Avanà  Avanà is a red Italian wine grape variety that is grown in the Piedmont wine region of northwest Italy. Historically, the grape has also been grown in the Dauphiné and Savoie wine region of eastern France where it was known as Hibou noir and in the Valais region of Switzerland. The grape is most often used as a blending variety in the "Denominazione di origine controllata" (DOC) zones of Pinerolese, with Barbera, Persan, Freisa and Neretta Cuneese, and Valsusa, with Barbera, Dolcetto, Neretta Cuneese and other local red Piemontese varieties. Ampelographers believe that the first written mention of Avanà was under the synonym "Avanato" in the 1606 work of Italian agronomist Giovanni Battista Croce on the grapes of the Piedmont region. In the early 21st century, DNA analysis revealed that the Hibou noir grape was historically grown in what is today the Savoie region of France and Valais region of Switzerland was, in fact, the same Avanà grape that is still grown in the Susa Valley of Piedmont. From 1418 to 1713, Piedmont, Savoie and Valais were all part of the Duchy of Savoy and it is likely during this time that Avanà was introduced to each region though today the grape is mostly only found in Piedmont. DNA analysis also revealed that Avanà has a close parent-offspring relationship with the Savoie wine grape Cacaboué. The Swiss wine grape Amigne also appears to be closely related to Avanà though the exact nature of the relationship (which can be anything from half-sibling to niece/nephew to grandparent/grandchild) is not yet known. Avanà is an early to mid-ripening grape variety that is known for given very highly irregular harvest yields from vintage to vintage. Among the viticultural hazards that the grape is most susceptible to is the fungal infection of powdery mildew. Today, Avanà is found almost exclusively in the Susa Valley region of Piedmont that links the city of Turin to the French wine region Savoie across the Alps. In 2000, there were of the grape variety in cultivation where it has been a permitted grape variety in the red blends of the Pinerolese (since 1996) and Valsusa (since 1997) DOCs.