Elsie's Wine Bar - 145 Years of History

Built 1879, bought by Elsie Wicki in 1961. She built one of the Alps' best wine collections in this cozy chalet-style venue. 100+ wines, oysters, caviar, homemade foie gras. You're drinking Valais wine in a bar older than most countries.

What to do there

3 things to do

1. 1 Find the 1879 Cornerstone History · Free

   This building at Kirchplatz 16 is older than most countries - find the cornerstone or plaque showing 1879 when you enter Elsie's Wine Bar. Elsie Wicki bought it in 1961 and built one of the Alps' best wine collections in an era when Swiss mountain villages focused on beer and schnapps. Ask the bartender about Elsie's story and how she curated wines that now include 100+ bottles, oysters, caviar, and homemade foie gras in a cozy chalet-style interior that hasn't changed much since she shaped it.

   Backup: If back corner is taken, any seat works - the history is everywhere.

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2. 2 Order the Valais Flight Wine · Price: moderate

   Request the Valais wine flight (3 wines, CHF 30) at your table or bar seat in Elsie's - ask for Fendant, Petite Arvine, and Cornalin to taste the range from light crisp white to complex aromatic white to velvety red. Arrive between 5pm-7pm for après-ski energy, or 9pm-11pm for romantic candlelit vibe. Ask the sommelier about the 1975 Petite Arvine if they have aged bottles - drinking wine older than you in a bar older than your great-grandmother.

   Backup: If no flight available, order glasses individually - Petite Arvine (CHF 12-18) is the must-try.

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3. 3 Pair Wine with Oysters Wine · Price: high · Optional

   The legendary pairing in Zermatt: Elsie's fresh oysters (CHF 5-8 each) with Petite Arvine's minerality - both taste like the mountains somehow, even though oysters come from the sea. After your flight, order 3-6 oysters with another glass of Petite Arvine. The saline notes of the shellfish match the wine's mineral backbone perfectly. Ask if they have any aged white wines to try with the final oyster - the complexity develops over 10+ years in these mountain cellars.

   Backup: If not an oyster person, the homemade foie gras pairs with sweeter Valais whites (Amigne).

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