When I saw the label on this bottling, I remembered reading an article about the appassimento method of drying grapes on beds of straw in a climate controlled room to concentrate flavors and sugars before pressing them.
This is the same process used in making Amarone wines, which can be sublime to drink, and can age for decades in good to great vintages although different varieties of grapes are used for an Amarone.
The grapes used in the Dezzani are Barbera (51%) and Dolcetto (49%), which make good wines on their own. So I was interested to see them used in this style of wine. After doing some research I found out that wines from the Piemonte area were not allowed to be made by this method until 2014.
Upon opening notes of cherry and red plum in the nose, along with a hint of tobacco leaf. Definite flavors of cherry, plum and perhaps red raspberry/strawberry with a pleasant fruit finish and balanced acidity.
I served this with our Christmas day dinner that included an oven roasted turkey, a ham with a Dijon/brown sugar/aged Balsamic vinegar glaze, and a grilled, herb crusted eye of the round roast, sweet potatoe casserole, squash, baked potatoes, etc... and the wine went well with all of the various dishes and flavors.
After the wine had been decanted for an hour or more, deeper notes in the nose developed reminding me of black plums and darker berries. The palate also reflected the change in the wine as it opened up, and had a nice slightly thick mouthfeel. Everyone who tried the wine liked it, and wanted to know where to find it.
I think you could pair this bottling with a number of different foods, from pizza to prime rib, red sauce pasta and more. Let me know what you tried it with....
In the power buy section of many NH Liquor stores for $12.99, a good quality wine at a good price.
Cheers!
Ed
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