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It’s 7am on a Sunday morning and I have yet to receive the gentlest wake-up call from Swiss farmer Colin Rayroud.A few hours ago, at dawn, I woke up and climbed down from the sleeper in the hayloft to milk the cows.Now, pouring a bucket into a steaming vat in a dimly lit wood-panelled kitchen feels like I’ve stumbled into a medieval sauna — even though it smells like milk.
Through the swirls of steam in the dimly lit, wood-lined kitchen, I admire the bright, shiny sides of a 640-liter copper pot suspended from an open wood fire.”It’s at least 40 years old,” Colin said of the sloshing cauldron of milk.”My father and grandfather used it; I learned everything about l’étivaz cheese from them.”
Since 2005, my owner has been making this hard cheese in the Rougemont region of Vaud during the short cheese-making season, when cows graze on alpine pastures in the summer.He began his career as a carpenter, traveled the world, and spent time in places including Quebec, New York, and Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, home to the oldest and largest Amish community in the United States. location.”The Amish had some really interesting farms,” Colin recalls wryly.
Inspired by the traditional farming he saw on his travels, he returned to Vaud and set about making cheese.He is one of only 70 or so makers of l’etivaz, a cheese with strict production regulations.To warrant its Designation of Origin (AOP) designation, the cheese – which has a nutty taste similar to Gruyere – must be cooked between May and October using unpasteurized milk over a log fire Production.Once made, they are stocked and sold by a local cooperative founded in 1935.
Colin and his assistant, Alessandra Lapadula, work during periods of intensive production, alternating between his two cabins so the cows have fresh pasture to graze and Follow a strict daily schedule: milking, making cheese, grazing the cows and grazing for the night.As the milk cooled, we added the rennet and the whey left over from the previous day’s surgery, and the potion slowly began to separate and the couscous-sized particles of curds coalesced together.Colin gave me a handful of gummy candies to try.They pressed against my teeth; no sign yet of the delicious explosion of this aged final product.
As the day came to an end, we ate raclette heated on a stone by the fire next to the marinated chanterelles that Colin foraged.After dinner, he picked up the accordion and began to play, while beating the neon yellow Crocs on the concrete floor.I wonder how he passed the time in the mountains.”When I wake up, I don’t need to turn on the TV,” he quipped.”I just open the window and look at the scenery.”
In fact, breathtaking views abound in the mountainous canton of Vaud, to the north and east of Lake Geneva.While it’s easy to get distracted by the Alpine scenery, culinary culture is a contender worthy of my attention.Vaud is steeped in hedonistic traditions, many of which date back to a time before the Romans roamed these regions.These traditions live on in fine dining restaurants in the area, given the sophisticated contemporary style.
Vaud has more restaurants in the Swiss Michelin and Gault Millau guides than any other canton.The best of these are the 3-star Restaurant de l’Hôtel de Ville in Crissier and the 2-star Anne-Sophie Pic at the Beau-Rivage Palace Hotel in Lausanne.It is also home to the Lavaux Vineyards, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and some of the best wines in the country.
To taste them, I went to Abbaye de Salaz, a third-generation wine estate in the foothills of the Alps between Ollon and Bex.Here, Bernard Huber leads me through the rows of hillside vines from which he makes a dizzying array of wines.”The great exposure allowed us to experiment with different grape varieties – it’s more sunny than Valais [a southern state],” he explained, noting that Abbaye produces 20,000 bottles a year, including Pinot Noir, Chardonnay Lilac, Pinot Gris, Merlot and the region’s most popular grape, chasla.Of all Huber’s varieties, however, the most unusual grape is Divico, an insect-resistant hybrid of Gamaret and Bronner grapes developed in Switzerland in 1996 that enables producers to work organically.”We’re not biodynamically certified, but we follow most of the rules,” he said.
