Héron - Aluette

7/11/2026

Héron - Aluette

Aluette, also known as "La Vache" (The Cow), is a traditional trick-taking game from some parts of France and, according to some sources, certain regions of Catalonia. From what I've been able to gather, the game is mostly forgotten nowadays.

It is played with a modified 48-card Spanish-suited deck. While produced by various manufacturers over the years, no one seems to print it regularly today. The deck we review in this entry was manufactured in France, probably in the 1970s by Héron.

It is an idiosyncratic deck with immense character. While the suits are undeniably Spanish, it looks unlike any standard pattern found in Spain today.

At first glance, the cards are so colorful and ornate they could easily be mistaken for a children's deck. However, a closer look reveals a wealth of details that prove otherwise.

Among its many distinctive features, the 2 of Cups particularly stands out. Here, a reclining cow occupies the lower third of the card, glancing sideways at the player. Above it, two human faces replace the bowls of the cups, and are flanked by two geese leaning outward like ears. The 3 of Cups maintains the same dreamlike tone, though it is slightly less elaborate: the cups are arranged vertically—two on the left and one on the right—accompanied by a goose holding a flower in its beak, and another holding a laurel wreath over the rightmost cup, from which a human figure emerges.

The 2 and 3 of Coins depart from the rest of the suit's design. While the coins take on their standard form from the 4 onwards, these two cards feature highly elaborate circular shapes adorned with human faces: a winking man and a smiling woman on the 2, and a male face on the central coin of the 3. The 4 and 5 of Coins could easily be mixed up at first glance due to their similar corner-coin layouts. However, the 4 features a large, red-and-blue six-pointed star in the center formed by two overlapping triangles, while the 5 incorporates a large central coin resembling a stained-glass window that depicts a kissing couple, mirroring the style of the 2 and 3.

In the suit of Batons, the 2 presents a unique composition: a child playing on a swing hanging between two parallel tree trunks. A laurel wreath frames the child's head from a nearby branch, while a dog—likely the child's companion—sits near the base of the right trunk.

I could go on listing the cards one by one, as practically all of them feature some noteworthy detail, but it would make this post excessively long. The descriptions above offer a solid overview, so the reader is encouraged to examine the complete deck closely.

It should be noted that the cards lack pintas (border breaks). Since these border lines are a hallmark of Spanish-suited playing cards—allowing players to identify the suit without revealing the full card—their absence here is highly significant. Instead, every suit is enclosed by a continuous frame. The cards also lack numerical indices, further reinforcing their unique character within the tradition of Spanish playing cards.

Far from being arbitrary, these designs follow a specific pattern tied to the game of Aluette. In this tradition, dating back at to at least the 19th century, certain cards assume special prominence and feature a highly distinctive iconography. This context clarifies the deck's internal logic, transforming what appears chaotic at first glance into a purposeful design. Consequently, while perfectly suited for Aluette, this specialization sharply restricts its use for other games, or for players unfamiliar with its rules.

Regarding production quality, the cards feature a premium satin finish and are printed on thick, though somewhat stiff, cardstock with elegant gilded corners. The deck comes paper-wrapped inside a clear plastic box and includes a small booklet in French containing the game's instructions—a copy of which is provided below.