Desale (Dezaley) Grand CRU is a prestigious appellation in the Swiss region of Lavaux (Lavaux). It covers an area of 54 hectares incredibly steep terraces overlooking lake Geneva.

In 2007 these historic slopes won for the Lavaux vineyards, the status of a UNESCO world heritage site.

Desale and neighboring Kalamen (Calamin) became the first Swiss territories, to which was given the status of Grand CRU and reigned Supreme on this pedestal until 2010, when the system premiers and Grands CRUs was extended and supplemented.

But the formation of the classification is not yet completed, is unavoidable for such systems, disagreements over the attribution of a particularly prestigious and marketable categories.

The situation confusing and that the status of Grand CRU, has Desale, is fundamentally different from the cuvée based on the status of Grand CRU other Swiss territories. Here – as in Burgundy – it belongs rather to the earth than it produced in her guilt.

Wine Desale blessed by the generosity of the sun, whose brightness is multiplied by reflection from the underlying surface of a wide lake, whose thermal effect smooths summer temperatures, allowing the grapes to remain long on the vine, reaching full phenolic ripeness.

Due to these factors Desale already in the 12th century was noted as a suitable place for producing fine wine. Found this Cistercian monks began an intensive terracing, which to this day characterizes the sections of Desale, making them the most well-known wine area in Switzerland.

Some terraces are not even equipped with a protective fence, so narrow that they fit only one row of vines. This makes work in the vineyard is not only expensive, but also very dangerous.

The altitude of the location and the steepness of the slopes play a crucial role in the characteristics of the terroir of the entire Laveau, and in the commune of Puidu (where is the appellation of Detale) – especially.

The surface of lake Geneva is located at an altitude of 380 m above sea level. In places, the vineyards rise straight up from the border of the water surface and abruptly soar up the hill to 300 metres with a gradient up to 90%. On the background of the lake and Alpine peaks, they form the most impressive panoramas of vineyards in Europe. And one of the most time-consuming to learn.

Grapes

A typical vineyard in Desale primarily planted with cultivar Chasselas is the most common variety in the Lavaux area and throughout the region.

Next in prevalence are Pinot Noir and Gamay. Of them do monosortovye wine and blended Oeil-de-Perdrix and Salvagnin. Their total landings approximately equal to the planting of Chasselas, which reflects the fact that In white wines is almost twice more than the red.

The three dominant varieties are complemented by classes: garanoir and Gemara (results of the crossing of Gamay and reichensteiner), Merlot (which can give results are not worse than in the Ticino) and even a little Syrah.

In the wine industry of Switzerland formal classification of the appellations absent until the late 1980s. We already have immature structure. In the three official state languages it bears names:

• Appellation d’origine Controlle (AOC)
• Geographische Ursprungbezeichnung (GUB)
• Denominazione d’origine Controllata (DOC)

Desale – 650 one of the appellations specified in this system.

Source: portal Wine-Searcher