Valle d'Aosta DOC

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"Torrette" redirects here. For the Italian village in Campania, see Torrette (Mercogliano).

Aosta Valley, the Valle d'Aosta region.

The Valle d'Aosta DOC (or Vallée d'Aoste DOC, in French

Piedmont. The Valle d'Aosta is Italy's smallest winemaking region both in terms of size and production with only about 330,000 cases produced annually in the region and only 36,000 cases produced under the DOC label. Seventy five percent of the area's production is red wine made mostly from the Pinot noir, Gamay and Petit Rouge varieties. A white wine is made from the indigenous Prié blanc grape by the cooperative of Blanc de Morgex et de La Salle.[2]

Climate and geography

Elevation of the Valle d'Aosta. The lower elevation in the center of the image is the Dora Baltea river leading from Mont Blanc (on the left) down through the valley to Piedmont.

The area of the Aosta valley has continental climate and despite its location in the Alps region the weather is typically very hot and dry in the summer time which tends to put harvesttime in early September. The geography of the wine regions is marked by high, steep slopes leading to the river valley which makes the use of mechanical vineyard equipment nearly impossible. The vineyard soils are composed primarily of sand at the higher elevation with more alluvial sediments of clay and gravel further down into the valley.[2]

Vineyards

The wine-making region of the Valle d'Aosta is generally divided into three areas. In the northwest, the Valdigne area south of the commune of

teinturier variety endemic to only a small area around the town of Morgex, has been rescued from extinction to make an unusual pink sparkling wine.[3] Due to its high elevations, the area has never been affected by phylloxera louse, which has allowed the vineyards of this area to remain with ungrafted rootstock
.

The Central Valley is the region's most productive area and is further sub-divided into four areas-Enfer d'Arvier, Torrette, Nus and Chambave. The Enfer d'Arvier is a red wine-producing area around the village of

Moscato Bianco grape.[2]

The Lower Valley is known primarily for two styles of wine. The Arnad-Montjovet area produces a medium-bodied dry red wine made from at least 70% Nebbiolo with some Dolcetto, Freisa, Neyret, Pinot noir, and/or Vien de Nus. The area near the commune of Donnaz (or Donnas) produces wine made from at least 85% Nebbiolo with some Freisa, Neyret, Pinot noir and Vien de Nus.[2] Like Enfer d'Arvier, Donnas at one point had its own DOC designation.[4]

Here Nebbiolo is paler and less potent due to the high altitude[citation needed].

Other wines

Other DOC wines in the Valle d'Aosta can be

vini da tavola designation.[2]

DOC regulations

For the majority of wines, DOC regulations require harvest yields below 12

alcohol levels of at least 9%. Wines typically must age for at least 6 months prior to public release. For some individual wine styles there are notable exceptions and stricter requirements such as the Pinot gris from Nus which is required to have a maximum yield of 8 tonnes/ha and a minimum alcohol content of 16.5% which is very high for a typical white wine. The reserve wines labeled Superiore from the Arnad-Montjovet region must have a minimum alcohol level of 12% and be aged for two years. The Superiore wines from Torrette need a similar 12% alcohol level but only require eight months of aging which is specifically required to be done in oak (wine) casks. The Moscatos from Chambave also require oak aging but only for three months.[6]

References

  1. ^ Due to the official bilingual status of the Aosta Valley.
  2. ^
    ISBN 0-7645-5355-0
  3. ^ d'Agata, Ian (19 June 2018). "Mountain Magic: The Wines of Valle d'Aosta". Vinous. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
  4. ^
    ISBN 0-7566-1324-8
  5. ISBN 978-1-846-14446-2
  6. ISBN 1-55297-720-X
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