Built in wood or masonry, the capites were used as tool sheds at a time when cars did not yet exist. Most of them had to hold a fossoir, a type of hoe used mainly in the vines, that had two or three teeth. This tool is the origin of the word for a unit of measure in Lavaux, used to describe a surface area: it corresponds to the amount of land that a man could work in a day, 450 m2.
The steep and winding Creyvavers path, south of the village of Epesses, in all the odd-number years hosts a startling race, the World Championship of Tracassets. This very colourful competition has three events: decoration, speed and gymkhana.
The tracasset is originally from Vaud. The first ones appeared in the area around Perroy in the La Côte region west of Lausanne in the 1950s. The tracasset quickly became popular everywhere on the steep slopes of Lavaux. This relatively recent item is a hybrid that is quite unusual, a cross between a farm tractor and the pétrolette (small scooters) once popular. The tracasset has three wheels, handlebars and a hitch at the back. It is used mainly to haul material in the vineyards in areas where the slope is especially steep. Some women, when they didn’t see their husbands return from the vines at the end of the day would …se tracasset, or worry.
Several waterways cross Lavaux from north to south, to end up in Lake Geneva. The two main ones are the Lutrive and the Veveyse, which run along the border of today’s area of vines.
Between these two streams, running west to east, is the Châtelard near Grandvaux, the Rio d’Enfer in Epesses, the Forestay from Chexbres to Rivaz and finally the Salenche in St Saphorin. In addition to these rivers that run perennially, the Lavaux slopes drain several water corridors whose flows fluctuate rapidly depending on the season and rainfall.
Located entirely on the territory of the commune of Puidoux, the AOC Dézaley Grand Cru’s borders are in fact determined by water: on the west, the Chenalettaz, to the east, the Forestay stream, and to the south, the lake.
In Lavaux this landscape detail is often coupled with others (soil types, aerators). Together, they help to slow down erosion by stopping the water from passing through the vine parcels.
The Lavaux vineyards include nearly 450 kilometres of walls in total and the surface area of the walls is as great as that of the vines! These walls, which make it possible to build terraces that are less steep and therefore able to hold vines, are built of stones that are generally found nearby (for example, from rockslides). They are held in place by a chalky mortar. At the top of the wall, there is usually a horizontal line of large flat stones. This helps reduce rainwater slipping in and ensures a longer life for the wall. The walls also offer the advantage of giving back, during the night, the heat they have accumulated during the hot daytime hours.