Although viticulture in the region sometimes adopts more modern methods, Vaud and its vines have a long and intertwined history.The story of the region’s wines really began about 50 million years ago, when the tectonic plates of Europe and Africa collided, creating the Alps and leaving a variety of sandy, stone-laden soils in the valleys.The Romans were the first to plant native Chasla vines around the lake, a practice later adopted by bishops and monks in the fifth century.Today, 320 square miles of terraced vineyards cover the northern shore of Lake Geneva.Designated by UNESCO, they have dominated this palm-shaded Riviera landscape from Charlie Chaplin to Cocoa since British tourists came here in the late 1800s in search of fresh mountain air A playground for foreigners like Chanel.
From the suave lake shore, I drive 20 minutes northwest of Lavaux to the Auberge de l’Abbaye de Montheron, hidden in a forest near the ruins of a 15th-century abbey.This year, the restaurant was awarded a Green Star by the Michelin Guide for its sustainable practices: everything that appears in chef Rafael Rodriguez’s kitchen comes from within 16 miles.
Sitting at a mismatched wooden table in the casual wood-panelled dining room, the Spanish-born, Paris-trained chef served me a slice of tender milk-fed lamb.It’s topped with a mushroom and an ink made from fermented fish from Lake Geneva.A dollop of mint yogurt sits next to the lamb, and a pine branch sticks out of the plate—a minimalist style similar to ikebana.”I chose that lamb myself,” Raphael said proudly.”The farmer lives over there, so he asked me to pick the right animals.”
Romano Hasenauer, owner of Auberge, is equally passionate about local produce.”We didn’t even think about foreign foie gras or langoustine on the menu,” he said.”If I cook with Swiss products, I feel like I have to follow the rules. But that’s why I hired a Spanish chef – he’s very creative.”
My time at Auberge reminded me of something Alexandra said that morning when we were milking.She works seasonally to make l’etivaz, taking a break from her HR career because she wants to do “something that makes sense.”This sense of purpose and place, and respect for the ingredients, is a thread in the Canton of Vaud – whether at Raphael’s table or in the steam kitchen of the milking hut.
Auberge de l’Abbaye de Montheron Spanish-born chef Rafael Rodriguez runs the restaurant’s kitchen.The gastropub-like interior sets the stage for molecular gastronomy-type food: fennel and absinthe foam on the spoon are a game of textures of crunchy nuts and whipped cream; successive lamb courses feature milk-fed lamb, followed by Neck of lamb, cooked in a mild mole sauce and served with celery puree.Menus start from CHF 98 or 135 (£77 or £106).
Using seasonal ingredients, Italian chef Davide Esercito at Le Jardin des Alpes showcases the best regional cuisine in an evening tasting menu, including pairings with Vaud and Valais wines.The elegant dining room overlooks the beautiful gardens, but you can sit at the chef’s table and watch the kitchen work.From beef tartare with savory dried olives to perfectly cooked spinach John Dory, every dish is full of flavor.Seven-course tasting menu from CHF 135 (£106).
Located just south of Montreux in the foothills of the Alps, this 173-acre third-generation wine estate grows 12 grape varieties, including the ubiquitous salsa, a perfectly balanced 2018 Pinot Noir and an interesting Divico in 2019.In addition to being ecologically sound, the latter grape also adds a touch of innovation to a centuries-old technique.Contact to arrange tasting; bottles from CHF 8.50 (£6.70).
1. Saucisson vaudois: You’ll find this classic local smoked pork sausage served dry, Coca-Cola, or as part of an appetizer platter.
2. L’etivaz: This hard, unpasteurized cheese takes on the nutty flavor of the wildflower meadows from which the milk is extracted.
3. Chasselas: 70% of Vaud’s grapes are white; three-quarters of them are Chasselas – try a glass next to raclette or fondue.
4. Sea Bass: Lake Breaded Sea Bass Fillets with Salad and Chips – think of it as lighter lake fish and chips.
5. Raclette: Cattlemen traditionally carry this cheese on wheels to migrate across pastures, melt it over a fire, and scrape it onto bread or potatoes.
Take the train from London St Pancras International to Geneva and change trains in Paris.eurostar.co.uk sbb.ch
Chalet RoyAlp Hôtel & Spa offers double rooms from CHF 310 (£243) per night, including breakfast and spa services.Cheese-making experience from CHF 51 (£41), B&B.
Post time: Mar-24-2022