A Rhône valley grape, first planted in Leytron in 1921
Pour a Valais Syrah with grilled red meat or a leg of lamb: this deep-coloured red smells of black pepper and violets and has firm tannins. The grape came from France's Rhône valley in 1921, and most Swiss Syrah now grows in the Valais, a canton in south-west Switzerland. On Helvitic you will buy it straight from the winery.
Orders are not open yet: online payment is still in its test phase. Once it opens, each winery sells its own bottles.
Syrah makes a dark purple red with violet tints. Swiss Wine Promotion, the body that promotes Swiss wine, notes spice, black pepper and wild berries. Swiss Wine Valais, the trade body for Valais wines, adds violet, clove and nutmeg.
On the palate the tannins are firm but fine. Tannins come from the grape skins: they dry the mouth slightly and give the wine its grip. If the label says ‘barrique’, the wine was aged in a small oak barrel before bottling, and the wood shows in the taste.
It comes from the northern Rhône valley in France. According to Swiss Wine Promotion it was born in the Isère from a natural cross of Dureza and Mondeuse Blanche, and is recorded in 1781 on the hill of Hermitage. Its name may come from the Latin serus, ‘late’: it ripens late and needs warmth.
In 1921 the cantonal estate in Leytron, the Domaine de l’État, planted it in the Valais. It adapted to the dry, hot and windy climate of the Rhône valley. Swiss Wine Valais says growers like it because it is reliable: it resists disease well and holds few surprises in the cellar.
Today more than four in five hectares of Swiss Syrah are in the Valais, according to the Federal Office for Agriculture (FOAG). It is also spreading to the sunniest slopes of Vaud and Geneva. The charts on this page show the area by canton.
Serve it with grilled red meat, a leg of lamb or roast lamb. Its tannins and pepper stand up to fat and charred flavours, where a light red would taste thin. Swiss Wine Promotion also suggests pasta, and even a chocolate dessert.
Swiss Wine Valais lists pâté en croûte (meat pie baked in pastry), quail stuffed with prunes, alpine cheeses and mushroom dishes.
Swiss Wine Promotion gives the best vintages, meaning the best harvest years, an ageing potential of five to ten years. If you plan to wait, store the bottle lying down somewhere cool and dark.
Our serving guide gives temperatures and decanting tips by wine style. Our pages on Gamaret and Diolinoir cover two other deep-coloured Swiss reds.
Syrah: official 2025 figures
No. It comes from the French Rhône valley and only reached the Valais in 1921, at the cantonal estate in Leytron. But most Swiss Syrah now grows in the Valais, according to the FOAG.
Yes, it is the same grape. It is called Shiraz in Australia, South Africa, the USA and Canada. Swiss Wine Valais notes that Australian Shiraz is often very concentrated, with blackcurrant and eucalyptus notes.
Directly from Valais wineries. On Helvitic each winery will sell its own bottles; orders open once online payment has finished its test phase. Delivery is within Switzerland only.
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