From the Maloja Pass, the road meanders down to Val Bregaglia. The valley stretches to Chiavenna in Italy. These days, it consists of many small villages that have come together to form a single political municipality with around 1,500 inhabitants: Bregaglia. the official language is Italian.

A single road leads through Val Bregaglia, running alongside the Mera River. The valley is known in as Val Bargaia in the local dialect, which is a mix of Lombard and Romansch and is commonly spoken, alongside Italian. A peculiarity of the valley, which has other cultural features: The mountain valley is not only the home of the Giacometti artist family, painter Giovanni Segantini also made Soglio his adopted home during the winter months. The von Salis family, a well-known noble Graubünden family, also came from Soglio.
Everything there is to know about the artists of Val Bregaglia

This little village is perched on a sun-baked terrace at 1,090 metres above sea level and boasts a great view of the valley and the Sciora range. Painter Giovanni Segantini was so impressed by it that he described it as the “Threshold of Paradise” and immortalised the view in his famous Alpine triptych. The village, which has a population of just 150, was voted Switzerland’s most beautiful village in 2015.

This is the start of the journey of the sweet chestnut, which was originally brought to Val Bregaglia by the ancient Romans. The largest chestnut groves in Europe are located between the villages of Soglio, Bondo and Castasegna – they thrive in the southern Graubünden valley thanks to the numerous sunny days. The chestnut used to be considered crisis-proof food because it provides a vitamin-rich diet and its flour will keep for several years. It is also said to strengthen the immune system.

Giacomo Waltenspühl runs the Pedarneir organic farm, where he cultivates his own sweet chestnut trees. After the ripened chestnuts have fallen from the trees, he separates the good produce from the spoiled. The selected chestnuts are either sold fresh or smoked for three to four weeks in the traditional Val Bregaglia style in “cascines”. During this time, billows of smoke can be seen wafting mystically through the valley.

After smoking, the chestnuts are peeled and transported from Waltenspühl to Mulino Scartazzini in Promontogno. As was common in the past with mills, the Scartazzini mill is right by the river. It has its own turbine that produces hydroelectricity, supplying the mill with the necessary energy. Here the chestnuts are processed into flour in a special mill.

Vittorio and Giulio Scartazzini are the tenth generation of their family to run the business. In addition to the chestnuts, various grains are also milled and processed. While Vittorio Scartazzini is responsible for the mill, next door, his brother Giulio turns the flour into chestnut pasta or bread. The produce can be purchased in the small village shop around the corner.
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Whether served as “roast chestnuts”, combined with cheese and honey or sold as flour, sweet chestnuts can be found in numerous products. Anyone who visits Val Bregaglia in autumn must definitely try some of them. In addition to pasta and bread, chestnut gnocchi are also a popular dish on the menu. If you have a sweet tooth, you’ll enjoy sweet chestnut cake or biscuits.

The Sweet Chestnut Festival: For about one month each year, all the focus in Val Bregaglia is on the sweet chestnut. While the chestnut producers are busy harvesting and processing, guests can follow the sweet chestnut trail. If you’re interested, you can learn everything about the sweet chestnut on various hikes, at a tasting or on a guided tour. The traditional process of chestnut beating, in which the chestnut is stripped of its shell, is particularly impressive.