Baa, baa, black-nosed sheep

One would think visiting the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise, at a dizzy height of 3,383 metres in the Swiss Alps, and the spectacular Glacier Palace with ice sculptures at a depth of 15 metres (below the surface of the glacier) would be the high point of the day.

But no. Zermatt, a stunning little town of 5,000 that hosts 2.2 million overnight tourists each year, thanks to its posterboy — the Matterhorn peak — keeps topping up the feeling of sheer bliss. Beginning with its railway station at the foothills of the snow-capped Alps to its mostly family-run hotels (there are no big chains here) that send majestic horse-drawn carriages to receive their guests, the town is a perfect escape from deadlines and the humdrum that is daily life.

The air is fresh and clean as no petrol or diesel-driven vehicles ply in this town of battery-driven transport. The Matterhorn (4,478 metres) was scaled in 1865 by the English explorer Edward Whymper in his seventh attempt. All tourists invariably head to the Matterhorn Glacier viewing platform (3,883 metres) on a stunningly beautiful cable car ride. Our group of 30 journalists go on the ride, but are denied a glorious darshan of the summit as that is the only cloudy and rainy day in our five-day trip.

A unique farm

A planned two-hour hike to the farm of Paul Julen, who rears about 300 unique black-nosed sheep, has to be cancelled too, due to bad weather. Julen and two of his men arrive to transport us in their vehicles. I get into the jeep of Hubert Koenig, who calls himself the chef-cum-chauffeur of the Julen family, and get the bumpiest 4km ride ever, hanging on to a railing for dear life, as he warns: “Those who fall out, stay out”.

A 15-minute hike over wet, grassy slopes leads us to the farm, where a herd of robust and woolly black-nosed sheep greet us. Julen’s family owns three hotels in Zermatt, but these sheep are his life’s passion. In 1972, his brother and he had started the farm with just eight animals.

Julen tells us all about the sheep and the upcoming Miss Zermatt contest — a couple of his sheep have won or finished runners-up in the last few years. What’s more interesting, the female sheep, or ewe, are in majority here. “We have one male sheep for every 35 females, for breeding purposes. Before the mating season, we feed the males and make them strong, because after he has been with the females, he can lose up to 30kg!”

We also learn that meat can be termed lamb only till the animal is 18 months old. The thick, long and curly wool is used in carpets and curtains, but is not good enough for coats. Once a sheep turns nine, it is of no use to the farm and is killed for meat. “It is indeed painful, but we cannot afford to keep them after that,” says the shepherd.

Meanwhile, Koenig has slipped into his chef’s role and expertly carves out delectable slivers from the bony hunk of lamb that has been air-dried for 75 days. We devour the delicious meat and rye bread baked with raisins, walnut and hazelnut, accompanied by cheese and white wine. “This is unstressed meat because the sheep are left to graze in the open, over many acres of Alpine grass. Also, it has been dried in the mountain air and served in the fresh air of the Alps. Meat air-dried elsewhere and served in a typical restaurant can’t taste so good,” claims Julen. Apart from Alpine grass, the sheep feed on special corn and salt at the farm; “salt is very essential for them, and there is no salt in nature,” he says.

Mountain lunch

A spectacular mountain lunch is next served in the romantic environs of the family’s flagship Restaurant Stafelalp. Located on Alpine slopes, at a height of 2,200 metres, in the company of snow-covered mountains, intense blue skies, green grass and enchanting stone pine trees, it gives you a dining experience of your dreams. Koenig lays out a lunch that will haunt my taste buds for a long time.

For aperitif, we have the house cheese, along with soft and juicy shrimps in a slightly spicy sauce with a hint of lime. The main course is lamb chops from black-nosed sheep. Dessert is a Swiss nut pastry, chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream made from fresh vanilla beans. The restaurant is located directly on a ski route, close to the mountain station Furi.

We are at the end of a day of highs, the meticulous planning of the local tourism department ensuring that a wet, cold day in summer need not spell disaster for visitors. Of course, winter tourism in the Swiss Alps is big too, and in some parts, such as the glamorous St Moritz, bigger still. But that’s another story.

(The writer travelled to Zermatt at the invitation of Switzerland Tourism.)

Travel Log

Get there

From Zermatt, take a cable car to the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise for a spectacular view of the snow-covered Matterhorn peak; if the weather is good, take the 90-minute trek to Julen’s farm for a fine-dining experience at his restaurant Stafelalp (closed between October and early December; julen.ch/en/stafelalp).

Get active

Alternatively, alight at the mountain station Furi and walk to Julen’s farm and restaurant. If you are the skiing type, through winter you can ski directly on ski run No 52.

Stay

The Julen family runs three hotels in Zermatt; you could stay in any one. Or stay, as I did, at the Schlosshotel, a boutique hotel, a stone’s throw from the railway station — modern, yet with an old-world charm (schlosshotelzermatt.ch)

BLink tip

Enjoy a special snack of freshly baked rye bread, air-dried lamb slivers and homemade cheese with a glass of wine at the 250-acre farm, which has the unique blacknosed sheep

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