Liquid pleasure
Intro
The caress of the wine. “It’s a pity that you cannot caress the wines,” said the satirist Kurt Tucholsky. He was a great wine lover, as so many Swiss are. It’s a great pleasure to stroll through a vineyard when the vines are budding, or when the grapes are ripening; or to visit winemakers and taste their proudest creations. The largest winegrowing areas are in Western Switzerland, on the shores of Lakes Geneva, Neuchâtel, Biel and Murten, and along the valley of the Rhone in the Valais, Switzerland’s most richly varied winegrowing canton. The Valais is home to the highest commercial vineyards in Europe, but some excellent wines flourish in Eastern Switzerland and Graubünden as well. You may not be able to caress Swiss wines, but they will certainly caress your palate.