I’m dreaming of a white Christmas… We all know this song and actually dream of spending a Christmas filled with snow, mulled wine and days on the slopes. Many of us at WineTourism.com enjoy skiing and snowboarding as much as we enjoy a glass of wine after a long day in the snow. Actually, a wine tasting is the best après-ski for us! We know what you are thinking, are wineries open in winter too? Well, yes of course! And many wineries are actually located pretty close to ski resorts around Europe. We put together a list of our best mountain wineries for you to visit while on holidays in the mountains.
Pack your ski gear, warm gloves, and get ready for an adventure filled with snow and wine!
Skiing and wine experiences in Italy
Trentino Alto-Adige
Trentino Alto-Adige is among Italy’s most visited regions because it can benefit from an all-year-round type of tourism. Even though Trentino Alto-Adige is primarily a mountain destination, it doesn’t mean that the best activities are held during the winter. During the summer, you can find a dense network of hiking trails that lead to some of the Alps’ most incredible landscapes.
If you are planning a ski trip to some valley in Trentino Alto-Adige for this winter but want to experience a wine tasting before heading to the slopes, here are our suggestions:
Pfitscher
30km from Ziano di Fiemme (TN) and the gorgeous Val di Fiemme
Cantina Valle Isarco
25km from Ortisei (BZ) located in the famous Val Gardena
Valtellina
Valtellina, located in the province of Sondrio in Lombardy, is one of the best known mountain areas of northern Italy. With more than 400km of ski runs, Valtellina is a great place to spend your next winter holidays. There are several activities you can do in Valtellina during winter, not just downhill skiing. Cross-country skiers will find fascinating routes around the valley, kids can have fun ice-skating in one of the many ice rinks located in the villages around the valley or, if you’d rather relax and just enjoy the view, try some Pizzoccheri in one of the many mountain huts on the slopes.
For those skiers who are also into wine tastings, Valtellina could be the best winter destination for you since this is a great wine-making area. We selected a few wineries for you both very close to one of Valtellina’s most popular skiing destinations, Aprica.
Azienda Agricola Le Strie
23km from Aprica
La Perla Di Marco Triaccca
16km from Aprica
Skiing and Wine Experiences in Switzerland
Let’s cross the border from Lombardy and find ourselves in the ultimate winter wonderland – Switzerland. All skiers dream of spending a winter in Switzerland and try downhill skiing down the enchanting slopes in Zermatt or St. Moritz. Among the winter activities you can actually do in Switzerland during winter, there’s also going for wine tastings in some of the country’s best wineries.
We chose two wineries for you that are very close to the slopes, so you can enjoy your time in the snow and then treat yourself with a glass of delicious wine.
Terres De Lavaux
30km from Les Paccots skiing station
Les Celliers De Sion
8km from Nax-Mont-Noble skiing station
Skiing and Wine Experiences in France
This blog is a journey through ski stations in the Alps and their connection to the winemaking traditions of several countries, so let’s leave Switzerland and arrive in France, the land of wine and home to some of the biggest ski stations in Europe.
Mount Pilat, located in the Rhône Alps region, is the perfect skiing destination for those who enjoy cross-country skiing and endless walks on the snow with the snowshoes. Compared to the majority of mountain destinations in the Alps, the ski station at Mount Pilat is more of a nordic paradise as even the landscape is quite similar to that of Lapland. On the way to Mount Pilat stop at Domaine Niero, one of our amazing partner wineries, for some fantastic wine and a high-quality wine tasting.
Domaine Niero
30 km from Mount Pilat ski station
Skiing and Wine Experiences in Germany
From France, let’s jump into another country known worldwide for being a great place for winter holidays. Germany is mainly known for Christmas markets, mulled wine and for the tradition of Advent, but there are also many ski resorts where you can enjoy a great day or holiday on the slopes.
Get to the heart of the Black Forest and book your ski pass for a day of downhill skiing and snowboarding at the Feldberg ski resort. Take ski lessons, go for a walk with the snowshoes in the woods and then drive to one of our amazing partner wineries for a delicious German wine tasting. Here are our suggestions:
Weingut Fritz Waßmer
50 km from Feldberg – Seebuck/Grafenmatt/Fahl
Winzergenossenschaft Wolfenweiler
54 km from Feldberg – Seebuck/Grafenmatt/Fahl
