In French-speaking parts of Switzerland, these events are called fêtes de la mi-été while the high-altitude grazing is called alpage. The cows produce milk redolent of field flowers or clover or moss – the different tastes come through distinctly in the huge wheels of cheese made from mountain milk that are known as fromages d’alpage.
A Recent Fest in Canton Vaud
Starting the day off in a mown grass field in the village of St. Cergue, a Jura Mountain ski resort over 1044 meters (3,500 feet) altitude overlooking Lake Geneva, was a contest to see which dairy cow would take the ‘’Miss Alpage 2009’’ beauty queen title. The 23 contestants, all but one Red Holsteins, had names like Cerise and Jonquil – and Cannabis, lending new shades of possibility to the concept of cowherds high on the mountain.
Wearing a headdress and a bell weighing around 12 kilos (26.5 lbs) suspended from an elaborately worked leather collar around her neck, each contestant also bore a number painted on her rump. The cows were paraded in front of several hundred onlookers who received ballots so they could cast their vote for their favorite.
The 2009 Queen was the single Black Holstein. She was slimmer than most other contestants, and wearing a simple spray of summer flowers (albeit on closer inspection fake ones) on her head. The wisdom of this artificiality was revealed when checking out the indubitably real, spruce and sunflower adornments of Priska, one of the runners-up: artificial looks fresh for the whole event, whereas under the strong mid-summer mountain sun, natural wilts fast.
The natural look, however, was the clear audience favorite, and cows with paper pom pom flowers and streamers mounted on spruce branches, often accompanied by elaborate halter art, were all left mooing out in left field as the less-is-more ladies got led past the local VIP handing out the top awards.
Bell-Ringing and Alphorns
The cowherds (and handful of cowherdesses) clad in traditional Swiss jackets and broad-brimmed black felt hats added significantly to the picturesque nature of these doings. The jackets, usually black corduroy and sometimes trimmed in red and white, have short puff sleeves and shiny metal buttons and are worn over a white shirt with black trousers. White edelweiss or blue gentian flowers are sometimes embroidered on jacket lapels.
After the awards had been handed out, bell ringers clad in the same traditional garb as the cowherds put in an appearance, creating an unholy din as they walked in step swinging huge bells back and forth in front of them so as to hit them first with one knee and then the other.
In between program items like this, piped-in accordion music filled the air when not drowned out by the voice of the master of ceremonies walking around in shorts carrying a huge wireless mop-style mike.
Continuing the morning’s entertainment was a quartet of alphorn players. A quintessentially Swiss instrument, the alphorn is a long tube of spruce that gradually widens over lengths ranging from 3.2 to over 4 meters (10.6 to 13.5 feet) into an upturned bell that rests on the ground. Difficult to play, the alphorn produces a low mournful sound that echoes effectively in mountain settings.
Yet More Expected of the Cows
The pig race having been cancelled, the replacement act was a border collie herding a flock of Indian runner ducks – birds with an upright carriage that has earned them the nickname ‘’bowling pin’’ ducks. Instead of flying, they walk – fast. ‘’It’s an excellent way to train young shepherd dogs, start them out herding runner ducks before you graduate them to the sheep,’’ explained the collie’s owner, sheep farmer Michel Cretegny.
By now, hundreds were lining up to buy grilled schueblig and veal sausages and local wines, setting themselves up at long picnic tables to tuck in. Booths selling food specialties (not least cheese) and crafts, including folk paintings and carvings of cows and cowherds filing up and down the mountain, were doing a brisk business. A bouncy castle for the kids, and carriage rides, kept other folks happy.
Ahead was the cow plop event, taking place in a roped-off, gridded area of field. Bettors would pay 2 francs (about $2) in the hopes of accurately predicting the number of plops produced by the animals in a given area and thus winning several hundred francs. The long day would end with a communal meal and dancing into the night.
Gail Mangold-Vine - Based in Geneva, Switzerland, Gail Mangold-Vine is the author of two books. Her work as a journalist is published worldwide.
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