Castello di Amorosa

Before we left for our trip, we looked up a few things we really wanted to do and see. One of them was this castle in Napa Valley's wine country. Kevin was finished with meetings by noon on Tuesday, so we started driving through wine country as soon as we were finished with our lunch at In-N-Out Burger.

The castle was about an hour and a half from the city and we drove by so many wineries on the way. It was a beautiful drive and it was worth it. We finally found a place to taste wine that also appeals to our kids! 

Castello di Amorosa (Castle of Love) was built over 30 years by Dario Suttui. It's an authentic Tuscan castle of medieval architecture that doubles as a winery. He was determined to make it authentic and used the same methods and materials that would have been used 700-800 years ago. The castle contains all the elements a medieval castle would have possessed - a moat, drawbridge, 5 towers, high defensive ramparts, couryards a deep well, a functioning church, stables, a Great Hall, a prison and torture chamber and more. He furnished the castle by bringing over 200 containers from Europe. It really is quite the place to visit. 

Of course there is an entrance fee....you can pay a lot of money for a guided tour and see all 8 levels (4 of them are underground), or you can pay a more reasonable price and roam the open areas (2 levels) and then taste their wine. We chose the latter. 

As you can see, it was a gorgeous, sunny day. The wine was good and we all had fun. It was even very reasonable compared to the $30 per person wine tasting fees we ran into at other places. We only paid $20 per adult and $10 per child (and they got to taste grape juice). 

If you are in Napa Valley, be sure to visit this place!