“So how good was the 2008 Swiss wine harvest?”

Well, thank you for asking, because it was a close one. The hail storms in some areas of Switzerland didn’t cause too much damage, but the bad weather in the early fall had the Swiss wine growers skittish. Fortunately Bacchus proved accommodating. A pleasant Indian summer followed with gentle breezes and sunny days. In the end the Swiss wine growers were more than satisfied.

Warm sunny days and cool evenings are ideal for wine grapes. The grapes are able to mature, develop excellent sugar levels, and be harvested at the best time of the year. Although, “not the best we've seen these past ten years," says Thierry Walz, a member of the Swiss Wine Exporters' Association, but comparable to 2006, one of the best recent vintages. The Chasselas and Pinot Noir grapes particularly benefited.

Yields were 3.5% higher as well, according to the Swiss Department of Agriculture, up roughly 35, 000 hectoliters to 1, 075,561 hectoliters .

A hangout for artists and intelligentsia; wine, wisdom, and song has flowed in the ancient oak-paneled Oepfelchammer on the Rindermarkt in Zürich for two hundred years. Nicknamed the “Oeli”, it’s the oldest unchanged wine tavern (Weinstube) in Zürich.

Wine is like jazz, it can have finesse, variety, nuance, and surprise. terroir is one the players in the band. What is terroir , and should we care? The answer is yes, no, and it’s a matter of opinion. Many opinions. Just like jazz.

First we need to agree what terroir is. I say agree - and not define, because terroir is one of those concepts that’s hard to nail down because it can have an almost philosophical quality. The word terroir is French for soil. Simple enough, but the concept “terroir ” in the context of wine encompasses numerous factors that influence the taste of wine.

It’s rare to describe a museum as “welcoming”, but the Viticulture Museum is welcoming. Located on the peninsula Au (near Wädenswil) on Lake Zürich, the Viticulture Museum is both a museum and a focal point for people interested in Swiss wine and wine making. It offers both a historical perspective as well as addressing changes confronting Swiss winemakers today. On the day I visited they held a demonstration of barrel making, which is an endangered craft: there are currently three barrel makers in Switzerland and only one apprentice.