Dogliani

Dogliani is a small DOCG of around 400 hectares located around 7km from the southerly border of Barolo. Unlike its more famous neighbour it is Dolcetto rather than Nebbiolo that is the king of grape varieties here, with these vineyards producing Italy's ultimate expressions of this variety.

So seriously is Dolcetto taken here that the maximum yield allowed for Dogliani Superiore is stricter than that of Barolo: a mere 7 tonnes per hectare compared to 8 t/ha in Barolo (elsewhere, Dolcetto d'Alba the largest of Dolcetto's DOCs, is permitted up to 9 t/ha).

Dolcetto is a delicious variety that, whilst it has less acidity than Barbera and Nebbiolo, has great concentration of dark cherry flavours and robust tannins. It has, wrongly in our opinion, been compared to France's Beaujolais. This is mostly due to the thinner, lighter, lacking in substance Dolcettos produced from the north facing, 3rd choice vineyards of other DOCs in Langhe where Nebbiolo and Barbera are given preference. Where it is planted on the more favourable slopes, as it is in Dogliani, it can produce wines with body and substance, more akin to the fuller styles of Loire Cabernet Francs.