In this video, Bob Paulinski Master of Wine discusses affordable red wines from Piedmont, Italy, each coming from near the town of Alba. Included are three wines, all priced between $20 to $30 per bottle. Wines that overdeliver for the money that can be enjoyed without extended aging, along with offering a strong sense of place. Each of the three wines offers a distinctly unique style. There won’t be any discussion of ultra-premium, and long-lived Barolo or Barbaresco. That’ll be covered in a separate video.
To start, the 2024 Mauro Sebaste Dolcetto d’Alba Contessa Rosalia. It’s fermented in stainless steel; it doesn’t see a toothpick’s worth of oak. I picked this up at Total Wine, but it’s also sold in some other markets. I paid $19.99 before any discount.
2024 Guido Porro Barbera d’Alba Vigna Santa Caterina, it’s a small-scale wine source, and for me, it’s one of the best underappreciated properties in all of Piedmont. I picked it up at Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant for $28.00.
2023 Rocca Felice Nebbiolo d’Alba, made entirely from Nebbiolo, is made to be more accessible early on, versus Barolo or Barbaresco. Aged in large neutral oak barrels. I picked it up at Total Wine, but it’s also sold in other markets. I paid $21.99 before any discount.
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Chapter Markers:
00:00 – 00:37 Piedmont Introduction
00:38 – 03:57 Dolcetto
03:58 – 06:18 Barbera
06:19 – 08:54 Nebbiolo
08:55 – 10:01 Piedmont Wrap-up
17 Comments
Do you have a preference between Barbera and Dolcetto?
Bob, I love drinking these type of wines . I have 2 Sottimano Barbera D'Alba Pairolero waiting for me. I love this winery and Cavolotto is another favorite
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Great video Bob! I enjoy Barbera and typically will get Vietti. I think it's a good wine and at $18.99, I think it's a good value. I love Nebbiolo and it's been a while since I have had Dolcetto. I checked and the TW near me has both in stock. Definitely will pick some up next time I'm there.
Really nice video, Bob. Appreciate your take on these. Always been a Barbera fan; haven't had good luck with Dolcetto, but I think I've just chosen badly. Going to give this one a try. Thanks again.
Big fan of Dolcetto. As to your wine glass. Lovely. I tend to break nice wine glasses. Kermit Lynch is a wonderful place to buy wine. Here in Portland we have a wine shop called Vinopolis which is pretty darned good. Cheers Bob.
Such a varied region for styles, prices and grapes! Thank you!
I love Dolcetto. Barbera is also good. Neither are easily available in my markets…or maybe I just don’t search them out.
I heard somewhere that Dolcetto means "little sweet one" to convey a term of endearment, not that it is a sweet wine. Great job Bob. How would you compare Sangiovese to the other big 3? Thanks, and looking forward to the live show Saturday morning.
Great video! I will be traveling through the Willamette and Rogue Valleys down to Redding, CA, in May. Do you have any wineries you'd recommend? I know there are a number of high-end options, but I'm looking for $50ish Pinots and some excellent Sauvignon Blancs.
I love a great dolcetto. Not from Piedmonte, but for a beautiful summer porch sipper the Hookey from Meeker Vineyards is excellent.
Great video Bob thank you. I'm going seek out the 2024 Mauro Sebaste Dolcetto d'Alba Contessa Rosali from Total Wine here in AZ. Also Kermit Lynch is a well renowned importer and their wines always deliver. Each time I visit family in Oakland, I ask them to take me to KM store so I can fine some good wine during my visit.
Now we're talkin'!!!! I absolutely love Italian wines! Will look for all 3 of these, but I have to tell you that I always have about 5 or 6 Italian reds in my wine refrigerator from different areas. By the way, is that a Burgundy/Pinot Noir glass you were using or just a larger bowled Bordeaux glass? I have only used my Burgundy glass for Burgundy and Pinot Noir. Wondering if it would be helpful to use the bigger bowl with the narrower top for Italian reds. Tonight's wine for me was a Sanford Winery Block 5 Pinot Noir. So darn good I came 1 glass shy of drinking the whole bottle! Took everything I had to put that bit away!😂 Another great video! Cheers my friend!🍷
I really appreciate your videos. They’re extremely helpful. Huge fan!
Great stuff, Bob. Big fan if Barbara D’Alba and hope to visit the area later this summer. But for Easter weekend, we have ventured north to Edinburgh, so I will be sampling some Whiskies this weekend! 😂
Nice cover of the three big things in Piedmont. Loved the region when I was there, love the wines. All three you tasted seemed expressive, so kudos to theproducers. Cheers!
Your hair's looking slick man!