Duration estimate: Approximately 3 hours (driving and walking with tastings) Distance: Driving route approximately 20 kilometers between Sierre and Salgesch, with short walks Best time: Afternoon for the best light on the vineyards; autumn for harvest atmosphere
Introduction
Welcome to the Valais, Switzerland's largest, most diverse, and most dramatic wine region. If the Lavaux vineyards are elegant and contemplative, the Valais vineyards are wild, raw, and spectacular. Here, vines cling to impossibly steep slopes above the Rhône Valley, baked by a sun that shines more intensely here than almost anywhere else in Switzerland. The mountains loom on every side, and the wines that emerge from this extreme landscape are unlike anything else in the world.
The Valais stretches along the upper Rhône Valley from Martigny in the west to Visp in the east, a distance of about sixty kilometers. It's home to more than five thousand hectares of vines, roughly one-third of all Swiss vineyards, and it produces a staggering diversity of wines: over fifty grape varieties are grown here, from indigenous rarities found nowhere else to international stars adapted to the alpine conditions.
Today, we're focusing on the heart of the Valais wine region, the area around Sierre and Salgesch, two of the most important wine towns in the canton. We'll walk parts of the Sentier Viticole, the wine path that connects them, taste local wines including the famous Fendant and the rare Heida, and, because no Valais wine experience is complete without it, pair those wines with Raclette.
We're starting in Sierre, the sunniest city in Switzerland.
Stop 1: Sierre — The City of Sun
Sierre sits at the heart of the Rhône Valley at about five hundred forty meters elevation, and it holds the distinction of being the sunniest city in Switzerland, with over three hundred days of sunshine per year. This dry, sunny climate is the result of a unique geographic position. The Valais is protected from Atlantic weather systems by the surrounding mountains, creating an almost continental climate with hot summers, cold winters, and very little rainfall.
For the vines, this climate is a gift. The abundant sun ensures full ripeness, while the cold nights at altitude preserve acidity in the grapes. The dry conditions reduce disease pressure, making organic and biodynamic viticulture more viable than in many other wine regions.
Sierre also sits on the linguistic border between French-speaking and German-speaking Valais, a division that influences the wine culture. In French-speaking Valais, from Martigny to Sierre, the wine tradition is influenced by French models, with an emphasis on Chasselas, here called Fendant, and Pinot Noir. In German-speaking Oberwallis, from Sierre east, the tradition incorporates Swiss-German elements, and indigenous grape varieties like Heida and Lafnetscha are more prominent.
The old town of Sierre is worth exploring for its wine bars and restaurants. The Château de Villa, a sixteenth-century manor house on the edge of town, has been converted into a restaurant and wine museum dedicated to Valais wines. It's an excellent place to begin your tasting education, with a comprehensive selection of local wines available by the glass.
Stop 2: The Sentier Viticole — Walking Through the Vines
We're now on the Sentier Viticole, the wine path that connects Sierre to Salgesch. This well-marked trail winds through the vineyards above the Rhône Valley floor, passing through some of the most celebrated vineyard sites in the Valais. The walk is about six kilometers and takes roughly two hours with stops.
As we set out, look at the landscape. The vineyards here are planted on steep, south-facing slopes that rise from the valley floor at around five hundred meters to over eight hundred meters elevation. The slopes are terraced, though less extensively than in the Lavaux. Here, the vines are often planted on narrow benches carved into the mountainside, with bare rock outcrops and scrubby vegetation between them.
The soil is extraordinary. The Valais vineyards sit on a complex geology of schist, gneiss, granite, limestone, and glacial deposits. Different parcels have radically different soils, and the vignerons have learned, over centuries, which grape varieties thrive in which soils. Pinot Noir excels on limestone. Syrah prefers the warmer, schistous slopes. And Fendant, the versatile workhorse of the Valais, adapts to almost anything.
