Bern, the barely-known capital of Switzerland, will have wine flowing from a public fountain later today to commemorate the 1848 alcoholic stunt that helped it beat out Zurich to become the capital.
Bern, even then less-known and less-glittery than the bigger Swiss cities, was locked in competition with the other finalist. When the committee from the National Council and Council of States came to look, townsmen threw a big banquet, featuring an artificial fountain spouting locally-made white wine as a centerpiece.
This afternoon, one of Bern’s actual fountains, the Mosesbrunnen, will dispense over 100 liters of Chasselas wine for a public wine-tasting. The wine, locally-made and at 12.1% alcohol some of the strongest wine around. Organizers of the event hope it will prove popular enough to become an annual event.
