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In wine, rules are made to be broken. Consider the case of serv-ing temperatures and Dolcetto.

Dolcetto is one of the world's most delightful red wines and one of our longtime favorites. It's made in Italy's Piedmont region, where the locals drink Dolcetto as an everyday treat.

While the name means "little sweet one," Dolcetto is dry, though it is aggressively fruity — you could call it berrylike or grapey, and we often do. It tends to have a very dark appearance, a fruity nose of blackberries or blueberries, a dry finish and slight hints of chocolate and maybe some herbs. We're particularly fond of its earthy undertones.

Dolcetto (pronounced dol-CHEH-toe) is generally a wine to buy and drink young. It usually costs less than $20 and pairs beautifully with just about any Italian food, as well as other casual dishes, especially those with tomato and herb sauces.

Dolcetto is the name of the grape the wine is made from, so we've seen a few American Dolcettos over the years, part of the growth of "Cal-Ital" varietals.

The 2002 vintage was pretty much a disaster in Piedmont because of hail. The following year was unusual, too, because of the heat. Finally, 2004 was a return to a somewhat more classic growing season. What all of this meant to us was that it was time for a new tasting.

Our question: How are the Dolcettos on shelves these days? And how are their prices, now that this wine is no longer our sweet little secret?

We find that most stores offer at least a couple of Dolcettos. None of them are produced in mass quantities, so there are a lot of names out there, and every store seems to have different ones. We bought only 2003 and 2004, because these are meant for early consumption. The bad news: Prices appear to be up. We think of Dolcetto as a $12 to $14 wine, but we paid an average of more than $15.

One of the questions we're often asked is about the "right" serving temperature for wine. As with everything else about wine, to some extent this is a matter of personal taste. In general, we feel that whites are served too cold and reds are served too warm. Personally, we prefer both reds and whites at about cellar temperature — 55 degrees.

During our Dolcetto tasting, we found that too many, when first poured straight from the temperature-controlled wine cooler, tasted perfectly fine, but too flat and broad — good, plum-blackberry fruit, some earth, but no real vitality.

Then a remarkable thing happened. In flight after flight, as the wines warmed toward room temperature, some of them tasted better. There was suddenly more of a hint of chocolate and some herbs, especially mint. Most notably, the wines got livelier. Dolcetto has good tannins but not great acidity, in general, and the warmth seemed to bring out the acids, making the wines seem livelier, more fun.

There were quite a few real winners in our tasting, but one stood out. Our notes: "Dark, rich color. Looks dense, black-purple throughout, like it has guts. Rich, dark earth on the nose. Earthy, deep, fruity flavors. Blackberry-blueberry fruit. Dry, especially on the finish. The total package. Serious or not, depending on your mood. A real purity of taste. It just goes into your skin. Very fine." This was Enzo Boglietti Dolcetto d'Alba 2004. We paid just $12.99 for it, though $14.49 appears to be a more representative price.

So, here's the bottom line: Purchase a 2004 Dolcetto. Prepare an Italian meal. Chill the bottle in the refrigerator for an hour or so to get it to cellar temperature — and then let it warm so you can see how it changes. This will add a whole new dimension of fun to a wine that's meant to be fun anyway.

In a tasting of Dolcetto from Italy's Piedmont region, these were some of our favorites. Dolcetto is best with food, from casual fare such as pasta with a hearty tomato-based sauce to simple roasted meats. These also are good with chocolate desserts — trust us.

● Vineyard/Vintage: Enzo Boglietti Dolcetto d'Alba 2004

Price: $14.49

Rating: Delicious

Tasters' comments: Best of tasting and best value. Very fine, with blackberries, blueberries and real purity of taste.

● Vineyard/Vintage: Elio Altare Dolcetto d'Alba 2004

Price: $17.49

Rating: Very Good/Delicious

Tasters' comments: Perennial favorite. Filled with blackberry fruit and earth and especially light on its feet. Seamless, with great balance. A pleasure to drink.

● Vineyard/Vintage: Bruno Porro "Vigna Ribote" Dolcetto di Dogliani 2004

Price: $11.99

Rating: Very Good

Tasters' comments: Black color, and it tastes dark, too: deep, intense, peppery and dry. Surprisingly serious for a Dolcetto, and a bit challenging. Needs a steak.

● Vineyard/Vintage: Pira Dolcetto d'Alba 2004

Price: $13.59

Rating: Very Good

Tasters' comments: Awesome dark purple color. Grapey at the front but very dry and earthy in the finish. Great fruit. Quite vibrant.

● Vineyard/Vintage: Marcarini "Boschi di Berri" Dolcetto d'Alba 2004

Price: $22.99

Rating: Very Good

Tasters' comments: Always a good name. Great combination of depth, grapiness and dryness. Quite elegant, very grown-up.

● Vineyard/Vintage: Chionetti "Briccolero" Dolcetto di Dogliani 2003

Price: $19.99

Rating: Good/Very Good

Tasters' comments: Plums and soil, with some interesting richness and a nice dash of acidity as it warms. Some dark chocolate.

● Vineyard/Vintage: Falletto di Bruno Giacosa Dolcetto d'Alba 2004

Price: $24.99

Rating: Good/Very Good

Tasters' comments: Soft, fruity and a bit herbal. No edges or depth; just grapey, pleasant fruit. A smiley-face wine.

● Vineyard/Vintage: Prunotto Dolcetto d'Alba 2003

Price: $16

Rating: Good/Very Good

Tasters' comments: Very perfumed nose, with some herbs. Ripe blackberry fruit and plenty of earth. Nicely dry, with some bittersweet chocolate.