The information panels along the Sentier Viticole explain the geology, the grape varieties, and the history of each section. Read them. They're well-produced and informative, and they'll deepen your understanding of what you're tasting.
Stop 3: Fendant — The People's Wine
Let's stop at a viewpoint and talk about Fendant, the wine that defines the Valais for most Swiss drinkers.
Fendant is the Valais name for Chasselas, the same grape we encountered in the Lavaux. But in the Valais, Chasselas takes on a different character. The hotter, drier climate produces riper, fuller-bodied wines with less acidity and more weight than their Vaudois counterparts. Valais Fendant is round, generous, and immediately appealing, a wine you can drink without thinking about it, though the best examples reward attention.
The name Fendant comes from the French word fendre, to split. It refers to the way the grape skin cracks when pressed between the fingers, a sign of ripeness. Fendant has been the everyday wine of the Valais for centuries. It's the wine served at family dinners, poured at festivals, and drunk in the caves, the wine cellars, where friends gather to taste the new vintage.
The best Fendant comes from specific vineyard sites with poor, stony soils that limit the vine's vigor and concentrate the flavors. Look for Fendant from producers like Jean-René Germanier, Domaine du Mont d'Or, or Cave Fin Bec. These wines, from old vines on steep slopes, have a mineral complexity that transcends the grape's modest reputation.
And then there is the pairing that has made Fendant famous. But we'll get to Raclette at a later stop.
Stop 4: Salgesch — The Wine Village
We've arrived in Salgesch, or Salquenen in French, one of the most important wine villages in the Valais and the self-proclaimed wine capital of Switzerland. The village is small, about fifteen hundred residents, but it has more than forty wine producers, a density that is extraordinary even by Swiss standards.
Salgesch is best known for its Pinot Noir, which many consider the finest in Switzerland. The combination of limestone-rich soils, intense sunshine, and cool mountain air creates conditions that bring out the best in this demanding grape. Salgesch Pinot Noir is typically deep-colored, with aromas of dark cherry, earth, and subtle spice, and a structure that can support aging.
The Wine Museum of Salgesch, housed in a converted barn in the village center, is worth a visit. It traces the history of viticulture in the Valais from Roman times to the present, with tools, photographs, and artifacts that bring the winemaking tradition to life. The museum also operates a tasting room where you can sample wines from Salgesch producers.
In the village, look for the small tasting rooms and cellars that many producers maintain. Diego Mathier, Albert Mathier, and Varone are among the notable names. The Mathier family has been making wine in Salgesch since the seventeenth century, and their range includes everything from classic Fendant and Pinot Noir to experimental wines from rare indigenous varieties.
Stop 5: Indigenous Grape Varieties — Switzerland's Hidden Treasure
One of the most exciting aspects of Valais wine is the incredible diversity of indigenous grape varieties. While other Swiss wine regions have consolidated around Chasselas and Pinot Noir, the Valais has preserved dozens of unique grapes that exist almost nowhere else in the world.
Let me introduce you to some of them.
Petite Arvine is perhaps the crown jewel. This white grape produces wines of extraordinary aromatic intensity, with flavors of grapefruit, white peach, and a distinctive salty finish that is unlike anything else in the wine world. The salinity is real; some researchers believe it comes from the ancient marine sediments in the soil. Petite Arvine is versatile, producing excellent dry wines, late-harvest sweet wines, and even sparkling wines. A dry Petite Arvine from a good producer is one of the great white wine experiences.
Amigne is another ancient white variety, found almost exclusively in the Valais village of Vétroz. It produces rich, golden wines with honey and apricot flavors. Traditionally, Amigne was vinified slightly sweet, and many producers still offer it in a range of sweetness levels, indicated by one, two, or three bees on the label.
Cornalin is a red variety native to the Valais, producing deeply colored, structured wines with wild berry and violet aromas. It was nearly extinct in the mid-twentieth century but has been revived by dedicated growers. A mature Cornalin from a good vintage is a powerful, characterful wine.
