Collection: Valle d'Aosta

Valle d'Aosta lies in the northwesternmost corner of Italien, where the alpine peaks dominate the landscape. To the west towers Mont Blanc and to the south Gran Paradiso, and the entire region forms a single province, crossed by the A5 motorway with Aosta as its capital. It is one of Italy's smaller wine areas, ranked number 20 by vineyard area, but for precisely that reason it holds something special for you who seek wines beyond the ordinary.

Grape growing here is governed first and foremost by altitude. It ranges from around 300 metres in Donnas and Arnad up to a median of about 800 metres around Aosta, while the vineyards in Morgex and La Salle reach 1,200 metres or more. The soil consists mainly of glacial moraine, a stony and semi-fertile mixture that marks the wines. Geographically and culturally the region lies at a crossroads, and this is reflected in the grape selection, which blends Italian, French and Swiss varieties. There are thirteen catalogued native grape varieties, of which Petit Rouge and Fumin are the most important.

The majority of production is red wine, accounting for around 88 percent. About 90 percent of the red wines are light, fruity wines in a style reminiscent of Beaujolais, and which are suited to being drunk young within a couple of years of release. White wine makes up the smaller share, around 12 percent, and here Prié Blanc, among others, plays a role in the high-altitude vineyards.

Viticulture here is small-scale in the literal sense of the word. Many vineyards are barely larger than a family garden, spread across thousands of growers, while the commercial side is carried by a handful of private estates and regional cooperatives. At the end of the 1800s the region counted more than 3,000 hectares, but the wars and their aftermath brought cultivation close to disappearing. Today only a little is exported beyond the region, as much is drunk locally. At Copenhagen Wine we carry a selection from Valle d'Aosta, so you can experience this alpine part of Italian wine.