NEW HEIGHTS

In the foothills of the Alps, Dominic Rippon tastes Savoie’s flagship red grape

- Dominic Rippon

The first – and perhaps only – encounter many have with the mondeuse grape is in a cosy Alpine restaurant, paired with a hearty fondue or raclette; the gastronomic rewards for a hard day’s skiing. Restaurateurs and sommeliers in Haute-Savoie are tangibly proud of mondeuse, their region’s flagship red variety, most of which is quaffed at their tables.

It was once difficult to find Savoie’s wines outside the region, partly thanks to a reliable stream of thirsty tourists, but also to their scarcity.

Until the late 19th century, this was a much larger wine region, but the mildew and phylloxera vineyard epidemics, followed by World War I, took their toll on Savoie’s vineyards.