Humagne Rouge and Humagne Blanche are two more indigenous varieties, the red for robust, rustic wines with real character, the white for aromatic, floral wines that are increasingly fashionable.
And then there's Heida, also known as Païen or Savagnin Blanc, a grape related to the Jura's Savagnin that produces golden, intense wines with exotic fruit and spice aromas. Heida from the high-altitude vineyards of the Oberwallis, where it grows at up to eleven hundred meters elevation, some of the highest vineyards in Europe, is a wine of extraordinary character.
Seek out these wines. They cannot be found outside Switzerland in any significant quantity, and they represent a viticultural heritage that is genuinely unique.
Stop 6: The Bisses — Ancient Irrigation Channels
As we walk, you may notice narrow channels of water running along the hillsides between the vineyards. These are the bisses, the ancient irrigation channels that have been essential to Valais agriculture for centuries.
The Valais is one of the driest regions in Switzerland, with annual rainfall in some areas of less than six hundred millimeters, comparable to parts of Spain. Without irrigation, agriculture would be impossible on many of these slopes. The bisses solved this problem by channeling water from mountain streams and glacial meltwater along carefully graded channels, sometimes running for kilometers along the mountainside, to the fields and vineyards below.
Some bisses date to the thirteenth century, and building them was an extraordinary feat of engineering. The channels had to maintain a precise gradient to keep the water flowing without erosion. In some places, they were carved into cliff faces or supported on wooden aqueducts above sheer drops. Maintaining the bisses was a communal responsibility, and the rights to the water they carried were carefully regulated.
Today, many bisses have been converted into hiking paths, and walking alongside them is one of the great pleasures of the Valais. The Bisse de Clavau, which runs through the vineyards above Sion, is particularly scenic and accessible.
The bisses remind us that the Valais wine landscape, for all its natural beauty, is profoundly human-made. Without the irrigation, the terracing, and the centuries of labor, these slopes would be scrubby, dry hillsides. The wine is a product of human ingenuity as much as natural bounty.
Stop 7: Raclette — The Essential Pairing
And now, the moment we've been building toward. Let's talk about Raclette, the Valais dish that has conquered Switzerland and much of the world, and the pairing that makes Fendant essential.
Raclette takes its name from the French racler, to scrape. The dish is simplicity itself: a half-wheel of Raclette cheese is placed next to a heat source, traditionally an open fire, and as the surface melts, the molten cheese is scraped onto a plate, accompanied by boiled potatoes, cornichons, pickled onions, and sometimes dried meat.
The origins of Raclette are ancient. Valais shepherds and cow herders have been melting cheese by the fire for centuries, and the basic technique probably predates written records. But the dish as we know it, with its specific ritual and accompaniments, was codified in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries as the Valais sought to define and promote its culinary identity.
The key to great Raclette is the cheese. Raclette du Valais AOP is made from raw milk in the traditional way, and its melting properties are superior to the industrial alternatives. When heated, it becomes creamy, flowing, and intensely flavorful, with a nuttiness and a slight tang that industrialcheese simply cannot match. The rind, which should be slightly charred by the heat source, adds a smoky, earthy dimension.
And the wine pairing? Fendant. Always Fendant. The wine's round, gentle character complements the richness of the cheese without competing with it. The slight effervescence that many young Fendant wines have acts as a palate cleanser, cutting through the fat and preparing your mouth for the next scrape of molten cheese. Tradition holds that you should drink only Fendant or black tea with Raclette, never water, beer, or cold drinks, which, according to Valais wisdom, will cause the cheese to solidify in your stomach. Whether this is science or superstition is debatable, but the pairing is undeniably perfect.
For the best Raclette experience in the region, visit one of the village restaurants or mountain huts that serve it from a half-wheel by the fire. The Restaurant TéléSierre in Sierre is a good option, as is the more rustic Relais du Simplon on the road toward the Simplon Pass.
