Valais

The wine trail between Salgesh and Sierre, is an educative and family oriented trail. It is well sign posted and accessible all year round. The trail follows small access roads in the vineyards with very low traffic, it passes through winemakers neighborhoods and the beautiful natural site of the Raspille gorge. 80 explanatory panels are posted along the trail. They highlight the features of the landscape, the various grape varieties, techniques and history of the vineyard.

Location: 1 hour 30 minutes by train East from Lausanne or Bern, start: Salgesh train station, ends: Sierre train station, distance: 5.6 Km, duration: 1 hour 30 minutes (non stop), difference in levels: 110 meters upwards and 120 meters downwards, difficulty: easy walking.

Gerald Besse and his wife Patricia created a winery twenty-five years ago, out of a garage for the first vintage, which has become a reference in Valais. Since then so much work has been accomplished! The estate owns 18 hectares of terraced vineyards. These terraces require an incredible amount of work. We are talking about nearly 1,500 annual working hours for a hectare of terraced vineyards against 500 or 600 hours for a mechanized vineyard in the plain. Gerald Besse and his team have become experts to at dismantling and reassembling these dry stone walls as soon as they show a little belly, which is a sign of weakening. The work is usually performed late in the fall and in the heart of the winter.