over in the Chautagne district. If you visit the Giachinos, you can usually taste some of Jacques' wines too. For a different day out, you might like to explore the vineyards over in Jongieux, through the Tunnel du Chat on the other side of the Lac de Bourget, an area also endowed with several excellent restaurants. The view down to the Jongieux church and across to the Marestel vineyard slope above is one of my favourite vineyard/village views. Tasting with Jean-Franois Jacquin There are several good producers to visit here, and this summer we took friends to one of the first ever Savoie wine producers I got to know -- Domaine Edmond Jacquin et fils . The sons look after it now, with the younger Jean-Franois increasingly in charge as brother Patrice has many other interests. They make lovely Gamay red and ros, but it is their Roussette de Savoie and their even more intense Marestel, both from the Altesse grape, that shine here. The day we visited was the day off for the Morainires restaurant in the middle of the Marestel vineyard slope, so we headed back through the tunnel to Atmosphres , somewhere we hadn't eaten at for a while. It was better than ever in terms of food and service, and I was delighted to discover their list of Savoie wines had expanded too -- a real showcase for the wines of the region, which I applaud. Being lucky enough to have lived part of the year