WINE | ART | MOTO
MotoDoffo Wines, a division of family-owned Doffo Winery located in Temecula, California, is proud to announce its partnership with the world-renowned Sturgis Buffalo Chip as its official wine provider. This marks the first ever partnership of its kind and will bring the wine tasting experience to the thousands of motorcycle enthusiasts that flock to South Dakota each year for the legendary motorcycle rally.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Temecula, Calif. – April 4, 2023 – MotoDoffo Wines, a division of premier Temecula Valley winery Doffo Winery, has announced renowned motorsports photographer Sara Liberte as the featured label artist for this year’s series of wines. This marks the sixth year that Doffo Winery has collaborated with a motorsports-focused artist to develop label designs, and Liberte’s stunning photographs were chosen to celebrate American v-twin motorcycles and their riders.
“We are really excited about this year’s MotoDoffo Wine series!” shares Doffo Winery Winemaker and CEO, Damian Doffo. “Our aim was to pay tribute to the American V-Twin and the millions of Americans who ride these motorcycles. Sara has been immersed in this world for many years and we are excited to showcase some of her best work capturing riders in motion around the famous Sturgis Rally.”
This year’s MotoDoffo labels celebrate some of Marcelo Doffo’s most unique custom builds, and the Ducati adorning the 2019 Gran Tinto label is no exception. Dubbed the Ducati “Magneto” because of the now rare magneto-equipped motor, this bike is another example of inspiration striking when a couple of components came into Marcelo’s life.
“I saw this tank, and it totally inspired me to put it together with this magneto motor that I had,” Marcelo recalls. “There are not too many of these magneto motors around anymore, which makes it a very unique bike.”
The magnetos were originally made by Italian Motors, Ltd, a shop based out of San Gabriel, CA. Marcelo had this 125cc motor for some years before envisioning the rest of the build when he saw the beautifully shaped gas tank which is now one of the most eye-catching features of the bike.
Marcelo goes on, “I used a Ducati frame and made some small modifications, and the seat I made myself by hand. It needed to be very specific; I tried several different seats and none of them were working.”
Marcelo is a talented painter, as is evidenced by not only this motorcycle, but many in his collection. One of the other unique aspects of this build is the front fairing, inspired by the Ducati race bikes of the past. “This is where I get emotional about this bike,” Marcelo explains. “I have a friend who is going through some health issues. His racing number was #50, so I dedicated this bike to him by putting his number on the fairing.”
One thing is for certain: this motorcycle is near and dear to Marcelo’s heart, and therefore is worthy of being immortalized on the 2019 MotoDoffo Gran Tinto label with original artwork by Roland Sands.
“It was love at first sight,” remembers Marcelo Doffo. “I had seen the real bike at a meet in Italy, and then years later one showed up at the Mecum auction in Las Vegas.” The only problem was the price tag, as these extremely rare machines can fetch up to $100,000. “There are not too many out there available to purchase, unless you’re willing to spend some serious money. So I decided to build my own.”
Samantha Doffo here with some updates on the 2022 race season! Thus far it has been exciting and definitely a growth opportunity for some of us. On the vintage side, Damian and I headed to Thunderhill Raceway in Willows, California to race with AHRMA at the end of April. It was a journey to get there, since it is all the way up near Redding. Damian and I had never been to that track, so the first practice day was super exciting for us. The track itself has some elevation and big wide turns, making it a challenge as well as very exciting. This was the first time that just the two of us headed out by ourselves.
The Royal Tinto wine label is always reserved for an iconic motorcycle. Our beloved 1973 Yamaha TD3 250 is no exception to the rule. The TD3 has roots dating back to 1959 as Yamaha ventured into producing not only production racing machines but conversion kits for people to convert their street bikes to road racers. The TD3 boasted all the right genetics to be a top contender at any racetrack with features such as a dry clutch, horizontally split crankcases, a 6 speed transmission and 34mm carburetors. The high revving 2 stroke engine produced 49bhp @ 10,500 RPM, good for over 140mph off the showroom floor. The bike was a mainstay for privateers of the era, and a key part of Yamaha’s domination of 1970’s road racing.
We were very fortunate to have been able to go racing with AHRMA (American Historic Racing Motorcycle Association) at their 2nd Annual Event at the famed Laguna Seca Raceway. As a lifelong motorsports fan, racing at Laguna Seca is a very special treat and racing with our whole clan made it even more special.
As a family we love racing, motorcycles, go-carts (anything with wheels really) and of course wine. I had a chance to catch up with Alyssa Bridges, a friend and supporter of all things MotoDoffo and currently a part of Royal Enfield’s Build Train Race Program. Royal Enfield selected 7 women to participate in MotoAmerica racing, including the building of a race bike from a stock Royal Enfield 650 Twin. The women then race on the MotoAmerica circuit at three of the nation’s fastest tracks. In September the women will be at the world famous Barber Motorsports track in Birmingham, Alabama. I caught up with Alyssa to find out more about the program.
When deciding which race bikes to feature on this year’s MotoDoffo wine labels, our 1964 Bultaco TSS 125 cc immediately came to mind. While this is a pretty unique and historic motorcycle, the TSS in our collection has a particularly interesting story of its own.
The motorcycle that graces the 2018 Super Tinto label is the Zanella “RK4” 125. An Argentine manufacturer, Zanella was established 70 years ago and became an icon of Argentine industry, employing nearly 1,000 people and selling more than 100,000 motorcycles each year. Zanella originally used 100cc and 125cc engines that it acquired in a licensing agreement with Ceccato Motorcycles in Italy. The key here was that the engines were designed by Fabio Taglioni, the highly talented engineer who eventually left Ceccato to become chief designer and technical director of Ducati from 1954 until 1989. Talioni’s desmodromic 90º v-twin engine design is still used in current Ducati motorcycles.