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Tour de Suisse has been one of the great stage races of the year so far, with GC action going down to the WIRE! And to celebrate, we have another interesting bottle to discuss on /WORLD TOUR WINE/ !!
Today's wine is from Vetroz, a little town in Valais not far from Sion. To be honest, stage 2 was the closest but it's very difficult to source Swiss wines from anywhere but Vaud and Valais in the United States. This is a Dole, which is a red blend composed of Pinot Noir, Gamay, and a funny little Swiss grape called Diolinoir. It is a cross between Pinot Noir and Rouge de Diolly, an obscure French grape. Developed in the 1970s, it is popular in Switzerland due to its early-ripening properties, adding dark color and structure to Alpine wines.
Cave les Ruinettes Serge Roh Dole de Vetroz 2021 ($30)
Now, being a blend of my two favorite red grapes (Pinot Noir and Gamay), Dole reminds me of Passe-Tout-Grains - a red blend found in Burgundy which I really enjoy for its freshness and lively fruit. If you ever see Passe-Tout-Grains on shelves, try it; it's reasonably priced even from great producers.
This pours a dark red/purple. The depth of color I attribute to the Diolinoir, as Alpine Pinot Noir tend to be quite light in general. The nose has soft earth and forest, iron, not much fruit. There is no detectable oak. The palate is all earth, with light strawberry, and mouth-watering acidity. The finish is short and muted. Really no fruit character, but it also doesn't have the herbal/floral notes I enjoy in Alpine Pinot Noir which tends to be lean.
Really disappointing. It's not unpleasant, but just an uninspired example of Pinot and Gamay. Once again (this is the running theme in Switzerland), this should be a $10-12 bottle, not a $30 bottle. I'll see if this opens up at all with some air. I'm trying to decide which country had a worse showing on /WTW/ -- Australia or Switzerland. Although the worst of the Aussies were the worst wines of the year, I think Australia is saved by that phenomenal By Farr Pinot Noir from the Cadel Evans Race which is one of the top three wines of the year so far.
So, sorry Switzerland. You are at the bottom of the power rankings. Your only hope is a poor showing from Canada or China.