In the breathtakingly beautiful alpine region of Val d’Aosta in the extreme NW corner of Italy, Franco Noussan is an agronomy professor and a grower-garagiste winemaker. He and his wife Gabriella have a total of 18 tiny, scattered parcels, which they work themselves by hand and organically. Their low-yielding vines range in age from 40 to 90 years old and include Petit Rouge, Cornalin, Mayolet, Fumin, Vin de Nuys, Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris, with altitudes of up to 1300 meters. They hand-harvest the fruit and make the wines in the tiny garage under their hillside house, using a hand press, natural yeasts and a mix of steel tanks, botti and old barriques. Intense sunshine, cold nights, poor, rocky soils and restraint in the cellar add up to ripe but dark-fruited, structured, savory, mineral wines.

For more information, visit: http://www.noussanvini.it/