In the mid 1700s, Bernardin Charrère moved from the Haute Savoie in Southeast France to the Aosta Valley and established Les Crêtes, a mill and farm in Aymavilles. This was in the middle of the 21 square mile valley and in the heart of the wine region. In 1810, the family planted 2 hectares of vinifera grapes and the winery was born. The family still continues to craft wines from those vineyards to this day. It is the largest privately-owned winery in the region, but would be considered “boutique” in most other regions around the world.

Les Crêtes has been at the forefront of searching out rare, indigenous vinifera varieties and helping protect them from extinction. Grapes like Prie Rouge, Mayolet, Cornalin, Premetta and Fumin exist nowhere else in the world and Les Crêtes, along with the rest of the tiny vignerons in the region, have worked with the Italian government to preserve them. Les Crêtes is also spearheading research and innovation in the Aosta Valley. The extreme elevation, heroic vineyard work and particularity of the ancient, autocthonous vines making bringing in outside help difficult. This is one of the most challenging regions on earth to work for wine, with vineyards non-contiguous, planted frequently on ledges on the side of steep Alpine mountains where they can find a little sandy soil. Les Crêtes has consistently been recognized as the finest producer in the region and a destination spot for wine lovers to the Val d’Aosta.

At Buyers & Cellars, we are proud to be the first to offer this exciting, high quality winery in Canada and some of the only Aosta wines available in all of North America. We have been allocated small amounts of their finest bottles and look forward to sharing these rare Italian beauties with you.