Dolcetto

Dolcetto [dolˈtʃetto] is a black Italian wine grape variety widely grown in the Piedmont region of northwest Italy. The Italian word dolcetto means "little sweet one", but it is not certain that the name originally carried any reference to the grape’s sugar levels: it is possible that it derives from the name of the hills where the vine is cultivated. In any case the wines produced are nearly always dry. They can be tannic and fruity with moderate, or decidedly low, levels of acidity and are typically meant to be consumed one to two years after release.

History

One theory suggests the grape originated in France and was brought to Monferrato some time in the 11th century. A competing theory has the grape originating in the Piedmontese village of Dogliani. In 1593, an ordinance of the municipality of Dogliani which forbade the harvesting of dozzetti grapes earlier than Saint Matthew's Day, unless an exceptional authorization had been granted, has been taken to refer to this variety, which is still known in local dialects under the names duzet and duset. A document of 1633 records the presence of Dolcetto in the cellars of the Arboreo family of Valenza. In 1700, Barnabà Centurione sent the wine as a gift to Queen Anne of Great Britain.

Dogliani

Dogliani (Italian pronunciation: [doʎˈʎaːni]) is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Cuneo in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 60 kilometres (37 mi) southeast of Turin and about 35 kilometres (22 mi) northeast of Cuneo.

Dogliani borders the following municipalities: Belvedere Langhe, Bonvicino, Bossolasco, Cissone, Farigliano, Lequio Tanaro, Monchiero, Monforte d'Alba, Roddino, and Somano.

Aside from local craftmanship, the economy is mostly based on agriculture: most of the area is occupied by vines, used for the production of the Dolcetto di Dogliani wine. There are also several woods of common hazels.

Dogliani is also known for its Presepio Vivente. A tradition started in 1975 that occurs yearly on the night of December 23rd and 24th where the town's citizens enact the nativity scene.

History

The town was a settlement of the Ligures, a pre-Roman population. The Roman conquered its area in around 200-100 B.C, although Dogliani is mentioned for the first time in the Middle Ages, as the place of a castle and a borough surrounded by walls along the Rea torrent.