The Sweetness of Doing Nothing, Specifically in Oakville
Sixty years is a long time to leave a winery sitting in the dirt, and yet somehow the place came out better for it.
The Winery
The name was carved in stone before anyone thought to look for it. When Gil and Beth Nickel bought the abandoned property in 1979 and spent three years restoring it, they found "Far Niente" cut into the face of the building. Placed there by the man who built it nearly a century before. Il dolce far niente. The sweetness of doing nothing.
Far Niente sits on a hilltop in Oakville on the western bench of the Napa Valley. Thirteen acres. A long ginkgo-tree lined driveway leads up to a 19th-century stone winery that now sits on the National Register of Historic Places. The gardens are formal and unhurried. Over 9,000 azalea plants cover the grounds, and if you visit in April the property is in full bloom. This is a place that has been designed, at every level, to slow you down. It delivers on the name.
The History
John Benson came west during the Gold Rush, made his money in real estate, and in 1880 bought a 216-acre farm in Oakville where he built the stone winery that still stands today. When Prohibition arrived in the 1920s, production stopped and the property went dark. It stayed that way for 60 years, cycling through owners, accumulating neglect. One of those owners, Martin Stelling, had plans to restore the old building. He died in a car accident in 1950 before he could. His namesake vineyard, the Martin Stelling Vineyard, still surrounds the estate and still produces fruit for Far Niente's Cabernet Sauvignon.
In 1979, Gil Nickel and his partners found the abandoned stone shell and bought it. Three years of restoration brought it back to 19th-century condition, Italian stonemasons included. Wine production resumed in 1982. The winery's first bottle was a 1979 Chardonnay. A bottle of 1886 Far Niente Sweet Muscat, found in a Marin County wine cellar in 1998 with its original cork, capsule, and label still intact, lives in the caves. The oldest California wine ever recovered.
The Winemaker
Nicole Marchesiis Director of Winemaking at Far Niente and Dolce, and has been part of the cellar team for over two decades. More than half the cellar crew has been here over ten years. That kind of continuity is not typical in Napa and it shows in the wines.
Her approach centers on guiding the natural expression of each vineyard site rather than building a style over it. The Far Niente Chardonnay is made without malolactic fermentation, a deliberate choice that keeps the wine crisp and precise instead of soft and buttery. On the premium Benson Vale Cabernet Sauvignon, she works alongside consulting winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown, sourcing only the best blocks from the Stelling Vineyard.
The Wines
The Far Niente Chardonnay draws from vineyards in Coombsville and Carneros, cooler AVAs that bring brightness and structure. Without malolactic fermentation, the wine stays citrus-forward, clean, white floral, with minerality underneath and a silky finish that doesn't overstay itself. Graceful, in the way that few California Chardonnays are willing to be. It doesn't try to be Burgundy and it doesn't try to be something it isn't.
The Far Niente Cabernet Sauvignonis Oakville at its center, blended from sites across the valley including Oak Knoll, Rutherford, and Calistoga. The primary source is the Martin Stelling Vineyard, the same sloped gravelly bench that surrounds the estate. What you get: dark mixed berries, dried lavender, baking spice, black tea, tannin with actual structure. This is not a soft Napa Cabernet built to please immediately. Give it time and it earns it. This is what the valley does best.
And then there is the Dolce.
Dolce is produced on a separate 20-acre Semillon vineyard in Coombsville, at the foot of the Vaca Mountains. It has been made since 1985 and holds the distinction of being the only winery in North America solely devoted to producing a single late harvest wine. The process requires leaving the berries on the vine until botrytis cinerea, noble rot, develops. That bloom sometimes doesn't arrive until Thanksgiving. Then the harvest crew goes through the vineyard multiple times, picking individual berries by hand, one at a time, discarding anything that doesn't meet the standard. The lots spend 32 to 36 months in French oak in dedicated caves before bottling.
In the glass: apricot, orange zest, honeysuckle, vanilla cream, toasted coconut, a whisper of mineral at the back. Luscious but not cloying, because the acidity holds the whole thing in place. I call it liquid gold. I've had better descriptions fail me.
Wine Enthusiast gave the 2018 vintage 98 points, calling it California's most consistently great dessert wine. James Suckling gave the 2016 vintage 97 points and the 2018 96 points. The 2021 vintage drew another nod from Suckling as brilliant, sweet, and age-worthy. This wine does not need advocates. But if you haven't had it, now is the time.
The Experience
Every tasting at Far Niente is private and exclusive to your party, led by a dedicated wine host. The estate tour begins with a guided walk through the historic 19th-century stone winery and wine caves before settling into the Great Hall or one of the outdoor alcoves set among the gardens. The alcove chosen varies by weather, time of day, and party size. The tasting covers the signature Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon flight, paired with a selection of local cheeses.
The caves are worth taking your time in. They date back to 1885 and hold the full wine library: every vintage of Far Niente Chardonnay back to 1979, every Cabernet back to 1982, and that recovered 1886 Sweet Muscat. The estate also houses a private classic car collection, visible from behind a chain. It no longer forms part of the formal tour but if you slow down and look, it's there.
Tastings are by appointment only, daily.
The Prices
$175 per person for the estate tour and tasting. Private, guided, with cheese pairing included. For what an afternoon in Napa usually costs, the math holds.
Who's It For
Wine travelers who want substance behind the scenery. Anyone who has done the Napa circuit and wants to taste something that requires no context to appreciate. People who come for the Chardonnay and the Cabernet and then find themselves still thinking about the Dolce on the drive home.
Notes
Address: 1350 Acacia Dr, Oakville, CA 94562
Reservations: farniente.com (book via Tock; appointment only, daily)
Format: Estate Tour & Tasting, $175/person; private guided tour of historic stone winery and caves; seated Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon flight with local cheese pairing
Accolades: National Register of Historic Places; Wine Enthusiast 98 pts (Dolce 2018); James Suckling 97 pts (Dolce 2016)
Instagram: @farnientewinery
About the Author
Kelly Gomez is a creative director who eats well, travels far, and lives with intention. She has sat at tables that required months of planning, flown routes that cross a dozen time zones, and found herself in rooms most people never find. She is precise about what she loves and honest about what falls short.
A WSET Level 2 Wine Certified writer and Advanced Open Water Diver, Kelly covers luxury travel, hotels, fine dining, wineries, diving destinations, and the trips built around them.
Her work reaches a US-based audience of travelers between 25 and 44, with a near-even gender split and a meaningful following.
