Each village once had its own mill: A bread-baking oven was mostly shared by several farmhouses. In addition to Huben, there are newly restored mills or new ones based on the old model in Piburg and Obergurgl. They look romantic, but their wheels usually stand still. "Grinding corn and baking bread like it used to be is fairly exhausting and time-consuming. Our team of seven works primarily out of enthusiasm," says Ernst Kuprian, whose mill and baking oven are active every week in summer.
In Piburg the chance discovery of old millstones and the awareness of tradition led to the reconstruction of the historic mill and oven. Since 2014, after a hundred-year break, everything revolves around grinding and baking bread in Piburg once a week. Every Friday in the summer months, guided tours of the mill and bread baking for children are part of the entertaining program.
The over 300 year old grain mill with oven at Pirchhütt's Mühlbach brook in Obergurgl was reconstructed in 1990. Grain never grew in Obergurgl due to the high Alpine location, therefore imported grain was ground into flour and bread was baked in stock once or twice a year. With a bit of luck, you can watch Pirchhütt's rattling mill and bread baking that takes place only once in summer.