It's all about the soil!

Greetings! Today was another wonderful day. We are continually amazed at the country-side here and the graciousness of the Swiss who have invited us here. Our topic(s) of study today were geography, soil profiles and climate. We started our day at the University and then headed North through completely new areas to the city of Neauchatel. It was a beautiful drive, and along the way we learned more about the different soils of the areas based on the geography. Much of the country is mountainous, formed by continental drifts millions of years ago; the other parts are valleys, with rich soils and climates influenced by glacial shifts and volcanic action.

The area we visited was called Vully, which is a valley sandwiched between Lac de Neuchatel and Lac de Morat; Chateau de Praz is the name of the winery. The owner/mother is 5th generation and her daughter is the winemaker. Their generosity was infectious and I liked their wines. We were poured another Chasselas, a Gewurztaminer, a Framburger and a distilled Gewurztraminer(very strong!) In addition they brought out pastries to pair with the wines. I enjoyed their presentation, and their kindness. Once finished with the tasting, we sat in their garden to enjoy our lunches. The winemaker and her mother served water, coffee and sweet pastries. Ah, the incredible food!

A hotel across the street from Chateau de Praz, where we had our first tasting today.

Chateau de Praz, and some of their vineyards

Madeline, one of the Swiss students waiting for our tasting to begin.

Mark enjoying the sweet pastry after lunch. Think of it as creme brulee on a really soft pastry!

A view from the garden where we enjoyed our lunch today. Lac de Neuchatel is in view.
Empty bottles from the winery. Recycling is pretty important in Switzerland!

After lunch, we spent the rest of the afternoon visiting different soil profiles in vineyards around the area. Our professor, Stephane, was very informative, and encouraged our participation in problem-solving some solutions for the differing vineyard issues. It was a great experience.

Stephane standing in a soil profile examining some soil; one of our "problem" vineyards. We're looking down a steep grade set high on a hill. The vines are three years old, but not growing.

Our dinner today was a special bbq at the lake back in Lausanne. Several of our team went swimming, but most just enjoyed the relaxing evening drinking wine and getting to know their Swiss/CA/Canadian counterparts. It was a great evening. BBQing our own steak/lamb/pork/veal and veggie skewers, Mark and I were reminded of one of our favorite SD restaurants—the Turf Club.

The evening did not end with dinner—remember, Euro 2008 is alive and exciting in Lausanne—so we all headed to the soccer match between Germany and Turkey after dinner and then to a club in the Centre of town for drinks afterwards. Our younger friends had a very LONG night. We however, crashed early—around 1:30am. Sante!