I have been low-key excited about Dolcetto of late having had very good examples from Giuseppe Mascarello and Bruno Giacosa. This one from Vajra stood out for its origins and positive notes on CT so I optimistically popped and poured on Friday - Dolcetto is after all said to be something to drink while the Barolo matures (). There were no ifs or buts about it, it was immediately clear that this wine would not budge enough to be drinkable that evening. So I opened the Brunelli instead and man, that wine was ready to go from the first sniff and was just a super nice Sangiovese made with a light touch.
Fortunately the Dolcetto had come around 24h later and was then accessible and plenty enjoyable with my first attempt at flammküchen made with Ooni, but definitely holding more in reserve. It’s a way more serious wine than the low price would have you expect. I don’t know how it will end up becoming once it matures and how long it will take to get there so I probably will not be buying more but it’s an interesting example of the variety for sure.
Day 2: Richly fruited and on the darker side of the cherry spectrum on the nose. Maybe a bit plummy even with tar and licorice notes. On the palate pretty ripe but dry still with a markedly heady style. Intense and powerful, this is no timid wallflower nor light. Love the sizable tannins here, plenty of muscle and grip and a chewy mouthfeel. By all means serious stuff but also very drinkable on day 2. Admirable depth and length.
2020 Gianni Brunelli Rosso di Montalcino - Italy, Tuscany, Montalcino, Rosso di Montalcino (20.4.2024)
An awfully pure-fruited and pretty red-toned nose of cherry, leather, tobacco, a hint of licorice and minerally tones. On the palate it is easy-going and lightweight with bright, savory fruit expression and refreshing acidity. Markedly lively and enjoyable and of course extremely food friendly. More on the red side of the spectrum with Chianti-esque qualities. Has a transparent and authentic feel to it. Perhaps some roughness on the edges but it’s not rustic, more geared towards elegance actually with its proportions, lift and fruit quality.
Can’t say I am truly excited about Dolcetto but I like it just fine and probably would choose it 10 times out of 10 over Barbera. If you haven’t had some already, try to find some from Ovada. The chalky limestone soils there tend to produce Dolcetto with higher acidity than Alba or Asti. They can almost take on some of the florals found in Nebbiolo.
Yeah, I suppose my excitement is more for the two producers than the variety in the end. With Barbera there certainly seems to be a very wide stylistic range which makes it a problematic variety to buy blindly. Never heard of Ovada, will try if I come across some. Any specific producers I should be looking for?
I like La Caplana. It’s not profound, just a very pretty table wine for under $20. Pretty sure it’s made only in tank.
I think the same stylistic variation happens with Dolcetto, too. Those boozy and inky Dogliani are generally not for me. Ovada, in my experience, tend to come in a little lower in alcohol.
Cool, I really need pretty Italian reds that can be opened midweek without hesitation and I don’t want to be drinking the same wines again and again, much appreciated! Haven’t really explored Dolcetto enough to have seen that side of it but now I know to avoid the Doglianis I guess
I don’t know, I imagine there are some from Dogliani that are fine but IMO it’s overrated and often overpriced.
Schiava is another nice red that’s usually not too expensive and easy to drink. Some better examples can age nicely for a few years and take on a little bit of a pinot noir characteristic.
I Botri (Morellino) is a nice, almost natural wine. A little more plump than most Rosso di Montalcino but still not really heavy. I used to import it and we sold it at a price where it could retail around $21-22. I just checked and now in the US it is $37 If you can find it for under $25 in Europe, it’s worth a try. (btw, I know DeGrazia is a favorite whipping boy/poster child for the modernist movement but he imported this long before me. It’s hardly what people think of when it comes to manipulated, plush and modern wines.)
Yeah, not too big. About four or five hectares under vine IIRC and some are white. Some pretty old Sangiovese vines along with some lesser know varieties all organically grown. Due to small size, the fact that most people dismiss or overlook Maremma altogether (too close to Brunello for the hipsters, too obscure for non geeks) plus it’s a little bit of a quirky wine so it’s probably never going to have much distribution. I like it, though. Slightly rustic and made in a mix of various sized barrels, non of which are new.
I wouldn’t do that if I were you it’s fine land for Dolcetto, it’s more about the producer.
I have found quite a few Barbaresco producers to turn out lovely and very satisfying Dolcettos so that’s also good hunting grounds. From what I have tried probably a high success/like rate per producer tasted than in Barolo. Many of them still around €10 (rarely more than €15) at least a while back.
Some you could keep an eye out for, and good winemakers in general of course:
Dogliani:
San Fereolo
Barolo (producers):
Sandri
Roagna (I guess it could go under Barbaresco just as well)
Principiano ( Santa Anna Dolcetto)
Cavallotto
Oddero
Barbaresco:
Sottimano
Musso
Cantina del Pino
La Ca Nova
Okey-doke, I’m not going to avoid San Fereolo Thanks for the recs, indeed 7 of those 10 producers are already represented in my cellar, although mostly in the way of Barolo/Barbaresco. Sandri’s Dolcetto just arrived last week, won’t be holding onto that one for too long.
The benchmark for Dolcetto from Dogliani is Chionetti. I am not aware of any boozy/inky Dolcetto, although the relative low acidity of Dolcetto can give it an inky impression.
Vajra’s Dolcetto from Costa & Fossati is a serious Dolcetto that I highly recommend. In addition, the Bricco dell’Oriolo made by Azelia from their vines in Montelupo Albese is also highly recommended.
). There were no ifs or buts about it, it was immediately clear that this wine would not budge enough to be drinkable that evening. So I opened the Brunelli instead and man, that wine was ready to go from the first sniff and was just a super nice Sangiovese made with a light touch.
If you can find it for under $25 in Europe, it’s worth a try. (btw, I know DeGrazia is a favorite whipping boy/poster child for the modernist movement but he imported this long before me. It’s hardly what people think of when it comes to manipulated, plush and modern wines.)
it’s fine land for Dolcetto, it’s more about the producer.