Stop 8: Sion — The Valais Capital and Wine City
If time allows, a drive or short train ride to Sion, the capital of the Valais, adds another dimension to our wine tour. Sion is dominated by two dramatic hilltop fortifications, the Château de Valère and the Château de Tourbillon, that crown the old town. The Château de Valère houses the oldest playable organ in the world, dating to around 1435. The old town below is a labyrinth of medieval and Renaissance buildings, many housing wine cellars and restaurants.
Sion is surrounded by some of the finest vineyard sites in the Valais. The hillside vineyards directly below the castles, warmed by the reflected heat of the old stone walls, produce outstanding Fendant, Petite Arvine, and Pinot Noir.
The Cave de Tous-Vents, an atmospheric wine bar in the old town, is an excellent place to taste a wide selection of Valais wines. And the bistrots and restaurants around the Place du Midi serve traditional Valais cuisine, including Raclette, dried meat platters, and the Valais specialty of Cholera, a savory pie filled with potatoes, onions, apples, and local cheese. The name supposedly dates to a cholera epidemic when the dish was invented from whatever ingredients were available in the pantry.
Stop 9: The High Vineyards — Visperterminen and Heida
I want to take you, at least in imagination, to one of the most remarkable vineyard sites in the world. Visperterminen, in the German-speaking Oberwallis, is home to the highest vineyards in Europe north of the equator. The Heida vines here grow at elevations of up to eleven hundred meters, on terraces so steep that some must be accessed by cable car.
The Heida wine produced here is extraordinary: golden, rich, with exotic aromas of tropical fruit, dried apricot, and honey, underlaid by a mineral backbone that gives it structure and longevity. It's a wine that defies expectations. At this altitude, you'd expect thin, acidic wines. Instead, the intense UV radiation and wide day-night temperature swings produce grapes of remarkable concentration.
The St. Jodern Kellerei cooperative in Visperterminen produces the benchmark Heida. Their wines are available at the winery and in specialized wine shops throughout the Valais. If you can get a bottle, treasure it. It's one of Switzerland's rarest and most distinctive wines.
Stop 10: The Final Glass — Sunset Over the Rhône
Let's end our tour as the sun begins to descend toward the mountains. Find a terrace, in Sierre, in Salgesch, or anywhere along the valley, and order a final glass.
If you've been drinking Fendant all afternoon, switch to something different. A Petite Arvine, with its salt and grapefruit. A Cornalin, dark and wild. Or a Pinot Noir from Salgesch, structured and elegant. The diversity of the Valais means there's always something new to discover.
As you sit with your wine, look at the mountains. The four-thousand-meter peaks of the Pennine Alps, the Weisshorn, the Mischabel, and, somewhere out of sight, the Matterhorn, are catching the last light. The vineyards below are going golden. The Rhône, that muscular, glacial river, flows through the valley floor toward Geneva and eventually the Mediterranean.
This is the Valais. Sun and stone, water and wine, struggle and beauty. Every glass you drink here carries the weight of this landscape within it. And every sip connects you to the vignerons, the herdsmen, the builders of bisses and terraces, who made this extreme place habitable and, against all odds, beautiful.
Closing Narration
Our Valais wine tour is complete. We've walked the vineyard paths, tasted the wines, learned about the grapes, and paired it all with molten Raclette.
The Valais is Switzerland's best-kept wine secret, and it deserves to be discovered. The wines are exceptional, the landscape is unforgettable, and the food-and-wine culture is among the most vibrant and authentic in Europe.
For your continued exploration, consider visiting the Caves Ouvertes du Valais, the open cellar weekend held each spring, when hundreds of producers open their doors to visitors. It's the best way to taste the full range of Valais wines in a single weekend.
Thank you for walking and tasting through the Valais with me. Santé, and may every glass of Fendant remind you of these sunny slopes above the Rhône.