Hey
I got that shirt for Xmas !!!
Dell Dotto (original location) was the most pretentious winery I have ever visited. As soon as you get out they want to know which Oak you are interested in. Ridiculous, Folly, and a most aggressive sales pitch.
A friend brought over a bottle of their 2009 Sonoma Pinot last night. It was a total fruit bomb. We tasted it and stared at each other for a while, and then went back to drinking the Patty Green Berserker Cuvée.
If I visit Napa with first timers that have at least some manner of wine palate, Del Dotto is usually a first stop (and only 1st day stop). It is fun, interesting and educational, particularly for someone that has not already participated in a few hundred winery tours. They will also generously ply you with wine until you give out. That said, we usually never return a 2nd time with the same friends.
Bravo!
Once I went to a holiday party where the host had some kind of system for keeping wines fresh (like what a wine bar uses, with nitrogen or something) and had a whole bunch of stuff “on tap”, that guests could choose from. Half of them were various bottlings from Del Dotto…
FWIW, Del Dotto is not listed in the MiLB player registry, so far as I can tell.
Pape Clement also is fermenting, at least in part, in concrete amphorae. Supposed to do something; they told me what at Pape Clement when I was there, but it did not seem useful enough for me to remember.
As for Del Dotto, a friend of a friend loves these and opened some for me and others a few years ago. My sense is that the wines were ok, but were much more expensive than they should be. Buy Ridge Estate Cab instead and save money.
How is that different from a concrete tank? Or a concrete egg? Is it lined?
concrete amphorae at Pape Clement
OK. Those are what are called concrete eggs in California. They seem to be all the rage these days.
Concrete eggs are bigger. Cannot find a picture of a concrete egg, but here is a wooden egg from Domaine de Chevalier. Several times the size of the amphorae.
I thought the del blotto cave tour was fun for a casual limo group (or party bus), particularly for the last tasting of the day and if you dump/spit a lot or really desire the effects of alcohol. However, I would never buy anything from them or expect real exciting or interesting wine.
Del Dotto can be a fun and educational experience. Yes, the new winery is over the top (in a Vegas sort of way), but that in itself has some charm in it’s own right. The comparison of the same wines from 2 or 3 or more types of oak is fascinating, and a great learning experience for those who are new to tasting. The original location is indeed rustic and well worth a visit just to see the caves. Prices have climbed steadily over the last few years, taking much of the value out of the wines, we can still find a few bottles at different times of the year that are fair QPR’s.
The style of wine definitely flirts with going over the top, but they seem to do a fair job in avoiding going over the line. A notable exception to this was in most of their 2011’s that we tasted. The majority the big reds we tasted from this vintage suffered from a real green streak, with lots of acid. We were somewhat surprised to seem them putting their name on some of those. But with those long gone, 12’s, 13’s, and 14’s on the way they seem to back in form.
I can’t say I have ever gotten a “Hard Sell” at the end of the tour, but if you are driving it is important to dump and taste in moderation, as they will pour as much as you like. A nice feature of the tour at the St. Helena caves (I don’t know if they do this at the Silverado caves) at the end they usually bring out some house cured meats and home cooked pizza, which are always tasty.
I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend a visit for most people, but it’s also important to know what people want and like. Del Dotto isn’t for everyone, but most people we have spoken with have really enjoyed the visit.
I think they come in lots of sizes. I saw some at Unti that are a bit smaller than those in your photo, judging by the height of the door frames in the photo.
Does this look like a good source of mid-priced wine?
Those look like something out of the beginning parts of a Ridley Scott movie…
And separately, the estate pictures make me laugh.
That is not an estate. THIS is an estate:
I think Del Dotto is a lot of fun and the wines are good if you like oak. In fact in the 1990’s I considered Del Dotto cab equivalent to Pride’s non-reserve cab. And I genuinely loved the 1997 cab franc from barrel. I told them I’d hope they’d bottle it separately, they told me their winemaker thought so too, and they later decided to do that. I also like the mom and daughter’s elegant vibe. Dave seemed genuinely excited about the various oak treatments. I did not and do not see that as a gimmick.
My palate has veered so far away from that style that I cannot comment on more recent wines despite the 100 point score.
Visited there last fall and was taken aback by the arrogance of the workers. Getting beyond that, I found the wines overpriced and a bit thin. You can do much better in that price range throughout the valley. It was interesting however to taste the various affects of oak. I hear they have a huge following willing to pay so maybe the wines are just are not my style.