Valtellina Wine Country: Italy's Most Underrated Alpine Wine Region

Watch: Discovering Wine Country Valtellina in Northern Italy — Crushed Grape Chronicles

Why it's called 'heroic viticulture'

Valtellina’s vines grow on narrow terraces cut into steep slopes above the Adda valley, most still worked by hand because machinery can’t reach them — among Italy’s most dramatic vineyard landscapes. The grape is Chiavennasca, the local name for a clone of Nebbiolo, the same variety behind Barolo and Barbaresco.

The route

Sondrio → Chiuro → Tirano: about 19 miles, roughly 40 minutes of driving — short enough to combine with a stop on Lake Como itself.

Eight producers, one grape

Nino Negri, Ar.Pe.Pe., Fay and Mamete Prevostini all work with Chiavennasca on these terraces, and all four require an appointment. Four more join them on our map: Aldo Rainoldi in Chiuro, with a dedicated hospitality line; Triacca at Tenuta La Gatta, a 16th-century convent in Bianzone with vineyard lunches and picnics; Plozza in Tirano, with tasting slots Tuesday to Saturday; and Dirupi, a tiny cult cellar in Ponte where you must message ahead or you may find nobody in. There are no walk-ins in this part of the guide, so plan ahead.

Arrive by the red train

Tirano is the Italian end of the Bernina Express, the UNESCO-listed line from St. Moritz over the Alps — and Plozza’s tasting room is right in town. It’s a rare car-free way to combine Swiss mountains and Alpine Nebbiolo in a single day.

Pair it with Lake Como

Geographically, these vineyards sit above the lake’s northern reaches, so Valtellina works naturally as an add-on to a Lake Como itinerary rather than a standalone trip.