Dario bought the property, which had acres of beautiful forest and hills, a stream and a lake, and a great Victorian home where he decided to settle. Calistoga, CA 94515 Because of the pandemic, we didn't get to tour the castle, but we did see a few rooms that were spectacular. Mix and Match your purchase. "I wanted to specialize in making small lots of primarily Italian-style wines and showcase them in an authentic, medieval castle setting where they would be sold directly to the public, not in stores or restaurants.". We started talking and I told him of my dream. A classic Italian varietal wine with aromas of dried strawberry, red cherry, rhubarb, and sweet exotic spices framed by supple, toasty oak. It sat on a hundred-seventy beautiful acres of forest and hills with a stream, a lake, one of the first houses built in Napa County and a great Victorian home where I chose to live. Castello di Amorosa. Castello di Amorosa Winery - The 12th Century Napa Valley Castle Winery - is a producer of hand-crafted Italian style wines. After college and some extensive travel in Europe, Dario launched V. Sattui Winery in St. Helena in 1975. Dario returned to the U.S. in 1972, with plans to re-open the family winery that had been dormant for more than 50 years. I’d start each day before dawn and travel road after road until I found something of interest, usually returning after dark. I was naive enough to think I was ready to begin. It sat on a hundred-seventy beautiful acres of forest and hills with a stream, a lake, one of the first houses built in Napa County and a great Victorian home where I chose to live. Image on right: The spectacular view from the castle’s North tower. It took more than 8,000 tons of hand-chiseled local stone and nearly one million antique bricks imported from Europe to complete the castle. Castello di Amorosa is the realization of an all-consuming passion. I stayed at his house and we talked for three days. #4 of 80 things to do in Calistoga. It makes a range of wines but it is best known for its wines made from Italian grape varieties like Sangiovese , Primitivo , and Pinot Grigio , as well as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot . 707.967.6272, HOLIDAY HOURS Castello di Amorosa is one of the American top-notch historical sites located in the heart of Napa Valley at Calistoga, California. 4045 St Helena Hwy Luxury Tuscan-style homes are currently the rage in California and I have seen countless attempts to reproduce them authentically; but most have failed to a lesser or greater degree. He agreed to come with six of his Austrian masons and stay for three months building the first two rooms, so our crew could learn from them. A History of the Project. I’ve always thought of going back and showing him what I had accomplished, but I’m sure he is long gone. In 1993, I purchased the spectacular property upon which I built Castello di Amorosa. As a child, he would play in the winery's underground cellars and dream of reviving the family business. You either do it right or people will know it’s not authentic.". Concurrently with replanting thirty acres of vineyard on the property to Sangiovese, Cabernet and Merlot, I began drawing plans for the winery building. The only problem was that 8,500 square feet would only contain a fraction of my ideas…. “A wine cellar I can understand,” he said, “but a whole castle?”. However, throughout my adult life, I had been fascinated with Italian medieval architecture; and, because of my passion- some would say obsession- I had already bought a handful of ancient properties in Italy, including a small castle near Florence (now sold), a medieval monastery near Siena (now being refurbished) and a Medici palace in southern Tuscany, which we are remodeling into a period hotel. “In my mind, everything had to be authentic, or it wouldn’t be worth the effort. We visited during the pandemic, and a heat wave, and experienced the tasting outside, under umbrellas. Last Modified: April 13, 2020. Over 200 containers of old, hand-made materials were shipped to Napa Valley to maintain that authenticity. I vowed to build a castle as I made my wines, without compromise. My plan was to incorporate all the ideas and details that I had assembled from my first trip to Italy in 1965 in my 8,500 square-foot winery. But I’m in a good mood… would you like to taste the wine we make here?”. It was a labor love for winemaker Dario Sattui, building and expanding his unique medieval castle inspired winery Castello di Amorosa. Interested in newsletters, promotions, and wine club events? Dario is the great grandson of pioneering vintner Vittorio Sattui, an Italian immigrant who founded St. Helena Wine Cellars in 1885. 4045 St Helena Hwy (If someone accompanied me, they never came twice!) ♦ Weekday: 9:30am – 5:00pm ♦ Mother’s Day: 9:30am – 5:00pm, OPEN: BY RESERVATION During our conversation, though, three salient points were made: her husband was a naval architect, he had built their two houses (which I could see were new but appeared centuries-old) and, as importantly, he’d always talked about returning to the U.S. After lunch, I decided to telephone this man, knowing the chance was slim that he would share my vision. I would create a fantasy, a maze where every room and space opened into a new and different adventure as one traveled throughout the building. You can't see the castle from the highway, so you will need to look for their address and sign instead. I was the first person to arrive one day, equipped with a camera, plenty of film, a tape measure, my sketch pad and plenty of sharpened pencils. He spent 14 years constructing the replica of a 13th-century stone castle on 171-acres and every piece of it is authentic. I would specialize in making small lots of primarily Italian-style wines, showcase them in an authentic, medieval castle setting and sell them directly to the public, not in stores or restaurants. "Determined to make the Castello authentic in every respect, I used only old, hand-made materials and I built it employing the same methods and materials that would have been used 700-800 years ago. Castello di Amorosa is an architectural wonderland right in the middle of Napa Valley. He built small wine cellars for friends, using old world materials and techniques. In 1993, he finally found the ideal parcel — 171 acres near Calistoga where Colonel William Nash had planted one of California's first vineyards in 1846. All right reserved. All right reserved. The site is nestled in the evergreen trees at the top of a hill overlooking the northern end of the Napa Valley. Open today: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM. Containing some of the most beautiful vaulted wine cellars in the world, Castello di Amorosa has fulfilled Dario’s dream of producing superior quality wines with the same love and attention to detail that went into building his castle. Pre-production work at Castello di Amorosa is to begin on Nov. 9 and filming should be completed by Feb. 13. With $8,000 and a novel approach to the wine business, he re-opened V. Sattui Winery in St. Helena in 1975 and turned a profit in the first year of operation. (To be continued…). For more information, you can find the Castello di Amorosa website here. Talk:Castello di Amorosa. I would include all the elements of a true medieval castle- a moat and drawbridge, high walls and towers on a hillside, a great hall, courtyards and loggias, an apartment for the nobles, a big kitchen, an outdoor brick oven for baking bread, a church, a horse stables, secret passage ways and, of course, a prison and torture chamber. All day I studied the cellars, essentially drawing and photographing with precision every room that moved me. Fritz Gruber, a master builder from Austria, had, like me, grown in love with medieval architecture and spent countless hours studying how to do it. One of Napa Valley's most well-known attractions is still standing, but it has reportedly suffered major losses on the property. He first intended to build an 8,500 square foot building without cellars. Grazie! Then please sign up for our mailing list. Save. In 1972, he returned to the U.S. intent on re-establishing his great grandfather’s legacy at V. Sattui winery. 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