Around Alba, in the shadow of the great Nebbiolo hills, Dolcetto is the wine of the everyday table — deeply coloured, soft, fruity and ready young, the red the winemaker pours while the Barolo sleeps in cask. It fills the glass with blackberry and black cherry and signs off with the grape's trademark note of bitter almond.
Undemanding by design, it is nonetheless taken with real care by the region's growers, who plant it on the cooler sites and prize it for its drinkability. It is the generous, welcoming face of a region otherwise famous for patience and austerity.