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| Castello di Amorosa |
Sunday we went to Kendall Jackson Wine Estate and Gardens. A beautiful spot. Our server was Mitchell. Super nice and boy did he know about wine!
Kendall Jackson is one of the largest wine producers in the state of California. You will find their wines sold in stores throughout the U.S. We were tasting their small batch wines, those not sold in stores. Mitchell shared a lot of information with us. For example, if you take grapes grown in a valley and those grown 45 miles away on a mountain, you will be getting different flavors.
Jess Jackson produced his first Chardonnay in 1982.
Monday was our third and final wine tasting. We've had enough wine! I had selected the Napa Valley, Castello di Amorosa Winery. Translation? Castle of love. Fourth generation winemaker Dario Sattui built an authentically styled 14th century Tuscan castle winery to honor his heritage and because of his love of medieval architecture. The castle was made, as building codes allowed, the same way they were made back in the 14th century. No two rooms are alike.
Dario is the great grandson of immigrant Vittorio Sattui who founded St. Helena Wine Cellars in 1885. That winery was closed in 1920 after prohibition. Dario dreamed of reviving the family business.
Hilmarie, from South Africa, was our server. Sweet young girl that came here to work for 18 months and save money to travel. She didn't realize how expensive things were here though.
We passed a lot of wineries today, one right after another. Castello di Amorosa produces wine that is only sold at their winery, directly to customers or businesses, small batch wines. There are large batch wineries that mass produce wines that you can also buy in stores. Some do both. We passed E&J Gallo and Sutter Wineries. You have probably seen these on grocery store shelves. The three we went to all had at least some wines that could only be purchased through their wineries.
They offered a guided or self-guided tour of the castle. We went for the cheaper self- guided tour. We could wander around as long as we wanted, but we were limited to fewer rooms.
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| The Courtyard appeared to be the main tasting area for non wine club members. |
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| Today was a busy day so we got to go upstairs. |
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| Fermentation tanks |
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| The Great Hall is the administrative and social center of 14th century castles. |
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| Pat is at the confessional in the chapel. He spent a lot of time there! |
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| The drawbridge is functional. |
Where are the Piepers now? Napa, CA
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