Castello di Amorosa — The Castle in the Napa Valley
Napa Valley, CA
Nestled in the sun drenched hills and vineyards of the Napa Valley sits a most peculiar site: an authentic 13th century Tuscan Castle! Its name is the Castello di Amorosa, Italian for Castle of Love, and everything about it was built to be as authentic as any in Europe. The building of the Castello required authentic castle building techniques from the master masons brought over from Europe to the setting of millions of stone pieces of the castle by hand. No wonder then that it took fifteen years to build from idea to fruition.
The Castello
Going up the winding road of the one hundred and seventy acre property leads up to the Castello itself. Made out of stones imported from demolished Hapsburg palaces as well as handmade bricks, the Castello contains five towers including the main North Tower and a “battle-damaged” tower to the south, a drawbridge, a Tuscan courtyard, ramparts, and fortified castle walls. As the Castello di Amorosa is a winery, vineyards surround the castle creating spectacular vistas of the Napa Valley hills and grape fields from atop the castle walls. A “crush pad,” a place to crush and process the grapes, is located behind the Castello. Elsewhere on the property, there’s a scenic lake and a Victorian home, used as the home of the owner of the Castello.
Inside, the Castello is no less impressive. The Castello has eight levels in total: four above ground and four below with 107 rooms; 95 devoted to wine making. Inside the castle walls, visitors will find a Great Hall complete with a fireplace from the time of Columbus as well as hand-painted fresco walls featuring medieval landscapes and people, a chapel with confessional, the Il Passito Room for the Castello di Amorosa wines members, a Royal Apartment, and the tower rooms themselves. Since this is a Tuscan castle inspired from the sunny Tuscany region of Italy, there’s an inside/outside feel to the castle. The Tuscan courtyard is the centerpiece of the property with loggias overlooking it along with terraces, ramparts, halls with suit of armor displays, and of course, the breathtaking tops of the towers themselves.
The depths of the castle houses the Grand Barrel Room where the wines are held but also doubles as an entertaining space for such dignitaries like former California Governor, the “Governator” Arnold Schwarzenegger, former NY Mayor Rudy Giuliani, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other celebrities like football greats Joe Montana and Jerry Rice, singer Jon Bon Jovi, and actor Robert Redford. The Il Ducale Room is for “secret” meetings but is great for intimate gatherings and no castle is complete without a dungeon and torture chamber. The torture chamber holds an eclectic mix of torture devices including the Judas Cradle, the rack, and the Iron Maiden.
The “Mad King”
This awe-inspiring castle was the dream of one man, the “mad king” Dario Sattui. He came from a wine-making family and his great grandfather planted roots in the Napa Valley after immigrating to America from his native Italy. The mad king didn’t set out to build a castle at first; he only wanted to set down a simple vineyard on property he bought in Calistoga, California. “Well, I’ll build just something small,” the mad king said. “I’ll bring a slice of Italy to the Napa Valley.” Yet, his fascination with medieval architecture would not let him go, and the idea of the Castello di Amorosa began to take root. In the 1970s and ’80s, he toured all over Europe exploring the abandoned castles and monasteries of Europe especially those in Italy. Back in those days, rural people began to move en masse to the cities leaving behind the castles that dotted the countryside. Enterprising people, usually foreigners from England and Switzerland, saw value in those old buildings and began to renovate them. A young Dario couldn’t afford these castles but he would dress up anyways to pretend to be an interested buyer and get a tour of the castles. For those he couldn’t visit through the normal channels, he would sneak in and look around the property.
By the ’90s, he knew he wanted to build something big: a castle of his own, and throughout the ’90s and the early 2000s, the Castello rose from the ground. The construction of the Castello stretched his finances. He took loans wherever he could and sold as much wine as possible, but those were difficult days. As he says it, he lost his hair and divorced his wife, but the Castello kept rising and rising. Though times were tough, Sattui didn’t cut corners. If something was built wrong, they tore it down and had to start over. In 2007, without knowing how the public would react — Sattui said he feared people would ridicule him for building it — the Castello di Amorosa opened to the public.
It was a hit. Word of the castle in the Napa Valley spread and so too did sales of the Castello di Amorosa wines. The Castello’s wines can only be bought through the Castello’s website. These wines like Merlot, Pinot Grigio, and Cabernet Sauvignon rank as one of the best in the Napa Valley and the world winning awards from the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition, the Napa Valley Vintner’s Association, and the American Fine Wine Competition.
The Castello di Amorosa has become a symbol of the Napa Valley and even the state of California. The Castello was featured in one of the “Visit California” commercials. The “Dream Big” commercial has Californians in various iconic California locales like the Golden Gate Bridge and a Hollywood film lot. In one frame, a couple strolls through the vineyards, and a man says “Maybe we do live in a fantasy” with the Castello in the background.
Renown Growing
With its renown growing, the Napa Valley Wine Train has made it one of its featured stops as well as a favorite for corporate retreats. The animation studio Pixar visited the Castello in advance of their Scottish themed movie Brave. Popular festivals are held in the castle as well. Revelers can enjoy Valentine’s Day, Christmas, New Year’s and Halloween at the Castello with events like the Royal Hearts Valentine Gala, Holiday Wreaths for Charity, the New Year’s Masquerade Ball, and the Pagan Ball. Harvest time, when the grapes are picked and readied as the year’s crop, is a special occasion and celebrated in the Harvest Celebration and Stomp event. Visitors, however, don’t need a special occasion to visit the Castello. Tours are available for Napa Valley visitors, and wine tasting is included in the ticket price. But sorry brides: though the Castello has a chapel, weddings aren’t allowed. You can direct your ire at the zoning board: the Castello couldn’t get the proper licenses. Not to be discouraged, many brides still take advantage of the Castello by using it as a backdrop in wedding photography and announcements. Google is replete with beautiful brides and brides-to-be photographed at the Castello.
The Castello di Amorosa has become a must-see tourist attraction in the Napa Valley, and its combination of romance, authenticity, and grandeur makes it one of the best castles in America. As they say in Italy, mi amore!
