Wine Enthusiast 92 and an Editors’ Choice:
Handsome oak spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and toast dress up this solidly made, ripe and concentrated wine. Good black-cherry and blackberry flavors glide on a velvety, moderately tannic texture.
Of the 42 Enotria wines they’ve reviewed, this one was the best – above even their $40 Nebbiolos.
Dolcetto or “the little sweet one” is often, even in the Piedmont, considered a rather simple and juicy wine of pleasure. But as their review attests, this one is both delicious and unusually serious, structured and complex. It’s also just about the best food wine there is.
Interestingly, this unusually deep and rich red spent a whopping 48 months in barrel, with 15% new oak. The winery says: “This long ageing period helps to round out the full tannins and add complexity to its fruity aromas. After a few years of cellaring, it is a superb companion for roasted meats and wild mushrooms.”
It’s also quite amazing, as tasters on Vivino have commented on previous vintages, after 20 years of age. As the winery says:
This wine is dark purple in color with inviting fruit flavors and aromas of blackberries, boysenberries and dark Bing cherries that mingle with undertones of toasty oak. The finish is fresh and long lasting with hints of spice. It is a wine that can be enjoyed young but has the depth to age for several years.
Nobody else still has this top-rated 2016, but the lowest price anywhere for the 2020 vintage is $23.
