If you ever visit Valtellina, you might wonder how it’s even possible to make wine there at all.

This narrow Alpine valley in northern Lombardy is a land of steep stone terraces stacked along the... Read More

If you ever visit Valtellina, you might wonder how it’s even possible to make wine there at all.

This narrow Alpine valley in northern Lombardy is a land of steep stone terraces stacked along the cliffs. There’s no machinery, no shortcuts — just hand-tended vines and heroic labor. And yet, from this extreme terrain, the Fay family has been producing some of Italy’s most graceful Nebbiolos.

Valtellina isn’t the only place where Nebbiolo thrives in the mountains. Alto Piemonte has had its renaissance, too. But where Alto Piemonte gives you cooler soils and a mix of grapes and terroirs, Valtellina is purer, more focused: Nebbiolo alone, grown high and hard against the rock, with a clarity and tension that’s unlike anything else.

Since the 1970s, Sandro Fay has helped lead the charge to show what this place is capable of. Today, his son Marco continues the work, crafting wines that speak softly but resonate deeply. We’re featuring three of them that, together,   offer a beautiful snapshot of the region.