Domaine Caloz is situated in the heights of Miège in the Valais region of Switzerland. Its story is, above all, one of family, sharing, and emotion…a story that began in 1960 with Fernand, when he decided to make wine from his own grapes, working always with respect for the earth. Anne-Carole and Conrad Caloz worked alongside him from 1982 onwards, and took over total responsibility for the estate in 1987. Over 26 vintages they have constantly improved their vineyards, their production facility, and the quality of their wines. Sandrine, the eldest of their four daughters, is the third generation to join the family estate. With the benefit of a degree in oenology and viticulture and having qualified as an oenologist at Changins School of Viticulture and Oenology, she has already brought her experience to bear during nine vintages. Their six hectares of vines, where biodiversity reigns supreme, share the space with wildflowers, coppices, birds and insects that thrive between the rows. And, in spring and autumn, in complement to mechanical methods, a herd of fifty sheep graze in the vineyards beneath the vine peach and jujube trees that grow at the foot of the drystone walls. The soil is a mixture of calcosol (soils with a high chalk content) and peyrosol (very rocky earth with over 60% stones) which creates a light, shallow earth that heats up rapidly and confers minerality, freshness and typicity on the different grape varieties that are rooted in it. The entire estate was certified BioSuisse organic in 2017, and Domaine Caloz was elected “BioSuisse Organic Winemaker of the Year” in 2019, in recognition the efforts made over many years of hard work. And in 2020 Sandrine Caloz was elected Gault & Millau’s “Rookie of the Year”, an accolade awarded to the best up and coming and innovative Swiss winemakers. Wine & Hospitality Projects is proud to count Sandrine and Domaine Caloz amongst its partners, and to have the great pleasure of presenting a selection of three magnificent wines. The incredibly rich variety of grape varieties to be found in the Valais and the nobility of the limestone terroir that gives the alpine wines of Domaine Caloz their minerality and freshness completely won us over. As did the conscientious approach and respect for living matter that the Caloz family demonstrate in their daily work as organic winegrowers and winemakers.
