AT A GLANCE
Why go?
Tucked inside a 17th-century mansion in the historic heart of Montmélian — long called the "Capital of the Savoie Vineyard" — the Museum of the Vine and Wine of Savoie traces two centuries of mountain viticulture through an extraordinary collection of tools, machines, and objects, all rescued from the local hillsides. Opened in 1999 and fully renovated in 2018–2019, the museum now spans nearly 1,000 square metres across two floors, a barn, a basement, and cellars, taking visitors from the wild vine to the glass of wine with a mix of scholarly depth and playful interactivity.↗↗↗
What sets this museum apart is its unapologetic sense of place. Every press, plough, and grape picker comes from the Combe de Savoie, and short films give today's growers a voice on climate change and biodiversity, while reconstructed grafting and cooperage workshops reveal the crafts that keep the vineyard alive. Add games like the "mystery grape variety" quiz and the "aroma table," and it's a visit that works as well for kids as for wine obsessives.↗↗
