Joseph Vaudan (1925 - 2008) was a Catholic priest in the Order of St. Bernard responsible for the birth of commercial wine making in Valle d'Aosta, Italy, and one of the earliest directors of the Institut Agricole Regionale[1] (IAR) in Aosta in Italy's Valle d'Aosta following World War II.
Vaudan and IAR Institut_Agricole_Régional [it] are widely credited with the economic renaissance of this region of Italy after the devastation of World War II.
The Institute's winery, created by Vaudan,[2] is directly responsible for the birth of commercial wine making in Valle d'Aosta and creating the market for niche wines made of Valle d'Aosta's indigenous species: fumin, petit rouge, cornalin, prie blanc, mayolet, vuillermin.
[3] The winery currently in use came into operation with the 2005 vintage to replace the previous structure cave experimentale[4] built in 1969 by Father Vaudan to educate, train and orient each new generation of winemakers and to encourage the production of quality wines, which could reflect the character of the Aosta Valley.
As an active member of Accademia Italiana della Vite e del Vino, Father Vaudan helped further the cause of Valdostani winemakers.