Here are a handful of images from the Valle di Cembra, a stunning valley nestled in the Trentino region of northern Italy reknowned for its stunning landscapes and rich viticultural heritage. I didn’t know either of those things the first time we drove through, descending through the valley from an Olympic ski jumping competition in Predazzo back to our apartment for the weekend in Trento, well after dark.

We returned to Predazzo via the same route under partly sunny skies the next afternoon, where the windy route and steep ascents ran parallel to the sensational 18-kilometer long valley, whose steep terraced vineyards that cling to the mountainsides reach depths of more than 400 meters. The village of Altavalle is in the lead photo above. The time of day didn’t suit photography all that well and we had to keep photo stops to a minimum, but these few images share the gist and more importantly serve as a reminder to return – to take better photos and for the wine.

The climate of the valley is ideal for wine production, with warm days and cool nights. It’s mostly known for local varietals, the crisp white Muller-Thurgau primary among those, which does best at altitudes between 600 and 900m above sea level (source) and Lagrein, a local red which I was so pleasantly introduced to in nearby Bolzano in the early 2000s. About 650 winemakers produce wine in the valley.

Three more pics below. The first is the Piramidi di Segonzano, natural stone formations that are another of the valley’s attractions.