Good Italian Wines : Dezzani Dolcetto d'Alba 2002

The weather in Singapore has been terrible, and I've been a victim of the terrible flu for about 2 weeks. Not that I'm whiney, but can you imagine not being able to taste or smell any foods, drinks or wines?? It was expecially torturing to lay off the wines since they're considered alcohol and every doctor always advises against drinking when you're sick. So anyway, long story short, I've finally recovered and celebrating my health with a lovely glass(bottle maybe) of wine!!

So tonight is something I brought across from Malaysia, its an Italian wine from the Piedmonte region, Dezzani Dolcetto d'Alba 2002.Dolcetto is a black grape varietal widely grown in the Piedmont and the "d'Alba" in this wine means that this wine is produced in the village of Alba. According to an Italian wine website, the name means "little sweet one," though it is nearly always a dry wine. Dolcetto wines can be tannic and fruit driven with moderate levels of acidity. They are typically meant to be consumed one to two years after release, but some of the more premium producers do make lovely ones that do well with some aging!

APPEARANCE

A dull and dark ruby with hints of rust brown. Very thick core with rather poor clarity, you can see it's lost a lot of its youth and definitely looks aged.

NOSE

A real bouquet of garden spices & herbs with a dominant preserved cherry jam. Leafy grasses and dried tobaccos undertones. After a little more breathing, there's more fruits coming out with fresh plums leading the way.

PALATE

Very nice smooth texture with a velvet finish. The tannins are aged and well behaved with a spicey feel. Good balance and excellent finish of plummy tannins.

EVOLUTION/CONCLUSION

A very good wine indeed...good age to drink and its a great wine to appreciate with authentic Italian foods & Hokkien cuisines! I can imagine myself having an oyster omelette with this wine. After about 30mins of breathing, the fruit characters are really coming out, surprisingly, its getting fresher and fresher!