Considering their reputation for exporting chocolate, cheese, and accurate timepieces, it’s odd that they’re able to drink and sell much of it at home. It turns out, a lot.
In the Bündner Herrschaft, where the winemaking tradition dates back over a thousand years, Fernando imports a limited selection from the Domaine Donatsch, a family estate.
Located on the Austrian border, the little vacation and wine area of Graubünden (which Jancis Robinson MW refers to as German Switzerland) is a popular tourist destination.
According to winemaker Martin Donatsch, “Heidiland,” the setting of Johanna Spyri’s Heidi, is not far from their vineyards.
Switzerland’s position as one of the world’s top wine-producing nations makes it a no-brainer that the country can turn out excellent Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. International wine experts have caught on to the excellence of Donatsch wines in recent years, with Jancis Robinson consistently awarding them 16.5 points and higher in her ratings (which, out of her 20-point scale, has come to denote the top wines of the world).
Their Unique Chardonnay 2021 received 97 points from wine critic Robert Parker, a record for any Swiss Chardonnay.