Definition: Confrérie du Guillon

Founded in 1954, the Confrérie du Guillon aims to showcase and promote the vineyards and wines of Vaud.

Bringing together people from the wine industry and personalities from other walks of life, the Councils of the Confrérie du Guillon proclaimed in 1954 their attachment to the vineyards and wines of the Pays de Vaud and their desire to act as ambassadors for them. This spirit remains unchanged.

Headed by a Governor and some forty Councillors (acting as the executive), the Confrérie du Guillon organises around fifteen annual "ressats" in the majestic setting of the Château de Chillon.

The ressat begins with the solemn induction of new members and continues with a gourmet meal, during which wines and dishes – some selected by the Office des Vins Vaudois and the Confrérie du Guillon, and others prepared by renowned chefs – are presented by Chantres des Vins and Clavendiers brimming with verve, humour and imagination.

Although the ressats are very hospitable to women, until 2004 only men could apply for membership by submitting a request sponsored by a Companion and countersigned by a member of the Councils of the Confrérie du Guillon.

The Councillors' costumes consist of a robe, a surplice and a cap, in four different colour combinations, to which is added a pewter pectoral chain bearing the insignia of the brotherhood. A green ribbon, to which the brotherhood's emblem is also attached, distinguishes the inducted Companions. At each of its ressats, the Confrérie du Guillon also inducts personalities from the worlds of politics, economics, the arts, science and sport. Depending on their prominence, these figures are received as Compagnon Juré, Compagnon Majoral or Compagnon d'honneur (with a different coloured ribbon for each title). After passing the "tirer au Guillon" test, all candidates appear before the Governor, who invites them to swear an oath of respect for Vaud wines. In witness whereof, the Governor invites them to drink from the Guillon cup and inducts them after pronouncing the ritual formula "Drink this wine and be as good as it!".

The Confrérie du Guillon has developed a whole repertoire of typically Vaudois vocabulary. For example, the term "guillon" refers to the small wooden peg inserted into the barrel by winegrowers to draw off the wine (tap). The word "ressat" refers to the festive meal offered to workers by winegrowers or farmers to mark the end of the season's work (harvest, grape harvest, etc.). Some members of the Councils also have titles inspired by the Vaud region, such as Tabellion, Clavendier, Banneret, Coutumier, etc.

To date, the Confrérie du Guillon has more than 4,000 members from all walks of life. They are spread throughout Switzerland. With the aim of promoting regional activities, the Confrérie du Guillon has established "Cotterds" in Fribourg and German-speaking Switzerland (Bern, Basel, Lucerne, Zurich, St. Gallen), led by Prefects, who have the rank of Council members.

Among the Confrérie du Guillon's activities outside of the ressats, it is worth mentioning the "Quatre Heures du Vigneron" (Winemaker's Four O'Clock), which once a year (on two Saturdays at the end of August) brings together several hundred participants in a Vaud wine estate or village. While formal evening dress is required for the ressats, here all protocol constraints are relaxed in a spirit of fraternity and good humour.

In collaboration with the Office des Vins Vaudois, the Confrérie du Guillon publishes the biannual magazine "Le Guillon" (a review of the Vaud wine economy), with two editions in French and German. Finally, every two years, the Confrérie du Guillon awards the "Prix du Château de Châtagneréaz", worth CHF 5,000- by MM. Schenk SA, in Rolle, to the author of a book or a journalist (multimedia) who has distinguished themselves through their style and expression in the field of vines and wine.

May 2004: The Confrérie du Guillon opens its doors to "ladies companions"

To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the Guillon is undergoing a mini-revolution to keep up with the times. Not all of these "female companions" are present in the official photo. In the front row are Kathrin Schindler-Pfister, Susi Scholl, Eva Zwahlen and Elsbeth Hobmeier.

Formally decided by the Guillon Councils last December, the admission of women into the Confrérie is now effective. Three women from beyond the Sarine were then inducted as "female companions".

On Saturday evening, 1 May 2004, at 6.50 p.m., the Guillon brass band opened the induction ceremony. The provost extolled the spirit of the Brotherhood and its members: "An evening where we speak in kind, witty and poetic terms about our noble Vaud soil." And, of course, about the wines that are produced there.

When it came time to announce the inductees, Councillor Claude Mani quickly corrected an omission: "Candidates... and female candidates!" And he added: "The speech will have to be adapted. " A few minutes later, the Brotherhood will experience a turning point in its history. From now on, women will be admitted on an equal footing with men, under the adapted title of "dames compagnons" (female companions). That evening, three women will take this step.

Women, but without the intoxication

This was a small revolution for this brotherhood, founded on 9 July 1954 out of a need to promote local wines in the face of competition from imports.

Governor of Le Guillon from 2001 to 2011, Philippe Gex (pictured in his Governor's costume) explained it in these terms that very morning at the press conference: "Today, female oenologists are conquering the world, and female consumers are calling the shots when it comes to buying wine, which is increasingly done in supermarkets. Guillon without women is a bit like Romeo without Juliet, like a rose without petals."

And not without thorns, a councillor added mischievously. Perhaps emphasising that this revolution did not happen without lengthy discussions, at the end of which two-thirds of the councillors voted in favour. Some justified their refusal by the fact that women had never been completely excluded from the Brotherhood (they were notably invited to the ressats, alongside the companions).

A desire for openness, necessary modernisation or opportunism? "No," says Philippe Gex, "it had been at the heart of our discussions for some time." The good health of the Brotherhood, with some 4,000 members, and the rejuvenation of its population suggest that this change was not driven by a need to attract new members.

However, with the admission of women to the Confrérie, there is no cause for concern about drunkenness. Le Guillon is confident about the introduction of the 0.5 per mille limit in 2005. The serving of wine, which is the exclusive responsibility of the staff during the ressats, is measured and offered over a long period (five to six hours). "In the vast majority of cases, guests are below 0.5 per mille when they leave the Château de Chillon," assured advisor Jean-Claude Vaucher, refuting any arrangement with the gendarmerie. He concluded: "There are two ways to be disrespectful to wine: drinking too much and not drinking at all."

The new Governor since 2012 is Jean-Claude Vaucher (pictured in a striped jumper), oenologist and managing director of Shenk Holding SA in Rolle.

The Confrérie du Guillon in figures:

- A wine brotherhood – officially established on 9 July 1954 at the Château de Glérolles (Saint-Saphorin) – whose aim is to showcase and promote Vaud wines.- Some 4,000 members, including 3,008 companions, 39 volunteer advisers (divided between the "Petit Conseil", the executive body, and the "Grand Conseil", the legislative body) and seven prefects. And since Saturday 1 May, three "lady companions" (all three of Swiss German origin).

- More than 700 ressats (including 664 at the Château de Chillon), during which more than 150,000 guests were welcomed.

- Seven cotterds (or embassies), spread across the cantons of Fribourg, Bern, Basel, Lucerne, Zurich, St. Gallen and Jura.

Source: Corinne Feuz, 24 Heures, 3/05/2004 - revised 01.10.2011.