Ticino

Ticino is the only Swiss canton south of the Alps, and almost the only one where Merlot is treated with full seriousness. The ~1,100 hectares of Insubric climate vineyards produce wines that range from juicy, fresh, pizza-friendly Merlot del Ticino to deeply concentrated single-vineyard reds aged in French oak. The canton splits informally into Sopraceneri (north of Monte Ceneri, cooler, more granite-driven) and Sottoceneri (south, warmer, with more clay). Phylloxera wiped out the canton's historic Bondola, Nostrano and Americano plantings in the early 20th century, and Ticino rebuilt itself around Merlot, which was first imported as a replacement variety in 1906 and has dominated ever since. Producers like Gialdi, Tamborini, Werner Stucky, Christian Zündel and Castello Luigi (the country's most ambitious single-vineyard project) anchor the modern scene.