Luciano Sandrone Dolcetto d’Alba 2021 (6 Bottles) Dolcetto d’Alba, Italy

$279.00 GST Included

AUSTRALIA WIDE SHIPPING INCLUDED

Sandrone’s Dolcetto is without doubt one of the very finest examples of the region. In his seminal book, Barolo to Valpolicella, Nicolas Belfrage describes the Sandrone Dolcetto as a “mouthful of sheer fruit, but with guts.” That book was last published in 2004, and the wine has only improved in the vintages that have followed. The consistent quality of this wine–its purity, silky texture, fine tannins and balance–can only come with perfectly ripe fruit from top sites.

In this case the sites are also high altitude, which brings added freshness to the layers of fruit. From Estate vineyards in Monforte d’Alba, Sandrone draws from Castelletto and Cascina Pe Mol. The latter sits at the top of the ridge leading from Monforte d’Alba to the hamlet of Perno and is among the highest vineyards of the region. In Novello, the fruit comes from Rocche di San Nicola and the whitish marls of Ravera where the easterly exposure contributes perfume and aromatic complexity. Joining these sites now is Barolo fruit from Rivassi and Crosia.

The wine was made only with natural yeasts, and each parcel was vinified separately before blending. There was no wood contact. The 2019 really is a surprising wine (in the best sense!) that shows a significant evolution in style. It’s a super-fine, autumnal-noted wine with characters that you might more readily associate with Nebbiolo (dark cherry, menthol, forest floor, florals, pan juices and almond oil) than Dolcetto.

Really classical in both its flavour spectrum and structure (there are plenty of fine tannins) this is a wonderful Piemontese red that is already superb drinking. It will be a revelation for lovers of classic Piemontese reds.

Category:

Description

“Every year and every bottle tells the story of a dream come true: the young cellarman who became one of Barolo’s emblamatic figures.” Gambero Rosso 2009

“In a region full of outspoken, colorful producers, Sandrone remains soft-spoken and rather shy, but his wines speak for themselves rather eloquently.” Antonio Galloni, The Wine Advocate

Sandrone is the Barolo producer whose wines most remind us of Burgundy. The suave, seamless texture, fine tannins and depth of flavour of these Barolos makes them some of the most sought-after wines of the region. With age, they are so polished, so pure, so seductive. Sandrone uses 500lt barrels (typically only 10% – 20% new), picks at very low yields and bottles his wines before they lose their freshness or purity. His wines are wonderfully intense and vibrant with ripe, fine tannins. They drink well young and age brilliantly. Like most of the greatest producers he takes the best of the old school and incorporates the best of the new.
The wines are bright and beautifully sophisticated which we suppose is up to date, but many of the methods are essentially old school: organic viticulture (is that modern or traditional?), open-top fermentation tanks, elongated skin contact, natural yeast fermentation, no barriques and no additions, bottling without filtration, and so on.

Of course what is most important is that irrespective of fashion or style, Luciano Sandrone crafts wines of profound integrity, purity and deep expression. These are wines made with passion and honesty. They provide great drinking pleasure both when young and with bottle age. As a fastidious and naturally talented vigneron, Sandrone’s obligation to keep the unique signature of the terroirs alive is vividly captured in the wonderfully intense wines

Fine Wine Cellars

On the one hand, our role as a merchant of all things wine & spirits could not be simpler. We aim to source the most delicious, the most authentic, and the highest quality products possible from Australia and around the world in order to offer them to our clients. We live or die by how well we perform this task. Of course things are rarely as simple or as easy as they seem. Hunting for wines & spirits is no different. Apart from the months spent travelling, countless days and evenings spent tasting and the outrageous wine expenditure in the name of ‘research’, sourcing quality wine and spirits requires expertise and experience. Understanding the potential of a producer and their products is much more than just a slurp and a spit.