Celebrating Over 30 Years of Winemaking
Located in the beautiful Napa Valley, Del Dotto Family Wineries & Caves focus on small production, premium wines. Dave Del Dotto has spent the past 30 years acquiring vineyards in some of the best American Viticultural Areas (AVAs) including Rutherford, Oakville, St. Helena, Howell Mountain, and Fort Ross-Seaview Sonoma Coast. Currently, our family produces cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, merlot, sangiovese and sauvignon blanc from our Napa Valley vineyards, as well as pinot noir, chardonnay and limited amounts of syrah, sauvignon blanc, sparkling grenache and mourvedre from our Cinghiale (wild boar) Vineyard in the King Ridge region of the Sonoma Coast.
Rutherford Estate – Rutherford Bench Appellation – Single Vineyard
Rutherford is our original Estate vineyard, the homestead of Dave & Yolanda Del Dotto, and the location of our Estate Winery & Caves opened in 2007. Consisting of nine planted acres originally with Margaux clones in 1990, our Rutherford vineyard is more subdued and elegant than our other cabernet sauvignon vineyards. A favorite of those preferring traditional Napa Valley cabernets, it showcases the earthy characteristics that make Rutherford famous for its “Rutherford Dust”.
We produce numerous small production wines from Rutherford including a 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, our Bordeaux-style blend “The David,” a 100% Cabernet Franc (“7 Rows”), and Giovanni’s Tuscan Reserve, a blend of Rutherford Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon from Vineyard 887.
Vineyard 887 – St. Helena Appellation – Single Vineyard
Vineyard 887 is located at the southern end of the St. Helena AVA. The eight-acre vineyard planted in 2000 and named for its street address off Highway 29 creates some of the most elegant and berry fruit-forward cabernet sauvignon in our collection. The finely structured tannins in our 887 Cabernet are what inspired the nick name for our wines “Silk Juice.” The cabernets feature lush blueberry and black cherry fruit, and its softer structure allows its aging in various new barriques to exceptionally reflect the unique characteristics of each barrel. From 2012 onward, Vineyard 887 was receiving 96–98 point ratings from Robert Parker Jr.
We produce a 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from this single vineyard site along with a super Tuscan style blend, Giovanni’s Tuscan Reserve which is Cabernet Sauvignon & Sangiovese blend.
St. Helena Mountain – St. Helena Appellation – Single Vineyard
Contrary to its name, this vineyard is located on the valley floor nestled against the Mayacamas Mountains, west of St. Helena, and neighboring the legendary Dr. Crane Vineyard. This vineyard features eleven acres of cabernet sauvignon which exude dark rich cassis characteristics, along with silky tannins and an exceptional finish. This world class vineyard historically has received 98–100-point scores from Robert Parker Jr. Fitting that this vineyard is the “backbone of The Beast,” making up half of the blend in our flagship Cabernet Sauvignon, The Beast.
Oakville Estate – Piazza Del Dotto – Oakville Appellation
Nestled perfectly between the Mayacamas and Vaca Mountain ranges just north of Yountville, the Piazza Estate Oakville Vineyard soaks in the best of Napa Valley’s sunshine and cooling southern winds. This harmony speaks loudly in the wines made here, with the exceptionally lush and jammy berry notes balanced with mouth-watering acidity. The Oakville AVA without surprise is one of the most highly decorated AVAs in Napa Valley, creating powerful wines that age wonderfully over decades. This vineyard is located at our newest winery and tasting room, Piazza Del Dotto that opened in 2017.
Howell Mountain – Howell Mountain Appellation – Single Vineyard
At an elevation of 1400 feet, this vineyard truly highlights the terroir of Howell Mountain, characterized by volcanic ash and red clay. Consisting of clones transplanted from our Rutherford Estate, it features ten acres planted with Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot. The cabernets present inky, black fruit with dark chocolate and savory herbs. The most robust Cabernet in our line up but our free run style and barrel aging tames the mountain tannins. We produce a 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from this single vineyard site and a Bordeaux-style blend, The David, which consists of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot.
The Beast Cabernet Sauvignon – Napa Valley
Our flagship wine at Del Dotto Vineyards, The Beast, truly lives up to its name and reputation. It is now one of the most highly awarded wines in the world with multiple 100-point ratings from Robert Parker. The Beast is essentially the perfect expression of Napa Valley harmony by blending the best pure cabernet sauvignon from our top six vineyards across the Valley: St. Helena Mountain, Vineyard 887, Rutherford, Oakville, Howell Mountain, and Pritchard Hill.
Villa Del Lago Cabernet Sauvignon – Napa Valley – Pritchard Hill
From the panoramic western-facing slopes atop Pritchard Hill, our Villa Del Lago Cabernet Sauvignon exudes elegance, finesse, and balance. Combining the rocky volcanic soils and cooling effects of Lake Hennessey below, Pritchard Hill yields some of the most spectacular wines in the world. It presents lovely blueberry, cassis, and blackberry expressions, amaretto cookie, chocolate, and a beautiful floral impact. A powerful wine yet marked by elegance, it has consistently received 97 –100 point ratings from Robert Parker and should age beautifully for 10 – 25 years.
Sonoma Coast, Ft. Ross-Seaview – Cinghiale Vineyard
One of the finest property acquisitions we ever made was in 2004 with the purchase of a vineyard in Fort Ross-Seaview located on the Sonoma Coast. After tasting a Pinot Noir produced from this vineyard, Dave Del Dotto was so impressed that he sought out the site owner and bought the entire 360-acre property. Renamed the Cinghiale Vineyard (Italian for “wild boar”), it has produced stunningly balanced wines ever since. The cool marine layer influence and chalky soils sitting 1,500 feet above the Pacific skyline give us extraordinary examples of the resident varietals, including Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, Grenache and Mourvedre.