Part of our 5 mile morning walk:
We found our way to the village of Muenster, which is tucked
in a charming valley not a far drive into the Vosges Mountains. Chris was happy to discover some very unique
shops and scored a few items, trying her best to use her French. Now for the
best part of the adventure:
It took a little bit of effort to find the road that led up
the mountain to the high country meadows, where Le Fromage Fermier (cheese
farms) can be found. But it was SO worth
the time spent navigating the steep, winding, narrow road!
However, after a long drive up through the narrow Vosges
forest road, we finally arrived at the Auberge du Ried- a very rustic working
farm with a small restaurant and outdoor picnic tables. Believe it or not, the Restaurant though very
isolated, is well known locally for their home grown, fresh ingredients.
The Auberge Ried/Cheese Farm
Inside the Ried's dining room. (Check out the local dude in the corner):
Our curiosity got the best of us, and we decided to ask the
young waiter to suggest a dessert for us to try. (Alan was hoping for pie or
ice cream). The young man suggested a local favorite dessert called siesskas, which when described in his
broken English sounded like a whipped cream treat that Alan would enjoy.
It turned out, that siesskas is an extravaganza of
calories! The center of the dish is
one-day-old Muenster cheese, surrounded by a creamy, milky liquid, with curdled
cream floating about. The whole
concoction was laden with copious amounts of sugar, and then doused in Kirsch
(brandy-like) liquor! Chris loved it. Alan could barely get it past his nose! We
had some chuckles later about this experience, because Chris could barely
breathe from fullness on the way home. Alan never wants to see it again!
Judge for yourself- would you eat this?
Notice above that Alan's spoon has retired.
The BIG reward of the day was a close up encounter with a
meadow full of the uniquely colored Vosgian dairy cows. Click on the link for a special 60 second
video of the cows, and wait to the end to see the delight in Chris’ eyes at
being so close to these incredible creatures!
The whole experience -standing on the hill with pastures all
around and being serenaded by the bells-well, it will remain a favorite of the
trip. If more time and proper hiking
shoes were available, we would definitely spend more time here hiking among our
Munster cheese animal friends and beautiful flowered paths.
The day ended with dinner at our favorite bistro:
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