Alpe Pragas makes fruit spreads in the Dolomites
Alpe Pragas is a South Tyrolean fruit manufactory in Braies at an altitude of around 1250 meters, founded in 1997 by Stefan Gruber. Around a hundred fruit spreads, organic jams, chutneys, mostardas, and syrups are created here, hand-prepared and cooked for just a few minutes under vacuum at 70 degrees Celsius. Not a factory, but a business with thirteen people.
Alpe Pragas is a fruit manufactory from the Braies Valley in South Tyrol, founded in 1997 by Stefan Gruber. At around 1250 meters in the Dolomites, they create fruit spreads with 75 percent fruit content, as well as organic jams, chutneys, mostardas, and fruit syrups. We have known the manufactory for over twenty years and have visited the site several times, both in production and in the fields.
1997, Stefan Gruber's first jars in a Toblach garage
It all started at the Oberdorner Hof in Braies, his parents' farm, where the cows were actually in charge.
Stefan Gruber, born in 1975, grew up there as the only son with four sisters and lost his parents at the age of nine. The farm would have fallen to him, but instead of livestock, he bet on fruit. In 1994, he returned from Australia and planted strawberries, raspberries, and blackcurrants at 1250 meters, where no one would have expected berries until then.
He tinkered with the recipe until his jam tasted exactly as he imagined: fruity, honest, with little sugar. In 1997, he founded the manufactory based on this; the first jars were made in a garage in nearby Toblach. Production has taken place in Braies since 2003, and an extension was added in 2010.
The name refers to the Braies Valley, which, with Lake Braies, counts as one of the most beautiful corners of the Dolomites. It is right here, high above the hustle and bustle, that the manufactory is located, and the mountains all around continue to shape the climate, water, and character of the fruit to this day.
Today, Stefan runs the manufactory together with his wife Karo, who is responsible for marketing in the company, and their four children, three girls and a boy. Thirteen people work in the business, and the small beginning has become a family company that has remained true to its first promise: you must be able to taste the fruit. Every new variety must meet the same standards as the first strawberry jam from back then, otherwise, it never makes it into the jar.
Around a hundred varieties from a fruit manufactory
Alpe Pragas has around a hundred products in its range, from breakfast jars to spicy accompaniments for cheese and meat.
The classic fruit spreads range from apricot to strawberry, through to autumnal quince and sophisticated fig. Each variety carries its Latin name on the label: Alba for the apricot, Fragola for the strawberry, Myrtillus for the blueberry.
Added to this are the delicate organic jams like the organic strawberry, the festive Hugo jelly with elderflower and sparkling wine, spicy chutneys like the mango chutney, and fruity syrups like the apricot fruit syrup. Fruit nectar and smoothies are also part of the manufactory's program.
Many varieties are available in several sizes, from the small 110-gram jar for tasting, to the practical 335-gram size for daily breakfast, up to the large 600-gram jar for heavy users. There are also finely pureed spreads without pieces, mostardas for the cheese board, and syrups for lemonades and cocktails.
Each variety has its own character. The Myrtillus blueberry tastes dark and woody, the blackberry tart-sweet, the strawberry sunny and round. In winter, festive varieties like the "Christmas Dream" are added, while in summer, light compositions with lime or mint appear. This way, breakfast never gets boring. You can see which ones are currently in stock in the grid below.
Hand-prepared, cooked under vacuum at 70 degrees
There is a lot of manual work behind every jar, and that is exactly what you taste in every spoonful.
The family has been cultivating their own produce since 1994: the seedlings are planted by hand, the fields are weeded multiple times until harvest and irrigated with spring water from the Dolomites. In the mountain climate at 1250 meters, the fruit ripens longer and develops a more intense aroma. Once harvested ripe, they are cleaned, pitted, and cut by diligent hands. Since 2011, only organic fruit, certified under ABCERT IT Bio 013, has grown in their own fields.
Cooking is done briefly and gently: the fruit is heated to 70 degrees and cooked for a few minutes under vacuum, then everything is filled into the typical square jars. This preserves the color and aroma, and creates that dense consistency that spreads without sliding off the bread.
The classic spreads have 75 percent fruit content, the organic jams 65 percent, completely without artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives. Glucose syrup and synthetic gelling agents are also left out. What ends up in the jar is fruit, sugar, lemon juice, and apple pectin, nothing more. Anything not coming from their own fields comes from selected partners who share the same standards.
Even the typical square jars are part of the signature style: anyone who sees one on the shelf recognizes the manufactory immediately.
Modern equipment, traditional craftsmanship
In the manufactory, modern equipment and traditional handiwork work hand in hand.
Recognition has long since spread beyond South Tyrol. The Italian food guide Gambero Rosso lists Alpe Pragas as a gourmet producer, and the manufactory is a regular exhibitor at the Pitti Taste food fair in Florence. Deliveries go throughout Italy and to fifteen other countries, to gourmet shops, hotels, and top-tier gastronomy.
Anyone stopping by in Braies can experience it all. In the on-site fruit boutique, you can taste the spreads and look over the shoulders of those in production. For us, this openness is one reason why we have remained loyal to the manufactory for over twenty years.
Many guests combine a visit with a hike at nearby Lake Braies. In this way, a jar of jam becomes a small trip to the Dolomites, and it is precisely this piece of South Tyrol that these spreads bring to your breakfast table at home.
The apricot for Sunday breakfast
If you are discovering Alpe Pragas for yourself, the apricot is the house classic and a great place to start.
The apricot on fresh buttered bread is the quintessential Sunday breakfast. Spicy mango chutney belongs with cheese and cold roast, and for an aperitif, you can mix a bit of summer into your glass with the Hugo jelly.
A small 110-gram jar always makes a good gift, and the finely pureed varieties without pieces are ideal for children. The autumnal quince and the sophisticated fig, in turn, belong on every good cheese board.
The spreads are also a boon when baking: as a filling for donuts and cookies, under the crumble in fruit cake, or simply spooned over vanilla ice cream and yogurt. One jar, many possibilities.
If you like Austrian specialties from the neighborhood, you will also find what you are looking for with Erich Stekovics, also a family business with a love for fruit. And anyone working their way through the Alpe Pragas range will quickly notice: the fruit sets the tone here, not the sugar.
