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Historic: The Saalerwirt got its name from the Hamlet Maria di Sares. Tell us about the origins of that hamlet.

Isn’t there a special story in connection with the Black Madonna?

Berta: There is. Rumour has it that the statue was found on a nearby field. When they wanted to build a church on the site of the find, the carpenters kept cutting themselves. Birds then carried the bloody slivers to the place where the church stands today. It’s a good story, a product of early PR! (Laughs.)

Do you still get pilgrims today?

Berta: Not a day passes without one. There are some groups that come back every year to do their pilgrimage. On Rosary Saturday, that’s the first Saturday in October, the pilgrims come from Vila di Sopra. They start at four o’clock in the morning, walking, praying, and carrying a cross. Around eight, the mass is celebrated here in the church. After that, everybody joins us here for the traditional pilgrims’ soup, a noodle soup with sausages. We ring the big bell in the church to mark the pilgrims’ arrival, and later we ring it again when they leave.
Another traditional pilgrimage is from Marebbe on Ascension Day. And in late September, we have up to 500 people walking here from Brunicio as part of the deanery pilgrimage.

What makes this place magic?

Berta: Maria di Sares is a power place. Many guests say that; I feel it as well. We are very lucky to live and work here. Not just in this inn. We also take care of the church, opening it in the morning and locking it at night, arranging the flowers.

How did the Tauber family come to own the inn?

Berta: In 1892, the new road went into service down in the valley. The owners at the time were convinced that this new road would kill their business. They sold it in a rush to the keeper of the Ochsenwirt in Sciaves close to Bressanone. One of her sons took charge of the place and the inn has been in our family ever since. In 1972, my husband Johann took over; he does the farming. And Gabriel is now the fifth generation.

So the road to Val Badia played a key role in the place’s history…

Berta: That’s right. It was also the reason that there were several battles in the vicinity. Take the Tyrolean Rebellion, for example: When the French army passed through, the peasants planted themselves above the path, equipped with large rocks. The French asked the innkeeper whether the road to Val Badia was passable, and he confirmed¾well aware of the ambush, of course. So, the French were fought off with an avalanche of rocks and the innkeeper was arrested. The mayor of San Lorenzo went to the French to advocated for his release, arguing that the innkeeper wasn’t quite right in the head. In return for his help, the innkeeper had promised the mayor a considerable amount of grain. But when he actually came free, he told the man: ‘I don’t know anything about the grain, I’m not quite right in the head.’ (Laughs.)

Gabriel: About two kilometres from here, next to the Rock of Divine Aid, a memorial was erected for the peasant warriors.

How did the new main road in the valley affect life up here in the hamlet?

Berta: My husband used to go to school here in Maria di Sares in the late 1950s. There were 20 pupils back then, the families had lots of children. They had a teacher who lived in the village, a pilgrimage vicar, and church service every day.

Gabriel: Today, only 50 people live in Maria di Sares, dispersed over a total of 14 farms. The closest one is one kilometer away.

We are sitting in a beautiful parlour, which suggests that this building has received guests for quite a while…

Gabriel: It’s a Swiss pine parlour from 1770.

Berta: With Maria di Sares being a pilgrimage site, this place has always been an inn and a wine tavern.

We had to install a second parlour, because all the guests want to sit in the parlour in the evening. We decided to make the ceiling Swiss pine as well, but the rest of the new parlour is dark larch. It is a bit different from the traditional parlours: Some guests find it marvellous; others prefer the old one. When we renovated, we made sure the doors were aligned, like in the old guesthouses. It’s why we like to keep the doors open.

What’s the story behind the skittle alley outside the house?

Berta: Playing skittles used to be part of a regular Sunday. After Mass, people would come here to play and win a glass of wine. The young boys would be the ‘Scholderers’, whose job it was to put the wooden pins back up every time. They would be paid for their services with a ‘Kracherle’, a type of lemonade. The church-goers would play skittles until noon. And sometimes they would continue in the afternoon, after reciting the rosary in church.

We still have the original pins, but we had to replace the balls. The new ones are rubber, no longer wood. In summer we organize weekly skittles tournament with our house guests.

What does the future hold for the Saalerwirt?

Berta: We will continue to focus on simplicity and authenticity. We offer high quality, but we don't want to become expensive. We want hikers and pilgrims to continue visiting us in the future. We have to satisfy many social classes. That’s part of our mission.