Published on 23 August 2021 Reading time: 3 min
In Beaufortain, above Lac de Roselend and at the foot of Roc du Vent, we find Caroline and Didier at the Les Moillettes mountain pasture at an altitude of 2000m. At the Grésillon chalet, the view is simply magical.
At the top of their mountain pasture, nestles their second family chalet. Caroline's grandparents already came to the mountain pastures on this mountain and lived part of the summer in this chalet with their employees. The animals (dairy cows, pigs, calves, horses…) were in the stable on the ground floor while the mountaineers lived above. As the name “Grésillon” suggests, the area is subject to the vagaries of thunderstorms and lightning has already damaged this chalet. But the determination of this family and the desire to keep traditions alive, have led them to completely revamp this second alpine chalet. The life of a climber is in their blood because it is a whole family affair.
As many can tell, this is the perfect setting to work in. We even hear that it is " the most beautiful office in the world ". But life in the mountain pastures is also very harsh. For our producers as for their beautiful tarines, it is necessary to know how to tame the slope to maintain these beautiful mountains and to produce good milk for the famous Summer Beaufort. The maintenance of these mountains is essential to continue to exploit the alpine pastures. The cows graze the slopes but it is also necessary to maintain the tracks in order to be able to mount the mobile milking machine as close as possible to these beautiful ones. The producers are also working to cut the arches, bushes which very quickly invade the mountains and therefore limit the grazing areas. Formerly, these thickets of green alder used in bundles allowed mountaineers to heat the cauldron for the manufacture of Beaufort and the stems were used to make brooms.
But the work in the pastures does not stop there. The specifications of the AOP Beaufort force these producers to respect a certain fodder autonomy. This is why haymaking is also done on part of the pasture, where the slope is less pronounced.
For Caroline, the growing passion, she will no longer see herself spending a summer far from these tarines and these beautiful mountains. Having gone on an internship for a few months in Quebec during her agricultural training, she quickly understood that she could not stay a single summer away from her family and these mountain pastures. Installed today with her father Didier, she delivers the milk of these tarines to the Beaufortain dairy cooperative summer. They will come back down in the fall towards the Haute-Tarentaise where their daughters will spend the winter warm in the barn. They will then deliver their milk to the Coopérative Laitière de Haute-Tarentaise.
The summer is not over and they are still going to take full advantage of these grandiose landscapes, the fresh air and the passion for the pastures that animate them.
Instants Beaufort are events not to be missed all summer long to meet Beaufort producers and share a special moment with them, as close as possible to their herd. This Thursday, August 19, 2021, no less than 120 curious people attended the meeting and had a rewarding experience perched above the Cormet de Roselend. A day of exchange and tasting while waiting for the milking. Instants Beaufort are spread over all 3 valleys of the production area: Beaufortain valley / Val d'Arly, Tarentaise and Maurienne.
Discover more the Entrus mountain pasture, near the Col du Prés and the Alpage des Arolles which has been producing its Beaufort Chalet d'Alpage !
Many thanks to Beaufort Defense Union to offer us these appointments every summer.
