tMost European vineyard soils exhibit low soil fertility. They are highly vulnerable to erosion, low in soilorganic matter content and, therefore, in water holding capacity and nitrate retention. The applicationsof biochar and biochar-compost are said to address some of these issues. We tested the ability of theseamendments to improve soil quality and plant production quality in a 30-year-old vineyard in Valais,Switzerland. The amendments of biochar alone (8 t ha−1, produced from wood at 500◦C), aerobic com-post (55 t ha−1) and biochar-compost (8 t ha−1+ 55 t ha−1, mixed before the composting process) werecompared to an un-amended control soil. During the years 2011, 2012 and 2013 various vine and greencover growth, vine health and grape quality parameters were monitored. Biochar and biochar-composttreatments induced only small, economically irrelevant and mostly non-significant effects over the threeyears. We concluded that topsoil application of higher amounts of biochar has no immediate economicvalue for vine growing in poor fertility, alkaline, temperate soil.