I love Italian food. I love Italian wine, but I sell almost none of it. Somehow, I often wind up doing working dinners in Italian restaurants, even though the odds on my getting any business from the venues is slim to none. Oh well, I enjoy the food and wine, and am happy to buy stuff off the list in return for waived corkage.
2016 Rocca del Dragone Falanghina – Pleasant, subtle aromatics combine Anjou pear, a touch of earth and a touch of ginger. The palate is suitably weighty for a winter dinner in New England, there’s some flesh on these bones. There’s enough acid to balance and some nice, surprising spicy touches, with a reasonably long finish. Great, no; satisfying, yes. I’ll take it. Rated 87.
2017 Reva Dolcetto d’Alba – OK, we’ve got a surprising ‘WOW’ here. The aromas are open and inviting, black cherry and red raspberry. The palate is pure fruit bomb, lavish, piquant, dancing in a very happy place. Subtlety? Give it a B. Pleasure, again on a cold New England evening, give it a solid A! Rated 92.5, which I know is ridiculous for a young Dolcetto from an obscure producer, but the proof is in the palate. Drink this up before the weather turns warm, or risk losing the magic.
2013 Zenato Alanera – Back to earth, which is not a bad thing. The aromas are foursquare, with more black than red fruit, more cherry than raspberry, some briary notes as if Zinfandel had moved north, but shut down a little because of the climate. The palate is the best part, solid, almost dense, with some pleasing grainy tannins, albeit with the rustic touch that implies. Rated 88, could improve by a point with another year.
Dan Kravitz