2013 Cave Caloz, Heida-Paien “Les Bernunes” Valais White, Switzerland.
This remarkable white wine from Valais Switzerland is made from Heida-Paien, also known as Savignin, one of the white grapes found in the Jura region of France, but this Swiss white tastes totally unique and reflects it’s own special terroir. Cave Caloz is a great winery, and Conrad Caloz, who I call the king of the mountains, makes some monumental wines, especially his Humagne Rouge Coteaux de Sierre red, and now I have discovered his Heida, which I feel has a impact not unlike a Hermitage Blanc on the palate, I though it might have been Roussanne at first! I was completely spellbound by this Caloz Heida-Paien, it starts with white flowers, verbena, citrus and stone fruit with a light gold/greenish hue in the glass and delivers impressive form on the palate with lemon/lime, dried mango, tangy apricot, tangerine and apple skin along with a sense of steely mineral, as well as a certain richness and mouth filling creaminess than is more an impression than reality as this wine pumps out the vigor and vibrancy with a nice groove of acidity. The finish is crisp and there’s lots of vitality, but there is a haunting aftertaste of succulent peach, wild herbs, saline and wet stones, this is lovely stuff and a great wine, I just wish the exchange rate with the sky rocketing Swiss Franc was better, but that said it is still worth every extra penny, drink from 2015 to 2021.
($48 Est.) 94 Points, grapelive