Renzo’s ‘Sori della Rivolia’ Dolcetto is a superb example of what the grape can achieve when treated with care: he uses neither pesticides nor herbicides in his vineyards, and vinifies using traditional methods, working the way his father’s father did in the tiny village of Diano, farming and bottling with the cycles of the moon. Uncomplicated by oak or over-extraction, the wine possesses an impressive purity of fruit and delicate floral undertones while retaining just a touch of Italian rusticity. Intense waves of pulpy purple plum rush over crushed violets, blackberries, roasted almond, and clove at the onset. Dense yet vibrant on the palate, black cherry fruit is framed by plentiful fine tannins and savory suggestions of dried herbs, leather, earth, and black pepper. Fresh, laser-focused, and appetizingly tannic, with an overall seductive personality and lots of food-friendly acidity, this is an easy weeknight pop and pour still with loads of sophistication.
Renzo Castella's decades-old, pesticide and herbicide-free vineyards comprise just 8 hectares of Nebbiolo, Dolcetto, a wee bit of Barbera and Riesling, and hug the borderline between Diano D’Alba (one of only seven villages to be granted DOCG status for Dolcetto) and Serralunga, Barolo. If you look at a geological map of the Langhe, you can literally see the small vein of limestone creeping over the border from Barolo and into Renzo's backyard, but essentially nowhere else in Diano – it's a supremely unique and impressive micro-terroir, and is ideally situated to grow both Nebbiolo and Dolcetto, of which Renzo has become a master. Although the Castella family has been farming the same vines since the early 1900s and Renzo is deeply experienced and has a formal oenological education, he seemingly has zero ego, or any desire to become famous or ‘build his brand.’ (There is no flashy website, no tasting room…only a small stone cellar that shares a driveway with the home of his parents.) The wines are delicious, deliver absurdly high QPR value (and as such have become ‘darlings’ of the sommelier community), and we are excited to have them in store for the first time for this month’s club.