La Cantina di Cuneaz Nadir, “Les Gosses” Rosso

Imagine if your next-door neighbor grew grapes in his backyard, made exceptional wine from it in his garage, and brought a few bottles to you to enjoy. Depending on where you live, you may indeed have a neighbor like that, but for the rest of us, there’s Nadir Cuneaz.Granted, he’s all the way up in the northwest corner of Italy, in the mountainous Valle d’Aosta, tending to less than a hectare of vines and producing wines in his basement. But, thanks to the efforts of an importer who values authenticity as much as commerce, we have access to some of the 60 cases of “Les Gosses” produced IN TOTAL in 2018. It’s unreal. The wine, crafted from a blend of Valle d’Aosta grape varieties most wine lovers have never heard of, is a sublimely aromatic Alpine red loaded with energy, minerality, and tangy wild-berry fruit, and while it may be a “garage wine,” it’s important to remember where that garage is located. Cuneaz’s assorted vineyard parcels, each the size of a backyard garden plot, sit alon