2021 Dolcetto D'Alba DOC 0,75l Cantina Mascarello
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Tasting notes
From a vintage that was especially favorable to this varietal, the 2021 Dolcetto d'Alba shows a firm and solid quality of fruit with rich, juicy flavors of blackberry and sweet cherry. Maria Teresa Mascarello explains that Dolcetto is a very delicate grape that is extremely vintage-sensitive. It needs healthy conditions and steep diurnal temperature shifts, otherwise the berries are compromised. Unfortunately, acreage to Dolcetto is rapidly declining, she explains, because vintners prefer to plant more lucrative Nebbiolo and Barbera instead. Maria Teresa Mascarello reports that she lost anywhere from 40% to 50% of her Nebbiolo production in 2022 due to drought at critical times during a very hot summer growing season. The 2022 vintage was definitely not easy on the late-ripening variety planted in low-trellised vineyards, she confirms. However, yields started off on the heavy side before the drought. The resulting fruit achieved higher alcohol levels (at about 14.5% for the Nebbiolo), but the acidity is balanced.
Critic scores
Monica Larner, Wine Advocate
Walter Speller, jancisrobinson.com
More reviews and scores
From a vintage that was especially favorable to this varietal, the 2021 Dolcetto d'Alba shows a firm and solid quality of fruit with rich, juicy flavors of blackberry and sweet cherry. Maria Teresa Mascarello explains that Dolcetto is a very delicate grape that is extremely vintage-sensitive. It needs healthy conditions and steep diurnal temperature shifts, otherwise the berries are compromised. Unfortunately, acreage to Dolcetto is rapidly declining, she explains, because vintners prefer to plant more lucrative Nebbiolo and Barbera instead.
The 2021 Dolcetto d'Alba is rich, deep and wonderfully expressive. A burst of dark cherry/plum, lavender and spice lends notable richness. In 2021 the Dolcetto marries sumptuous fruit with a total sense of classicism that is so appealing. The 2021 is a super-Dolcetto. Don't miss it!
Deep violet crimson. On the nose, intense, concentrated and pure with bags of blackberry. On the palate, fresh, lively, concentrated, pure and with fine, sandy tannins. Very long, precise and hedonistic at the same time. (WS)
About the producer
Bartolo Mascarello is one of the most respected, traditionalist Barolo producers. The Piedmont estate makes one of the region’s finest expressions of Nebbiolo.