First joining the Swiss confederation in 1815, the canton of Geneva lies in the Rhône valley between Jura and the Alps. Almost surrounded by France, and one of the smallest cantons, it is one of Switzerland’s most important wine regions. Geneva is Switzerland’s 3rd largest Swiss wine region and accounts for about 10% of national production. Wine production has gone on uninterrupted here on Lake Geneva and around the city for almost 2,000 years.

Often going under the alias "Perlan", the Chasselas grape is the principal white wine grape of Geneva and it accounts for over half of the white wine production. However Geneva does well internationally with the more well known wine grapes: Chardonnay, Pinot gris, Pinot blanc, Riesling Silvaner (Müller Thurgau), Sauvignon blanc, Gewürztraminer, Scheurebe and Aligoté.

As for the red wine grapes in the Geneva wine region, Gamay does particularly well in this area resulting in a dense, fruity wine. In Geneva you will also find Cabernet sauvignon, Gamaret, Garanoir, Kerner, Merlot, Pinot noir and Syrah. It’s worth mentioning that a recent flurry of top international awards for Swiss Syrah wines have focused attention on Switzerland.

Wine lives in the heart of Switzerland, and the heart of Switzerland is Zentralschweiz; the historic and mythological origin of the Swiss Confederation. It’s here that on November 18, 1307, as punishment for his defiance, William Tell was forced to shoot an apple off his son’s head. Tell’s defiance kindled the revolt that ultimately led to the formation of the Swiss Confederation.

In the heart of Zentralschweiz is Luzern (Lucerne). The sunny slopes of the vineyards here are concentrated in the wine sub-regions of Seetal, Vierwaldstättersee, Wiggertal and Sempachersee. Two lakes provide a regulating influence to the climate across the area and the varied geology gives the wine of the sub-regions subtle variations in character.

With the exception of the small cooperatives around Spiez, when you speak of the Bern wine region, you are speaking of the area around Lake Biel. Here on the shores of the lake, monasteries and nobles have been making wine since the Middle Ages. With the reformation in the 16th century, ownership ended up in the hands of the state, or the merchants from Bern and Biel. Since then ownership has shifted to the citizens living around the lake.

Tucked in the southeast corner of Switzerland is Graubünden, or Grisons. In the north of the canton, between Bonaduz und Fläsch, is its main wine area the Bündner Herrschaft. It is here, thanks to its geographic situation and the Föhn, that some of the best red wines in German-speaking Switzerland come from, and its speciality is the Blauburgunder (Pinot noir). Although over 80% of the wine from Graubünden is red, they also produce some fine white wines, including a bit of sweet Freisamer wine.