Expert Answer:

Jane Skilton MW, Gourmet Traveller WINE columnist, writes:
Grown predominantly in the north-west Italian region of Piedmont, dolcetto grapes take their name from dolce, or sweet. It’s a relative term as the wines aren’t really sweet but just taste less acidic and drying than more serious Piedmont wines such as Barolo and those based on barbera.

The grape skins of dolcetto are so rich in pigment that producers need only ferment for a very short time to get a really inky, purple-coloured wine. But no matter how short the ferment, dolcetto always has a backbone of tannins and a slightly bitter finish and is always a dry wine. Designed to be drunk young, its best served with cheerful dishes such as tomato-based pasta or a simple mushroom risotto.

Brown Brothers blends dolcetto with shiraz to give a lighter bodied, off-dry red wine, quite different in character to the wines of Piedmont. I suspect the slight sweetness will offset the dry tannins. Brown Brothers has an excellent website that is full of useful food and wine matching tips. I like the suggestion of the Brown Brothers Dolcetto & Syrah – which the winemaker classes as both a straight red and a dessert wine, by the way – with Thai marinated lamb rump and warm peanut salad.