If Switzerland has one must-see vineyard, it is Lavaux: roughly 800 hectares of dry-stone terraces stepping down to Lake Geneva between Lausanne and the Château de Chillon, UNESCO World Heritage since 2007. Built by monks from the 11th century, the terraces catch a triple dose of sun — from the sky, off the lake, and radiating from the walls — that ripens a Chasselas of real depth.
The wine villages line up east of Lausanne — Lutry, Grandvaux, Cully, Epesses, Rivaz, Saint-Saphorin and Chexbres — each a stop on the regional train and the start of a walk into the vines. The two Grand Cru appellations, Dézaley and Calamin, sit at the heart of it.
Family estates open their cellars for tastings (usually by reservation), and honour-system stands along the trails let you take a bottle and leave a few francs in the box. For the full guide to the region’s best wineries, tastings and how to get around, read our Lavaux wine tasting guide.
Top Lavaux wine tours & experiences
Luc Massy Vins
A little further along the slope in Epesses, La Maison Massy keeps the Clos du Boux — the only walled Grand Cru clos in the village, a listed 1630 building enclosing about 1.7 hectares of ...
Explore Luc Massy Vins →
