Petite Arvine was first planted at Grosjean, in the early 1980s on highly sandy soils with a medium limestone content. The grapes have been organically farmed since 2011, and had to be irrigated for their first three years of life (drought is always a potential problem in the region). The vineyard sits at 550 meters above sea level and has a 70% slope, so the family needed to build terraces to carry out normal vineyard work and harvesting. Depending on the vintage, the grapes are normally picked in October. The wine is currently aged partly in steel and partly in oak (70% stainless steel and 30% used barriques), but vintages of the 1990s and early 2000s saw no oak aging whatsoever. In my experience, and unlike most excellent Swiss examples of Petite Arvine wines, Grosjean’s version has slightly less juicy acidity, less salinity and less obvious notes of pineapple and tropical fruit. Grosjean first made the wine in 1985 but used to call it simply “Petite Arvine” even though the grapes always came from the Rovettaz vineyard; starting with the 2004 or 2005 vintage (René Grosjean himself was not sure), the “Vigne Rovettaz” moniker was added to the wine’s full name upon the suggestion of Neil Rosenthal, the estate’s US importer. Today, Grosjean owns about two hectares of Petite Arvine and makes roughly 15,000 bottles a year.

This wine. Made from 100% Petite Arvine grapes planted in the Rovettaz vineyard at 700 meters altitude. The wine undergoes a long fermentation on the lees with repeated “batonage” for the first month after fermentation. Bright and fragrant with notes of citrus and fennel, this wine has a solid structure that allows it to be enjoyed young or with substantial bottle age. Biodynamic Certified.

Taste: The only indigenous white variety at the estate, the Grosjean family’s Petite Arvine is bright and fragrant with notes of citrus and fennel. This wine has a solid structure that allows it to be enjoyed young or with substantial bottle age.

Pairing: This wine tastes perfectly well with Cornichons served with melted raclette Cheese. Other spicy dishes with can be paired with Petite Arvine are Barley Risotto with Mushroom and Gremolata, sicilian vegetable lasagna, mac and cheese, Chinese Ravioli (aka dumplings in all their pork and soup dumpling glory), Asian noodle sauté with vegetables, beet.