Breeds of Aosta and the bataille de reines
An Alpine valley where cows meet in head-pushing contests through the summer, and the queen of queens is crowned in October.
Breeds of this place
Best time: October, for the final; June to September for the alpages.
The Aosta Valley is a French- and Italian-speaking region in the north-west corner of Italy, under Mont Blanc and the Matterhorn. Its native cattle, the Aosta Red Pied, Aosta Black Pied and Aosta Chestnut, are small mountain breeds. The Chestnut and Black Pied cows are known for their spirit, which is shown in the bataille de reines, the battle of the queens.
The battle of the queens
In the bataille de reines, two cows of similar weight are brought face to face and push head against head, as cows do naturally when sorting out who leads the herd. The cow that turns away loses. The animals are rarely hurt. Contests run in villages from spring to autumn, and the final is held in an arena near Aosta in October, where the winner of each weight class is named queen.
Fontina and the alpages
In summer, herds graze high pastures and their milk becomes Fontina, a cheese protected by a designation of origin and made from the milk of the valley's native breeds. The Red Pied is the main dairy cow. The return of the herds from the alpages in autumn is marked with decorated cows.
A trail idea for Aosta and the bataille de reines
- Croix-Noire arena Where the October final of the bataille de reines is held.
- Aosta The valley's Roman city, with its gates and theatre.
- High alpages Summer pastures where Fontina is made.
Written by the EveryCow desk with AI assistance. Background: "Aosta" on Wikipedia. Fair dates, markets and visiting rules change; check locally before travelling, and keep a respectful distance from working animals. If something is wrong, tell us.
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