen.
More wine sent again
A total of 2,740 wines applied to the competition. This is 400 more than last year, marked by low harvest volume in 2021. But this is still a long way from the record values of 2019, when more than 3,200 wines were evaluated by around 130 judges. 859 of these wines were awarded medals. 91 of the 15 categories made it to the finals (chardonnay and syrah were also added this year).
What else are the megatrends? Jonas Ettlin, President of co-promoter Vinea: “On the one hand, the diversity is huge. On the other hand, an increasing number of major producers have reintroduced wine. This is of course very important for such a competition. Thomas Vaterlaus, editor-in-chief of fellow organizer “Vinum”, explains that at the Grand Prix you can find everything that is available in Switzerland. “For example, we now have Malbec from Schaffhausen, which would have been unthinkable a few years ago. But there are also many Piwi varieties or natural wines.”
A cockfight that ended quickly
Not only are the two categories new, there is also an app and website: www.grandprixduvinsuisse.ch. “And we’re going out for the Grand Prix,” says Nicola Montamarano, managing director of “Vinum”. “The Grand Prix should evolve into a live experience with Wine and Dines, taking place at Prowein in Düsseldorf or at the Basel wine fair.”
Speaking of co-hosts. It is not certain that the Grand Prix premiere will be able to take place at the Bern Kursaal as usual. Because in the spring, Vinea and “Vinum” got into such a fight that they broke up and both sides claimed the right to the Grand Prix. The press release from Vinea that they would be launching their own new wine competition had already been sent out in mid-March. But fortunately, Nicolas Joss, director of Swiss Wine Promotion, quickly intervened in the dispute and brought the parties to the table. Differences were resolved and the absurdity of a second contest was quickly taken off the table. Two awards; this would be a disaster for Swiss winemaking.
Blick names the best and discoveries
And so we can get back to the most important thing: the wines. Here you will find all category winners neatly listed. But much more interesting: the result of our own tasting. That makes the nine best wines in Blick’s competition. And discoveries. So wines you wouldn’t expect. New grape varieties. Price/performance hit. Surprises etc. Enjoy!
Winning Leukersonne: new pantry and creative business model
They were in the foreground most of the time. Mostly in the final. There are plenty of podium places. However, Seewers did not reach the top of the Swiss wine Olympus until 2023. The winery was founded in 1976 by Marzella and René Seewer. They have side entrances. René is a precise mechanic, but at the age of 32 he turned his hobby into a profession and became a winemaker. He creates a winery out of nothing by vineyards on 12 hectares of land. René dies young in 1997, leaving his two sons Damian and Jörg in a difficult situation.
In 2014 they created an interesting business model: Jörg and his wife manage the vineyards, while Damian and his wife Fabienne are the main managers and take care of winemaking and sales. And this is in two separate public companies! The couple currently farm 40 hectares of land divided into 250 plots between Gampel and Saillon, with Leuk at the centre. In 2021, Seewers will be able to open a brand new cellar in Susten. With the 3,000 square meter building, Damian and Fabienne’s long-dreamed vision comes true after eight years of planning.
With the title of Winemaker of the Year, they have now realized a dream they have been pursuing for a long time. Damian Seewer, who is responsible for the competitions with his wife, explains how this was achieved: “Planting the right things in the right place and respecting nature starts in the vineyard. To do this you need to be technically up to date; We are now doing this in the new basement as well. “You also need to pay attention to finesse and detail.” This isn’t happening under an organic label, though: “We’re clearly heading in that direction. In the new basement, we have a 1,200 square meter photovoltaic system that produces approximately 300,000 kilowatt hours per year. This is sustainable.”
Bodrum is in the Susten district of the municipality of Leuk. And these places are more familiar from skiing than from wine brands. Damien puts it clearly: “We are the neighboring community of Salgesch and Sierre, so we are at the same level above sea level. This has nothing to do with the Susten Pass or Leukerbad. On the contrary. Because Leuk is so sunny, we increased our Pinot Noir plants to 650 metres. Down below, we plant grape varieties that tolerate heat well, such as Cabernet Sauvignon and especially Cornalin.”
Winery of the year. Now Damian and Fabienne Seewer are likely to get the recognition they haven’t quite gotten yet. The name Leukersonne is missing from the “Vinum” standard booklet of the top 200 wineries in the country. Up to the present.
Discoveries and flash wines
As promised, here are six wines that particularly caught my eye, surprised or surprised me. Of course, in addition to the absolute best (see box above):
18 points for only 15 francs!
Selling price of Chardonnay from Cave des Coteaux in the canton of Neuchâtel, where the most remarkable Chardonnays in Switzerland are made with Bündner Machtum. The top wines impressively show that Switzerland has become (also) a Chardonnay country, so the new category is more than justified. This cooperative winery’s prices are similar to last century. The second-place Chardonnay costs 15 francs. I gave him 18 points. Still have questions?
Filigree, fragile Humagne Blanche
Humagne Blanche is a very restrained, neutral grape variety in terms of aroma. The fact that a wine made from this grape variety can sneak onto the podium in the competition between all the noisy Petite Arvines and Heidas in the world puts a smile on the noses of the judges. And of course the talent of the winemaker. Yvon Roduit of Domaine La Rodeline in Fully VS is a little magician who celebrates some of the best wines of the Valais but is always a bit overlooked. From where? Actually, no one knows.
What is Divona for God’s sake?
We stay in the single-variety white wine category. This wine didn’t make it to the podium, but it would belong there at the expense of the (top fermented) Païen from the same winery. Divona 2022 from Cave du Paradou by Nax VS. Divona is a new early maturing and very resistant variety of Agroscope crossed from Gamaret and Bronner. It is considered the white counterpart of the red Divico. Piwi varieties that have the potential to produce truly interesting and wonderful wines are quite rare. Divico is one. Apparently “sister” too.
Cornalin’s plug was pulled
It may be cornalin, but it doesn’t have to age on the barricades. The small Adamare winery in Salgesch proves this with the winner of the red single varietal wines category with 18 points. Congratulations!
Master’s double victory with six women
Diego Mathier was not named Winemaker of the Year for the fourth time. Despite this, he accomplished extraordinary things. But that doesn’t mean he gave birth to six adult daughters who already help run the store with his wife, Nadia. No, he achieved a double victory in the white blends category with the same wine. Ambassadeur White from Heida, Petite Arvine and Ermitage is one of the best tubs in the country. Both 20 and 21 are very impressive and almost get 18 points at 18 points. Class!
This is what Müller-Thurgau should be like!
Müller-Thurgau is probably the most important white grape variety in German-speaking Switzerland. And yet, due to its inconspicuousness, it can never establish the reputation of a winery, as is the case, for example, with Tiefenbrunner in South Tyrol, where Marshal von Fenner is an absolute brand. It’s even better to see two Müller-Thurgau stand out in the game of modest wines. The winner is Siblingen from GVS Schachenmann from Schaffhausen (photo, strong 17.5 points!) and the Basel bidder from Siebe Dupf from Liestal who misses the podium (17.25 points).
Source : Blick
I am Dawid Malan, a news reporter for 24 Instant News. I specialize in celebrity and entertainment news, writing stories that capture the attention of readers from all walks of life. My work has been featured in some of the world’s leading publications and I am passionate about delivering quality content to my readers.
