Switzerland

Three Lakes

Switzerland wine regions

About Three Lakes

The Three Lakes region (Trois-Lacs in French, Drei-Seen-Region in German) is Switzerland's most quietly Burgundian zone. Vineyards arc around the lakes of Neuchâtel, Bienne and Murten, spread across the cantons of Neuchâtel, Bern, Fribourg and a sliver of Vaud. Pinot Noir is the calling card, often made in the pale, dry rosé style called Œil-de-Perdrix (literally "partridge's eye"), invented in Neuchâtel and now made across French-speaking Switzerland. Chasselas covers the whites. The total area is small at ~930 hectares but the styles are distinctive: a leaner, more transparent Pinot than anywhere else in Switzerland, often grown on Jurassic limestone marl. Producers like Domaine de la Maison Carrée, Château d'Auvernier and Caves de Chambleau define the contemporary style.

Switzerland wine regions

Appellations

What Three Lakes produces

Œil-de-Perdrix

The signature regional rosé from Pinot Noir, invented around Neuchâtel and now legally protected across the canton. Pale salmon, dry, savoury; the easiest way to taste the Three Lakes style.

Non Filtré

A Neuchâtel speciality: Chasselas bottled directly from tank with the lees still in suspension, released on the third Wednesday of January. Cloudy, briny, an annual ritual for local drinkers.

Neuchâtel Blanc

The cantonal Chasselas label (never sold as Fendant, which is reserved for Valais). Linear, mineral, with a non-malolactic style that distinguishes it from the Lavaux versions.