One of the most beautiful spots in Napa, Castello di Amorosa is a must visit for anyone interested in Tuscan history. The history dates back many years with Dario Stattui, who is is the great grandson of pioneering vintner Vittorio Sattui, an Italian immigrant who founded St. Helena Wine Cellars in 1885. The Sattui family lived at the winery, even after Prohibition closed the business in 1920. 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. In 1975, he launched V. Sattui Winery in St. Helena. Then in 1993, and after decades of searching Dario finally found the ideal parcel — 171 acres near Calistoga where Colonel William Nash had planted one of California's first vineyards in 1846. 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. And the rest has been history.
It is incredible how this was built. The Castello was finally born using more than 8,000 tons of hand-chiseled local stone and nearly one million antique bricks imported from Europe to complete the construction. More than 200 containers of old materials and furnishings were shipped over from Europe to decorate the interior. The construction took 15 years and opened to the public on April 7, 2007.
I love the 2022 Castello di Amorosa ‘Il Rubino’ Pinot Noir (OB, 92) which is juicy and delicious Pinot Noir from this warm vintage. Learn more about this beautiful winery at https://castellodiamorosa.com and here are my reviews of the outstanding new Castello di Amorosa wines.
2024 Castello di Amorosa ‘Cresta D’Oro Vineyard’Chardonnay- The 2024 Castello di Amorosa ‘Cresta D’Oro Vineyard’Chardonnay offers great flavor density with poached pear and salted French bread flavors alongside shades of roasted pineapple. Full-bodied, with great poise, enjoy now and over the next eight years. Drink 2025-2033- 92
2023 Castello di Amorosa ‘Reserve’ Chardonnay- The 2023 ‘Reserve’ comes from a range of sites throughout the Napa Valley. Once on the nose it offers buttered popcorn, Japanese pear and starfruit tones alongside baking spice laced hazelnut. The palate is soft and seamless throughout the drinking experience, with outstanding weight and length. Drink 2025-2033- 94
2024 Castello di Amorosa ‘Rosato di Pinot Noir’ Rose- The dense and intense 2024 Castello di Amorosa ‘Rosato di Pinot Noir’ Rose offers copies minerals on the palate, with tart cranberry and Yakma cherry fruits that combine with a smooth mouthfeel. Enjoy now. Drink 2025-2031- 92
2022 Castello di Amorosa ‘Il Rubino’ Pinot Noir- The 2022 ‘Il Rubino’ offers cola and Bing cherry with cranberry fruits that combine with sassafras and a smooth mouthfeel on the palate. Showing good tension considering the heat of the vintage, enjoy now and over the next few years. Drink 2025-2031- 92
2023 Castello di Amorosa ‘Morning Dew Ranch’ Pinot Noir- The generous and mineral-laden 2023 ‘Morning Dew Ranch’ comes from this cooler location in the Anderson Valley. This is loaded with rich dark fruits and cola tones on the palate, with damp earthy notes. Dense and delicious, enjoy now and over the next ten years. Drink 2025-2035- 93
2024 Castello di Amorosa ‘Cresta D’Oro Vineyard’ Pinot Noir- The 2024 ‘Cresta D’Oro Vineyard’ is set in the Green Valley and combines 115, 777 and Pommard 4 clonal selections.
This is heady and well-structured with a refined mouthfeel. Cran-cola and pomegranate seed flavors combine with Mandarin orange zest, damp soils and fresh sage. Drink 2025-2035- 93
2022 Castello di Amorosa ‘Voyager Vineyard’ Sangiovese- The 2022 ‘Voyager Vineyard’ Sangiovese offers dusty soils with red currants, red cherry candy and shades of sagebrush. Juicy and delicious, with bright acidity, enjoy now. Drink 2025-2031- 90
2022 Castello di Amorosa ‘Zingaro’ Zinfandel- The 2020 ‘Zingaro’ comes from old vine Zinfandel vineyards that neighbor the Pacific Ocean. This is jammy and delicious wine with a great melange of red and dark fruits alongside Arabica bean and salty soils. Drink 2025-2031- 90
2021 Castello di Amorosa ‘Quattro’ Cabernet Sauvignon- The 2021 ‘Quattro’ was sourced from four locations across the Napa Valley. This comes off well-structured with black currants, blackberry pie, tar and tobacco leaf. Medium-bodied and well-structured, enjoy now and over the next ten years. Drink 2025-2035- 92
2019 Castello di Amorosa ‘Napa Valley’ Cabernet Sauvignon- The outstanding 2019 Castello di Amorosa ‘Napa Valley’ Cabernet Sauvignon comes from a range of sites in Napa. Stored in new French oak barrels, this delivers creme de cassis and loganberry notes on the nose alongside espresso grounds, loamy soils and shades of dark chocolate. The palate is refined and elegant with a seamless mouthfeel and great sense of Napa character. Drink 2025-2035- 93
2022 Castello di Amorosa ‘Diamond Mountain District’ Cabernet Sauvignon- The really good 2022 Castello di Amorosa ‘Diamond Mountain District’ Cabernet Sauvignon comes from this hot vintage in the Napa Valley. It is soft and approachable with medium-bodied black fruits with tar, scorched earth and wintergreen. Drink 2025-2033- 92
2019 Castello di Amorosa ‘Il Barone’ Cabernet Sauvignon- The gorgeous 2019 Castello di Amorosa ‘Il Barone’ is inky in the glass. It opens with opulent aromatics of creme de cassis, anise, tar, blackberry compote and violets. The palate is dense and well-structured with refined tannins and bright acidity. Drink 2025-2038- 94
2019 Castello di Amorosa ‘La Castellana’ Red Wine- A Super Tuscan-inspired wine, the 2019 Castello di Amorosa ‘La Castellana’ Red Wine combines 70% Cabernet Sauvignon with the remainder Merlot and Sangiovese. Very dark in the glass, this delivers heady aromatics of black rose petals, tobacco leaf and loamy soils alongside shades of pencil lead. The palate is well-structured with serious texture and verve. The balance and moving parts here is incredibly good. Drink 2025-2038- 94