Swiss Wine Gala 2018 with great performances from Valais
The 2018 Swiss Wine Gala in Bern yesterday was a gala for Diego Mathier. The Salgesch native was named Swiss Winemaker of the Year for the third time, underpinned by a series of top places in the largest national tasting competition.
“The results leave me speechless,” said Mathier in an initial reaction to his third title. In addition to the big winner with several podium places, other Valais wineries were also successful. The largest wine-growing region in Switzerland achieved 15 places in the top three in the evaluation of the best 39 Swiss wines, making it twice as successful as the second-placed Vaudois.
Diego Mathier Winemaker of the Year for the third time
The Nouveau Salquenen Adrian & Diego Mathier winery, owned and managed by Diego Mathier, has been awarded the coveted title of “Swiss Winemaker of the Year” for the third time after 2007 and 2011. The “Swiss Winemaker of the Decade” for the period from 2007 to 2016 has thus scored another major personal success. The 48-year-old from Salgesch owes this success neither to his charm nor to his now brilliant relationships across the industry, but to an unwavering points system. It forms the basis of the Grand Prix du Vin Suisse, the largest tasting competition for Swiss wines, organized jointly by the Vinea association and the trade magazine “Vinum”.
2867 wines tasted
This year, the competition took place from June 25 to 30 in Sierre, where 158 specialists tasted no fewer than 2867 wines from 525 producers from 19 cantons
over six days. In August, the six best wines in each of the 13 competition categories were again blind tasted by a ten-member international jury, which then compiled the final ranking. According to the organizers, who presented the results yesterday evening at the Swiss Wine Gala in Bern in front of 450 guests, the 79 wines that made it to the final round were all judged to be of exceptional quality.
Five podium places for the Winemaker of the Year
The jury could not avoid Nouveau Salquenen when awarding the title of “Winemaker of the Year”. Diego Mathier made it to the final six with five wines. No other winery could compete with this. He was in a class of his own in the assemblages. In the white blends, the L’Ambassadeur de Domain Diego Mathier from 2016 and 2015 took first and third place, and in the red blends he even won twice with the Cuve rouge Rosmarie Mathier 2015 and the Folissimo 2015. With the Heida Les Pyramides 2016, he also won the single-varietal white wine category and the Vinissimo title, which is the jury’s favorite wine. With 15 podium places, Valais impressively confirmed the quality of Switzerland’s largest wine-growing region. The Vaudois, the second strongest region, achieved seven podium places. It may come as a surprise that the Ticino region won all three prizes for its typical Merlot. The Valais winegrowers have made huge improvements to this variety in recent years. The Valais also did not make it into the wreaths with Pinot Noir. The Valais terroir is considered less suitable for this variety by the judges.
Ask Diego Mathier, awarded the national title of “Winemaker of the Year” for the third time: “What do you do better than the others?”
The Nouveau Salquenen winery in the wine village of Salgesch is not only clearly the largest, but also the most successful, with grapes pressed from around 130 hectares of vineyards.
This is proven by the countless awards from competitions at home and abroad. Yesterday’s Swiss Wine Gala was almost a gala for Diego Mathier, who is the fourth generation to run the business. From his point of view, what sets him apart from his competitors in the area, who benefit from the same climatic conditions as he does, is this: “My predecessors didn’t make any mistakes. Between Chamoson and Turtmann, they only ever acquired vines in the best locations. Optimal grapes form the basis for good wine.”
In addition to the 48 hectares that he manages together with his partner Iwan Imboden, he also sets high standards for the 80 hectares of his loyal suppliers. Good work is rewarded with a premium system. However, the customer also determines what happens in the vineyard.
Even in the cellar, nothing beats quality. “I can count on talented people in every area of the company,” he says. Added to this is the many years of experience of his oenologist, who has been on board since 1991. “Together, we want to get even better every year,” says Mathier. He describes himself as a maniac. “I am an obsessive.” This makes him the biggest critic of his own company. “We are not yet where we could be,” he is convinced. And provides a comparison on the Matterhorn (4478 m). “In 2007, when we first won the title of Winemaker of the Year, we were at 2500 m, in 2011 at 3000 m, now we’re at 4000 m.” The goal of “getting the best out of our juices” has therefore not yet been fully achieved.
The team’s passion, the vast experience of its predecessors and the constant development of its own knowledge in comparison with the very best means that there is still room for improvement. “The perfect wine is a symbiosis of man and nature.” Mathier describes Valais as predestined for top wines. The east-west direction of the valley provides many south-facing vineyards with ideal sunshine, while the diversity of the soil (limestone, slate, gravel, granite, clay) is suitable for a wide range of grape varieties. The steppe landscape also helps. “The vine is not a water plant. It produces the best fruit on poor soil.” Mathier is convinced that the ideal location has shifted from more southern latitudes to us. This helps to bring Valais wines closer to the world’s best. The local top products are still around 15 percent away from this, and between 70 and 100 percent away in terms of price.
After studying economics in St. Gallen, Diego Mathier took over his parents’ business 18 years ago. His two older brothers are also professionally involved with wine. He deliberately left his father Adrian’s name in the company logo.
“I was and still am able to benefit a lot from him. We are in contact practically every day.” Mother Rosmarie made her contribution on the sales front for many years. They found out about their son’s third title as Winemaker of the Year on a trip to Thailand. tr
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