In June this year, grape specialist and Swiss wine writer Dr José Vouillamoz presented a masterclass in the most unlikely of venues – what seemed like a cow shed in an idyllic Swiss mountain hamlet named Bruson in Val de Bagnes close to the famous ski town Verbier in the Valais. His ‘Grape varieties of the Alps’ masterclass was held during the second edition of Le Grand Marché des Terroirs Alpins, itself...
What are Alpine wines?
Guest contributor
Monday 17 November 2025
• 1 min read
Varieties that leap over mountains with no regard for geopolitical borders make definitions tricky, says Wink Lorch. Above, a vineyard at Domaine St-Germain in St-Pierre d’Albigny in Savoie.
Become a member to continue reading
Member
$135
/year
Ideal for wine enthusiasts
- Access 287,397 wine reviews & 15,847 articles
- Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
Inner Circle
$249
/year
Ideal for collectors
- Access 287,397 wine reviews & 15,847 articles
- Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
- Early access to the latest wine reviews & articles, 48 hours in advance
Professional
$299
/year
For individual wine professionals
- Access 287,397 wine reviews & 15,847 articles
- Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
- Early access to the latest wine reviews & articles, 48 hours in advance
- Commercial use of up to 25 wine reviews & scores for marketing
Business
$399
/year
For companies in the wine trade
- Access 287,397 wine reviews & 15,847 articles
- Access The Oxford Companion to Wine & The World Atlas of Wine
- Early access to the latest wine reviews & articles, 48 hours in advance
- Commercial use of up to 250 wine reviews & scores for marketing
More Inside information
Inside information
A pleasant surprise, showing more nuance and complexity than initially expected. Above, a view of Serralunga d’Alba.
2022 is widely...
Inside information
Brunello farmers never knew what nature would throw at them next in 2025. Yet somehow they managed, even claiming that...
Inside information
The final episode of a seven-part podcast series giving the definitive story of Jancis’s life and career so far. For...
Inside information
After extensive tasting and talking to producers up and down Burgundy’s Côte d’Or, Matthew surveys the vintage. Above, the tellingly...
More from JancisRobinson.com
Tasting articles
Once a bit player, Pinot Meunier is increasingly taking a starring role in English wines. Above, a Pinot Meunier vine...
Free for all
Information about UK merchants offering 2024 burgundy en primeur. Above, a pair of ‘brouettes’ for burning prunings, seen in the...
Tasting articles
Quite a vertical! In London in November 2025, presented by Opus’s long-standing winemaker.
Opus One is the wine world’s seminal...
Tasting articles
Save water, drink these wines from the Deep Roots Coalition, a group of wineries who eschew irrigation. Among them is...
Tasting articles
Twenty-two reasons not to do Dry January. Among them, a Pinot Noir produced by Rippon, from their vineyards on the...
Nick on restaurants
Head to the far south of Spain for atmospheric and inexpensive hospitality. Above, the Bar Las Teresas in the old...
Free for all
De-alcoholised wine is a poor substitute for the real thing. But there are one or two palatable alternatives. A version...
Don't quote me
Jet lag, a bad cold, but somehow an awful lot of good wine was enjoyed.
This diary is a double...