Photograph by Gabriel Jimenez
A Swiss-based online shop that specializes in natural wines and gourmet delicacies that are hard to find, TERRA is a business passionate about bridging the gap between the consumer and the craftsmen/craftswomen.
Sometimes the online world seems like a vast and anonymous time-suck; one that rarely gives back what you put in and often leaves you feeling unfulfilled. And sometimes the online world can be a place of community and connection; one that gathers against all odds, a place where stories can be told, and the world can be made smaller in the best of ways.
When we met Dirk and discovered TERRA it was the latter. It was a single DM that grew into a discussion that eventually grew into us becoming loyal customers and solid fans of the business. You see, the thing about TERRA is that it is a company also trying to create a place of community and connection—but through the palate. TERRA’s entire foundation and philosophy is to connect the consumer with the craft; to find the most unique and special products and tell the stories of those who cultivate them.
We had the distinct pleasure of enjoying a fresh white truffle from TERRA during a wet and blustery November weekend last year. Paired with (what is now) one of our favorite red wines, Macaia Vino Rosso, from the winemakers Matunei, it still remains one of our favorite memories and meals we made at home.
Since discovering TERRA, we have opened numerous bottles of gorgeous natural wines both personally and with The Lausanne Guide during our Solstice in the Park event. What we absolutely love about the selection of wines is that we are continuously surprised and delighted; a red wine that has an effervescence when it hits the tongue, a white that has a flavor profile that can only be described as summer in your mouth, an orange wine that you literally need to be sitting down when you have the first sip.
We asked Dirk recently how he finds his wines, and his answer wasn’t as straight-forward as we expected. For him, and for TERRA, it’s not about simply selecting a producer and importing—it’s all about relationships and the narrative, it’s about the way the artisans interact with their land. And this often means that sourcing wines for TERRA can be a challenge…a challenge that Dirk accepts and we are all grateful for.
We’ve discovered that things just taste better when you know where they’re coming from, and the best things come from land that is cultivated with appreciation and artistry. And this is exactly what TERRA brings into our homes.
TLG Tips: what’s in our shopping cart
While we can genuinely say that we’ve never ordered something we didn’t like from TERRA, there are a few items that consistently make their way into our shopping baskets time and time again:
- Pane Guttiau – if you know, you know. If you don’t, proceed with caution. This flatbread cracker is so damn good and highly addictive.
- Anchovies in olive oil (when we are making pasta puttanesca, these flavorful little fish pack the punch we are looking for)
- Truffle Honey – enough said.
- Chateau de la Crau Kombucha – when you want bubbles but want to skip the alcohol, this Kombucha is absolute perfection. We always like to have a few bottles in reserve to serve at parties for a fun & fancy NOLO option.
- Cadesio Chocolate Discovery Box – It makes such a perfect little gift or gesture — and the combination of flavors plus the gorgeously designed labels makes this one of those items that should always be in your cart.
- Marcaleone 2018 red wine – perhaps we are suckers for a good label, but this wine is so damn good. It’s light but holds its own when eating flavorful food–a winner for just about any dish and any occasion.
- Macaia 2018 – the wine we first tried with our white truffles is now a regular bottle on our table. A biodynamic wine from Piedmont, it is grown in clay soil and the Nebbiolo and Barbera grapes benefit from the particularly perfect humid weather conditions needed to make this diverse and delicious wine.