Domaines Rouvinez, Coeur de Domaine, Valais, Switzerland 2019

None of us know. Only the Swiss know. And yet, by dint of recent entries to DWWA, the secret is slowly seeping out: some of Europe's finest, subtlest, most intricately crafted and most quietly satisfying white-wine blends come into being in the Alpine valleys of Valais and elsewhere. You won't often come across Petite Arvine with Savagnin (locally called Heida) and Marsanne. Smell this pale gold wine, with its fruit notes of pear and nectarine gently creamed and vanilla-infused via subtle barrel fermentation; and taste its concentration, force and freshness combined with what can only be described as a marrowy, sappy richness, and the doubts will slip away. Yes, the prices are Swiss -- but there are other wines in our best in show in that same price bracket. In qualitative terms this remarkable wine stands fairly alongside them.

Back to 2022 DWWA Best in Shows: Top 50 wines to try