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The world knows about Swiss chocolate and Swiss cheese. Money people know about Swiss banks, horologists revere Swiss-made clocks, and knowledgeable oenologists savour the rare Swiss wines that seldom make it outside the country.

But it is only the intrepid gastro-tourist who knows about Swiss saffron.

Who would have imagined that a pretty Alpine town in the canton of Valais would produce some of the world's best saffron? In this quiet village 1,200 metres above sea level and overlooking the Vallée du Rhône, villagers have been growing and drying saffron since the 14th century. Among the many legends that explain the presence of saffron on these Alpine meadows, the most interesting is the story of a Swiss soldier who made the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostella in Spain and smuggled the valuable crocus bulbs back to Switzerland hidden in his hair. The punishment for smuggling the bulbs was death.

Saffron from Mund is some of the best in the world, because of the soil conditions, dry, hot summers and cold winters, all of which are ideal for the aromatic spice so prized by chefs. The crop is also harvested with meticulous care by the families of Mund, and the supply is very small, at the most four kilograms in a season. It is just enough to allow them to enjoy the spice in their own cooking, to give precious gifts to friends and to sell some of it to the culinary savants who revere its quality. You can seldom obtain Mund saffron anywhere but in Mund.

Saffron is the dried stigmas of crocuses – in Mund, they harvest only the more potent red stamens, not the yellow ones – which are dried and sold in strands. Once reduced to a powder, the spice gives a lovely reddish-yellow colour to dishes, as well as imparting a flowery, almost perfumed but subtle flavour. The town formed a saffron trade guild 30 years ago, and in 2006 was granted an AOC ( appellation d'origine contrôlée ) label, assurance of its place of origin.

The Mund crocus fields are harvested from mid-October to mid-November. The beds are also planted with rye as a complementary crop that is harvested in August.

This is a business that the villagers do for extra income, rather than as a full-time occupation. While Mund saffron, because of its superior quality, sells in the area of $13.41 per gram, or about $13,000 per kilo, it takes about 120,000 flowers to yield one kilogram. The villagers are not about to become rich from their saffron hobby, but because of the rarity and quality of its red gold, the town has become a pilgrimage site for foodies.

There is a saffron museum, housed in a wooden building that dates back to the 15th century, a self-guided 90-minute saffron discovery walk (the Safranlehrpfad ), and a company that bottles a saffron aperitif called Munder Gold made by grower Jürgen Rohmeder. Madlen Imstepf runs a small local shop – the only place you can buy the village's saffron products. The shop sells saffron pasta, bottles of Rohmeder's aperitif, bread, and small jars of saffron stigmas.

Although signage and tours are offered mainly in French and German, most of the saffron tour is self-explanatory and the town is very small, with only 580 inhabitants, so it's impossible to get lost.

The highlight of a visit to Mund lies in the saffron specialties served in either of the two restaurants in town. The Restaurant Safran and the Restaurant Salwald are known for dishes featuring Mund saffron – everything from a yellow-hued bread called safronbrot , to creamy yellow saffron soup, saffron noodles with a fricassee of sautéed mushrooms, a saffron risotto with mussels, and even a saffron parfait.

Dining on a sunlit October afternoon at the Restaurant Safran, I tried a complete menu of saffron-flavoured dishes. The saffron soup was exceptional, the parfait intriguing, with all the flavours supplemented by the view of the mountains and the Rhône valley and purple crocus fields.

Mund is an idyllic mountain village, where a culinary visitor can walk the saffron path, tour the small museum and enjoy an excellent saffron-centric meal, perhaps as the sun sets behind the Bietschhorn for an added bonus.

Bring home a bottle of Munder Gold and a small vial of Mund saffron, and you can keep the memory alive for months.

Special to The Globe and Mail

Getting there
Airr Canada, Swiss Air, Lufthansa and KLM run direct flights from Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal to Zurich. From the Zurich airport, take a train to the central station and from there catch a train (sbb.ch) to Brig. Plan to stay in Brig, where you'll find a hotel and frequent bus service to Mund. Where to stay

The Schloss Hotel has a beautiful view of the Stockalper Palace and the mountains, the Simplon has a pretty garden terrace, and the Ambassador is a five-minute walk from the train station.

Stadthotel Simplon Sebastienplatz; 41 (27) 922-2600; www.hotelsimplon.ch

Hotel Ambassador Saflischstrasse; 41 (27) 922-990Schloss Hotel 41 (27) 922-9595; www.schlosshotel.ch.

Where to eat
Restaurant Safran 3903 Mund; 41 (27) 923-13 76.
Restaurant Salwald 3903 Mund; 41 (27) 923-1218.

More information
www.myswitzerland.com.

B.R.O.

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Saffron advice

Saffron grower Jürgen Rohmeder offers this advice on cooking with the red gold:

Buy the best quality you can afford – Mund is best.

Store in a cool dry place in an airtight container.

When ready to use, grind the strands into a powder with a mortar and pestle, then stir the powder into a teaspoon of warm milk. That will dissolve the saffron and allow it to mix well with whatever you are cooking.

Avoid too much heat.

Add the saffron last.

B.R.O.