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It is no surprise that this colourful and richly varied landscape produces such delicious fare. Among the wines, Chasselas and Pinot noir are especially popular, but winegrowers have recently been enjoying increasing success with other grape varieties such as Sauvignon blanc, Chardonnay, Gamaret and Garanoir. Any of these would make an ideal accompaniment to Tête de Moine, the cylindrical cheese made on the lush meadows of the Jura. Tête de Moine is never cut with a knife but instead scraped into delicate curls with a special implement called a girolle. When autumn comes, residents enjoy getting together with friends and family at a traditional torrée neuchâteloise: a big outdoor fire, where the highly prized local saucisson neuchâtelois, a traditional smoked sausage, is cooked in the embers.

The mysterious “green fairy”

At such traditional meals “la fée verte” will often make an appearance: absinthe, the legendary drink of artists. Distillation of this spirit, which originated in the Val-de-Travers, was recently started again, and you can taste it legally here, although its recipe remains a closely guarded secret. Another drink that expresses the potency of the Jura soil is damassine: a clear brandy distilled from small wild plums, known for its delicate aroma. It is in this fertile land that residents and visitors celebrate the Fête de la St-Martin every year in mid-November. A traditional lavish meal with many guests features a menu of pork dishes prepared in an astonishing variety of ways: in bouillon, boudin noir (blood sausage), atriaux (patties scented with herbs), choucroute garnie (braised sauerkraut with roast and cured pork) and roasts, to name just a few – all followed by the celebrated totché, a yeast-risen cake baked with a thick cream topping for dessert.

Fine fish

After such rich food, something light is called for? Subtle fillets of perch or lavaret from the lake, perhaps, smoked bondelle or trout from the Doubs river: delicate fish best enjoyed on the lakeshore, together with a glass of local wine.