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  • Before the 20th century, there were practically no vines in Savièse

Before the 20th century, there were practically no vines in Savièse

Savièse, with its 300 hectares of vines, is one of the largest wine-producing communes in Valais today. The end of the 19th century was a different story altogether. Vines are concentrated on the hills above Sion in the Diolly area. There are also a few vine parcels between Vuisse and Chandolin, on the steeps slopes south of the Château de la Soie hillside and on the right banks of the Sionne river.

Every kind of crop

Savièse’s particular situation, running down from 3,000 metres altitude to various shelves of land, dips and hills, leads to the development of successful self-sustaining mixed-crop farming. We find vegetable gardens, walnut and fruit orchards, prairies, and fields of grain and hemp.

Development and re-organization

Starting in the 20th century, vines have the upper hand. Existing vine parcels were extended. During the 1960s a large area of grapevines grew below the villages of St Germain and Drône, thanks notably to a re-organization of the vine parcels. Among the vines, we can still sometimes see traces of the planting lines of old grain fields, in horizontal stripes, perpendicular to the slope, which allowed them to work the soil. Vines that are now in areas zoned for construction are gradually being replaced by houses. These are mostly near villages at the lower end of the commune of Ormône.

Source: Histoire de la Vigne et du Vin, «Savièse, comme le raisin a supplanté le blé», Emmanuel Reynard and Simon Martin, geographers. 

Step into the memory of the Switzerland’s largest wine region! The information that you will find on these pages comes from the book "Histoire de la vigne et du vin en Valais, des origines à nos jours", a reference work that brings together the most recent scientific discoveries about the fine wines of Valais and their rich past.

Order the book

Musée du Vin - Rue Ste Catherine 6 - 3960 Sierre | tél. +41 27 456 35 25 | contact@museeduvin-valais.ch

une création bebold

  • F
  • D
  • E
  • Home
  • Exhibitions and Trail
    • Permanent exhibition
    • Current exhibition
    • Wine Trail
    • Past exhibitions
  • Events
  • “Discovery” programme
  • Schools
  • The Museum
    • Presentation and mission
    • Collections
    • Historical
    • Organization
    • Infos pratiques
  • History of wine
    • From its origins to today
    • History of grape varieties
    • Did you know?
  • Support
  • Shop
  • Media
    • Documents for media
    • Archives
    • Press rewiew
  • Information