Brothers Keep Swiss Mountains In High Spirits

Depopulation threatens the future of Switzerland's picturesque mountain villages, but three brothers are trying to keep theirs alive by capturing its essence in a bottle

Souboz, Switzerland, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 19th May, 2022 ) :Depopulation threatens the future of Switzerland's picturesque mountain villages, but three brothers are trying to keep theirs alive by capturing its essence in a bottle.

In the one-road hamlet of Souboz, nearly 900 metres (2,950 feet) up in the Jura mountains, the nature-loving Gyger brothers distill whatever they forage, such as gentian roots and juniper, in a bid to sustain the local economy.

Switzerland is trying to stave off the slow-motion extinction of its remote communities as young people move to the cities for jobs and opportunities.

Thanks to a grant from the Swiss Mountain Aid foundation, the Gygers were able transform their grandfather's old home into the Gagygnole distillery, turning professional a couple of years ago.

The name comes from eldest brother Gaetan's nickname Gagy, and gnole -- French slang for a drop of the hard stuff.

On the ground floor of an old farmhouse, the scent of coriander and juniper berries hangs in the air, while warmth emanates from the 2.5-metre-high copper still in which Gaetan distills gin over a wood fire.

"This production site has been in our lives since we were very young. We really have roots anchored in our village," he told AFP.

An agronomist by training, Gaetan, now 30, had studied in Geneva.

"We didn't want to set up in the city," he said, despite the bigger potential client base.